Some Highlights from Our May Issue…

An online archive providing details of nearly 100,000 slaves owned by British colonists in Barbados during the early 19th Century has been launched.

Ancestry.co.uk features the first part of the Former Colonial Dependencies’ Slave Register Collection and will eventually detail three million slaves.Simon Harper, a spokesman for the site, said it would “help bridge major historical gaps for many people”.

This year is the 200th anniversary of Britain’s abolition of the slave trade.

The Abolition of Slave Trade Act, which was passed in 1807, made it illegal to trade slaves from Africa to British colonies. The legislation required British colonies and territories to keep tri-yearly registers. The British government was able to monitor slave ownership and stamp out illegal slave trading by registering both slaves and their owners.

(Continue Reading…)

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The U.N. Security Council voted unanimously Friday to lift a ban on Liberian diamond exports imposed in 2001 when so-called “blood diamonds” were being used to fuel civil wars in west Africa.

Britain’s U.N. Ambassador Emyr Jones Parry, the current council president, said the vote was “a recognition of the progress made in Liberia” to ensure diamonds are mined legally.

The vote is “a reflection of our confidence in that country, in its leadership,” Jones Parry said.

Liberia applied March 27 to join the Kimberley Process, a voluntary 71-nation group created out of the furor over diamond-funded wars in Sierra Leone and Angola.

The group, whose members agree to trade only certified diamonds, has helped conflict diamonds drop to less than 1 percent of those sold worldwide, from about 4 percent previously. (continue reading…)

This past beauty editor of major glossies likes to shake up her beauty routine daily on her blog.

If you are part of the Young, Fabulous & Broke generation, you cannot afford to be without this book. This is a book that’s MORE THAN A BOOK. It interacts with Suze’s web site so that she can give you step-by-step advice tailored specifically to your financial needs. Step-by-step Suze will help you become Young, Fabulous & NOT Broke. It really does work!

Suze wanted us to tell you do not…

Lease a car. Finance it instead.
Take out an interest-only or no-down-payment mortgage. If you have to use either of these options, it’s a sign that you really can’t afford to own a home just yet.

Ask a friend or family member for a loan unless you are confident that you can pay it off. No amount of money can buy back a busted relationship if you flake on repaying.

Think of bankruptcy as the life raft that will save you. The financial and emotional impact of bankruptcy is devastating. Work with a credit counseling agency to devise a plan to pay your way out of your financial hole.

Invest in a mutual fund with the letter A or B at the end of it’s name. That’s a sign that there will be a sales commission attached - it can be 5 percent. That’s a silly waste of your money.

Screw up your FICO score. It’s your winning ticket to every financial move you will ever make when you need to borrow money for car loans, mortgages, or credit cards.

Purchase a variable annuity. This investment makes a lot of money for your financial adviser, but not for you. Just say no thanks to anyone who offers you one.

Start a savings account if you still have high-rate credit cards. Get the debt paid off first.

For more of Suze’s tips log-on to www.suzeorman.com and please go pick up Young, Fabulous & Broke - it’s definitely a must have!

Yes, according to Jason Whitlock, columnist for the Kansas City Star (recently featured on Oprah’s Town Hall Meeting) who was upset with the way the Imus situation was handled. Here’s an excerpt from his article-Thanks Hutch:

I’m calling for Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton, the president and vice president of Black America, to step down. Their leadership is stale. Their ideas are outdated. And they don’t give a damn about us. We need to take a cue from White America and re-elect our leadership every four years. White folks realize that power corrupts. That’s why they placed term limits on the presidency. They know if you leave a man in power too long he quits looking out for the interest of his constituency and starts looking out for his own best interest. We’ve turned Jesse and Al into Supreme Court justices. They get to speak for us for a lifetime. Full Article

Is it time for new leadership? If so, who would you nominate?

For more of the hottest gossip and entertainment news walk over to WALKTAKEN

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Log-on now to Fredflare.com for more…

Before: Russell on Oprah

After: Russell on O’Reilly Factor

Do you think Russell is calling for the removal of the infamous “three words” from hip-hop because of pressure or the potential back lash from the media or is this a genuine call to action because he wants to help our portrayal and image as a people?

Stay tuned for our interview with Russell Simmons in the June Issue of Clutch…

Ladies, let’s really bring the glamour days back! Look back at our history in fashion in the 40’s-70, we looked damn good. We were always put together, sophisticated, and classy. From our pictures you could never tell that we were going through such great prejudice and sometimes severe poverty.

The pencil is flattering on most figures - it’s not too tight, not too loose; not too long, not too short – Perfect!

Before we give you our new issue teaser - we wanted to thank you all for your support, love and positive feedback. With that being said…our May issue is only a couple of days away!

One of our features this month is a television personality that loves fashion, knows how to handle projects, occasionally walks the runway, and always figures out how to “make it work“.

Hmm… Wouldn’t have put this combination together with Ki-Ki, Tyra and Beyonce’. Looks like Beyonce’ may be joining the BFF club because we all know Tyra loves her some Beyonce’. It’s kind of obsessive, in fact….

For more of the hottest gossip and entertainment news on the web walk over to WALK TAKEN….Run Don’t Walk :)