by Phillip Johnson

Over 30 years ago, I joined the fraternity of Alpha Phi Alpha, Inc. Their motto “First of All, Servants of All, We shall Transcend All,” spoke to their being the first Black fraternity and their lofty vision for brotherhood.

They touted iconoclastic members, including Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Thurgood Marshall, U.S. Sen. Edward Brooke and Ambassador Andrew Young, all from the forefront of the Civil Rights Movement. They engaged in the community with programs like “A Voteless People is a Hopeless People,” and they have changed the trajectory of the lives of thousands of young men in the process.

(REAL TIMES MEDIA)—Last week Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama resigned for failing to keep key campaign promises after only being in office for nine months. About 90 percent of the American public have no idea who Hatoyama is, or that his Democratic Party won control of Japanese politics after one party rule for decades or that Japan is our most important strategic partner in Asia. However, we should all care, especially President Barack Obama, who could learn a thing or two from the former prime minister on how to keep your job in a rough political environment.

I was introduced to the Muhammad Study Group and the result was that I started to frequent Mosque #22 located in Wilkinsburg.

There was a brother there who questioned me in a friendly manner in one of my early visits, by asking did I belong to the Nation and I responded what nation? We both smiled and he then stated, “I’ve noticed you and you appear to be totally at ease, and I understand you are a practicing Christian.” My response was, “I feel totally at home, because the teachings of the most Hon. Elijah Muhammad, Malcolm X, and the Hon. Minister Louis Farrakhan are not foreign to me, because throughout my life there were Christian ministers, who delivered almost identical messages of positiveness.”

(NNPA)—Despite widespread global condemnation of Israel’s decision to attack a flotilla of boats carrying unarmed civilians attempting to deliver humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip, U.S. officials have refused to publicly criticize Israel and the American media has reported the conflict through what one media monitoring group called “Israel’s Eyes.”

For years, Palestinians have been unable to get their side fairly reported in the U.S. media and the latest international incident is yet another example.