On This Date: Arthur Ashe - July 10, 1943

Arthur Ashe was born on this date in 1943. He was one of the more remarkable figures in U.S. sports. He was an African-American tennis player, author, and the first black man to win a major tennis tournament.

Arthur Robert Ashe, Jr., was born in Richmond, Virginia. At age ten he began to play tennis under the direction of Dr. Walter Johnson, who taught 1957 Wimbledon women's champion, Althea Gibson. Ashe went on to attend the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA).

In 1963, he became the first African American to play on the Davis Cup national tennis team, and won the U.S. intercollegiate singles championship. After graduating from UCLA in 1966 with a degree in business administration, Ashe was commissioned a second lieutenant in the United States Army Reserve.

In 1968, the major tennis tournaments opened their competitions to professionals, but Ashe remained an amateur because of his military status. At the U.S. Open that year he defeated several professional players and won the men's singles title.

Ashe is the only amateur ever to win the U.S. amateur championship and U.S. Open titles during the same year. In 1969, Ashe joined the professional tennis circuit; he and several other players formed the group that became the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP), the governing body that oversees rankings, prize money, and international tennis events.

His best season came in 1975, when he beat Jimmy Connors for the Wimbledon singles title and attained the number-one ranking in the United States. Ashe also won doubles championships at the French Open in 1971 and at the Australian Open in 1977. Ashe remains the only African American player ever to win the men's singles at Wimbledon, the U.S. Open, or Australian Open. He is one of only two men of black African ancestry to win a Grand Slam singles title (the other being France's Yannick Noah, who won the French Open in 1983).

Ashe survived heart surgery in 1979 and announced his retirement from competition a year later. He then served as non-playing captain of the U.S. Davis Cup team and became involved in various charitable and youth-oriented activities such as the National Junior Tennis League and the ABC Cities Tennis Program.

During a second heart surgery in 1983, it is likely that Ashe was given blood tainted with HIV, which causes AIDS. After acknowledging his disease, he became an active fund raiser and speaker on behalf of AIDS research. Ashe wrote "A Hard Road to Glory: A History of the Afro-American Athlete and Days of Grace." Ashe died February 6, 1993.

In 1997, the U.S. Tennis Center's main stadium in New York City was named after him in honor of his many contributions to the game. The Arthur Ashe Courage Award was established to honor Ashe; although it is sports oriented, it is not limited to sports.

Reference:African Americans/Voices of Triumph by Dr. Henry Louis Gates Jr. Copyright 1993, TimeLife Inc.

Quote of the Day: Organization...

"Out of clutter, find simplicity...From discord find harmony...In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity." - Albert Einstein

Quote of the Day: Faith and Fear...

All men are driven by faith or fear - one or the other - for both are the same. Faith or fear is the expectation of an event that hasn't come to pass - Andy Andrews from The Traveler's Gift

On This Date: Thurgood Marshall - July 2, 1908

On this date, Thurgood Marshall was born in 1908. He was an African-American lawyer and Supreme Court Justice.

Marshall grew up in Baltimore and graduated with high honors from Lincoln University in 1930. He studied at Howard University Law School, and graduated first in his class. In 1936, he became a staff lawyer of the (NAACP).

For over 20 years, he served as director and chief counsel for its Legal Defense and Education Fund. Marshall was a key strategist in the legal effort to dismantle racial segregation in housing, voting, and education. He won 29 of the 32 cases he argued before the Supreme Court.

Marshall’s most important victory came in Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka (1954), a case involving racial segregation in public schools.

President John F. Kennedy appointed Marshall to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. Four years later, President Lyndon Johnson appointed him as solicitor general. Johnson turned to Marshall in 1967 to fill a vacancy on the Supreme Court. Marshall was the first black to serve on the Court. He was an unrepentant liberal whose commitment to equality only expanded during his years of service.

He remained true to the values of freedom and equality despite the erosion of the liberal majority on the court that he helped sustain. In one of his last opinions (Dissenting from a conservative majority), Marshall declared that "Power, not reason, is the new currency of this Court's decision making.

In four years, Marshall wrote 98 opinions (essays explaining the logic and principles underlying a ruling), none of which was reversed by the Supreme Court. His opinions supported academic freedom, the right to a fair trial, and the right of civil rights demonstrators to picket and protest.

Poor health forced him to retire from the Supreme Court in 1991. Thurgood Marshall died of heart failure in Washington, D.C., in January 1993.

Reference:Thurgood Marshall, American Revolutionaryby Juan WilliamsThree Rivers Press, copyright 1998ISBN 0-8129-3299-4

Quote of the Day: Criticism...

"The only way to truly escape all criticism is to do nothing and be nothing!"

On This Date: Clark Atlanta University

On this date in 1988, Clark Atlanta University was founded. It is one of more than 100 Historical Black Colleges and Universities in America.

It was created by consolidating Atlanta University and Clark College to form CAU. This blended the strengths of both parent institutions and positioned them to respond to the future challenges facing Black America in teaching, research, and service.

Since 1988, Clark Atlanta University's enrollment has increased from 3,151 to 5,000 (4,000 undergraduate and 1,000 graduate students). The operating budget has grown from $40 million to $120 million, and the faculty has increased from 193 to 330.

Academic degrees are offered at the Bachelor's, Master's, Specialist, and Doctoral levels in more than 80 programs in the five schools: Arts and Sciences, Business Administration, Education, Library and Information Studies, and Social Work.

The doctorate degree is offered in biology, chemistry, humanities, political science, education, and social work. Clark Atlanta is the only private, Historically Black University listed in the Carnegie Classification as a Research/Doctoral-Intensive institution.

The leaders of CAU have a vision of national preeminence built on a strong base-- its long tradition of academic excellence and proven status in higher education. Clark Atlanta University produces graduates who have met the standards of excellence in contemporary higher education.

The students are educated to use their creativity while keeping their perspective on the world and its people. This commits their students to excel in their professional careers and personal lives and to seek new knowledge and solutions to the problems of humankind.

You can find additional information about Clark Atlanta University at http://www.clarku.edu/

Courtesy of www.aaregistry.com

Quote of the Day: Journey...

"A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step."

Candid and Uncanny: Michael Jackson...Curtain Call

Regardless of all the turmoil surrounding the life of Michael Jackson, for those of us who were touched by his influence on the music landscape, there are no words that can fully convey the sheer disbelief that is felt concerning his death.

There is no doubt that he lived his life in constant torment.

One never would have known that, however, if simply looking at his display of genorosity. Michael was a humanitarian of the highest order. He not only gave his time and money, but he also committed his enormous talents to recognizing those less fortunate than he was.

An innovative and electrifying performer, his voice was instantly distinguishable and his dance moves (fashioned after James Brown, Sammie Davis, Jr. and Fred Astaire) inspired a generation of young dancers worldwide and cemented the music video as an art form.

To recount all of the records he shattered would diminish and discount the very thing that amazed us most about the shy kid from Gary, Indiana: his charm. Michael did not become famous just because he could dance and sing; he became the most envied and lauded pop star in history because made us feel something that we could not explain with words.

Michael was arguably the greatest entertainer of all time.

But he was still human, and though he reaped more praise and acclaim than anyone in recent memory, the world, the fans and the success never quite gave him the one thing he treasured most; his childhood. Michael gave us so much more than we could have ever dreamed of giving to him.

His relentless compassion ultimately brought him to the center of the spotlight for all the wrong reasons, most disturbingly for allegations of robbing other children of the innocence he wrestled to regain for greater part of his adulthood.

And before our eyes, the cute little boy who wrote songs about his pet hamster and shuffled down the yellow brick road with Diana Ross in The Wiz, morphed into someone who was as far from human as the success he achieved.

In a way, we lost Michael years ago. But it is still hard to grasp the reality that he is now truly gone. His chance has come to walk on the moon.

"Do you remember the time when you fell in love..."

We do remember; we'll never forget.

Cotton Never Sounded So Good

Even though the clips were released months ago, Jazmine Sullivan's commercial for Cotton aired numerous times through the 2009 BET Awards telecast last night.

In just about 30 seconds, she reminded the world what a warm and textured voice could do to even the simplest jingle.

Below is extended footage from the commercial shoot. Jazmine croons for about two and-a-half minutes. It's a nice treat and only whets the appetite further for her sophomore project, which allegedly is already in the works.

Throwback Thursday: "Right Here (Human Nature)" - SWV feat. Michael Jackson

The year was 1992, and upon bringing a softer side to the New Jack Swing that was dominating R&B airwaves with lead single "Weak," SWV (Sister with Voices) borrowed from a legend for their second single.

"Right Here (Human Nature)" seductively sampled Michael Jackson's quiet storm standard, "Human Nature," from his quintessential Thriller album and sailed to #1 on the charts. The song's success pushed SWV's debut album to triple-platinum status and established the girls - Coko, Taj and Lelee - as one of the most successful R&B groups of the 90s.

Do you remember what you were doing in summer of '93?

Quote of the Day: Adversity...

"Adversity is preparation for greatness." - Andy Andrews from The Traveler's Gift

Metro Train Collision Turns Fatal

Investigation Points to Train Age, Maintenance



As many as nine people were killed and 76 injured Monday during peak evening rush hour when two six-car Metrorail trains collided near the Maryland-Washington, D.C. border at approximately 5:00 p.m. EDT.

The crash occurred when a stationary train near the platform of the Ft. Totten station in the District was rear-ended by another that had departed the Takoma Park station in Maryland.

Both trains were traveling on the southbound-tracks of Metro’s Red Line, which extends from Montgomery County, Md. into D.C.

Mass groups of injured passengers, referred to as the "walking wounded," climbed from the mangled wreckage and rushed toward emergency crews. In all, nearly 200 paramedics and firefighters from the District, Maryland and Virginia converged on the site of the accident to administer aid.

Officials worked past nightfall to account for all victims. It wasn't until a crane successfully separated the two contorted trains that all bodies were removed.

Among those who died at the scene was 42-year-old Jeanice McMillian of Springfield, Va., the operator of the train that bombarded into the one that was halted. She began conducting rail cars in December after working as a bus driver for nearly two years.

Six other bodies were identified Tuesday, one being that of Maj. Gen. David F. Wherley Jr., 62, who was the commander of the D.C. Army National Guard. Wherley’s wife was also killed.

Metro officials and National Traffic Safety Board investigators are still combing through debris, and have indicated many weeks will pass before the cause of the accident can be uncovered.

McMillan's relatively inexperience, with just over six-months logged as a rail operator, is being examined as a possible contributing factor in the the traumatic accident.

Reports, however, indicate the impacting train was part of the 1000 series of Metro's fleet. Those cars, originally delivered from 1976 to 1978, have been in operation since Metro launched the rail system. They were refurbished in the mid-1990s, but as recently as 2004, the NTSB has suggested voice recorders be installed in the aged cars and, more importantly, that they be replaced with newer models.

Furthermore, the Washington Post reported Tuesday that the lead car of the impacting train was scheduled to receive brake maintenance more than two months ago, but the repairs were never performed.

Metro spokespersons declined to comment on the status of train maintenance because of the ongoing investigation.

One other important variable that will factor into consideration is whether or not the trains involved were operating in automatic or manual mode.

Following a crash in 2004, which did not involve fatalities, NTSB officials advised Metro to grant train operators manual override controls in the event that human interference could prevent a collision. It is standard for Metro's trains to run on auto mode during rush-hour periods.

The collision Monday was the most severe in the 33 years since Metro began operating its rail transit system. Prior to Monday’s accident there had not been a customer-related fatality on Metro since January 1982, when an underground crash on the Orange Line killed three.

First Serve: Wimbledon 2009

A number of top-seeded players cleared the first round of singles play at Wimbledon 2009, which officially began today.

Serena Williams, seeded second, advanced to the second round after defeating Neuza Silva of Portugal, 6-1, 7-5 on Centre Court. While breezing through the first round in under half an hour, Williams fought to close the second set, which eventually ended with an unexpected tie-break in Silva's first grand slam appearance. Serena lost to sister Venus in last year's final.

On the men's side, Roger Federer faced off against Yen-Hsun Lu in a three-set match that saw Federer move on after a 7-5, 6-3, 6-2 win. Lu kicked off the match with a bit more punch than expected, but cooled for most of the two final sets. Though he lost fell last year against Rafael Nadal in Wimbledon's longest-ever final, Federer is the favorite to take the crown this year.

Maria Sharapova fought off a relatively-unknown Viktoriya Kutuzova, a qualifier from the Ukraine,to win 7-5, 6-4 in two hard-fought and error-ridden sets. Sharpova returned to the tournament after an extended bout with injury and crushing defeat at the All England Club in 2008.

Tomorrow the women's No. 1 and No. 3 seeds, Dinara Safina and reigning-champion Venus Williams, will face their respective opponents. Jelena Jankovic, seeded 6, will also compete in her first-round match.

Andy Murray of the U.S. and Andy Roddick of Great Britain, seeded No. 3 and No.6 respectively, start off the tournament on Centre Court tomorrow as well.

Last year's men's champion, Rafael Nadal, will not be competing in the tournament this year due to a severe knee injury.

Candid & Uncanny: Kobe Bryant and Derek Fisher

What's most impressive about the L.A. Lakers' victory at the 2009 NBA Finals is not simply the fact that they won.

They've appeared in six of the nine NBA finals games this decade - winning four. And with Kobe Bryant, consistenly a dominant figure in the league, and Phil Jackson, who has as many championship rings as he does fingers, the spotlight has always hovered over Los Angeles and its No. 1 franchise.

Trouble is, that hasn't always been a good thing. Especially for Kobe. The effects of his personal dilemma were inevitably amplified on the court as the world witnessed his tumultuous "fall from grace."

His career and more importantly his marriage nearly crumbled amid allegations that the Lakers' go-to-man had sexually assaulted a prostitute in Colorado. The legal implications were far less threatening than the damage to his wholesome image, even though he was ultimately exonerated.

And Kobe's long-time teammate, Derek Fisher, forded and equally gripping challenge between the heyday of the early 2000s and this year's triumph.

During the 2007 season, when Fisher was playing with the Utah Jazz, his daughter was diagnosed with retinoblastoma, a childhood cancer of the eye which is life threatening. At his request, he was released from the contract in Utah to devote more attention to his young child's medical care.

But for proving that adversity can humbles every man, and can deliver a victory that even opponents can applaude, a moment shared by Kobe Bryant and Derek Fisher scores as the week's best photo.

Quote of the Day: Companionship...

"To get the full value of joy you must have someone to divide it with." - Mark Twain

An Eye for Style: Tom Ford Caravan Sunglasses

The long-and-short:

Recently unveiled by the iconic collective, Tom Ford, these shades are a quintessential accessory for summer 2009. As an equal alternative to RayBan's Wayfarer (and a superior option in terms of affirming individuality), this pair of recreational eyewear sports a squared-aviator shape set off by understated clipping details around the entire lens frame.

The damage:

$337

Where to get them:

Chevy Chase (If you have to ask where, you don't need to know)

Reference: www.essentiallymajor.blogspot.com

Quote of the Day: Difficulty...

"Never measure the height of a mountain until you have reached the top. Then you will see how low it was. - T.S. Eliot

Candid & Uncanny: Barack Obama Shoots Himself in the Foot

Friendly fire is an unfortunate product of being over-zealous at times. In other instances, poor planning is to blame. And then occasionally no fault can be assessed.

In Barack Obama's case, concerning a White House picture showing the president with his feet propped up on a desk in the oval office, the latter seems appropriate.

Obama ventured to the Middle East in the last week, pounding pavement in the racial and religious hotbed in an effort to ease combative views of the United States in that region. While visiting Israel and Arab-majority countries, the president put forth his most diplomatic posture possible - though even a speech given in Egypt drew a bit of controversy among Arab nations.

But when worldwide media trumped up the photograph of a rather nonchalant Obama baring the soles of his broken-in shoes – while on the phone with Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netenyahu no less – the absurdity ensued. It appeared Obama has shot himself in the foot, literally. Since it is an Arab practice to avoid showing the soles of your feet, Israeli broadcaster's decried the photo as an insensitive insult to the Jewish nation.

And simply to because it is evidence that even Barack Obama cannot please everyone, no matter how hard he tries, the photo of him kicking back with his wingtips high-flying is the photo of the week.

Quote of the Day: Fear...

Ships in safe harbour are safe, but that's not what ships are built for." - John Shedd

Quote of the Day: Freedom...

"Man's freedom does not lie in the fact that he is not bound..." - J. T. Robinson