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Tuesday, January 26, 2010

An Evening with Condoleezza Rice--save the date and news release


Friends of Faith to host “An Evening with the Hon. Condoleezza Rice”

For immediate release

January 20th, 2010

Press Inquiries: Tammerlin Drummond/ 510 208-6468/ tdrummond@bayareanewsgroup.com

Oakland, CA Join former U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and the Friends of Faith in the fight against breast cancer.

We invite you to a rare evening with Dr. Rice in conversation with veteran KQED-TV journalist Belva Davis at the elegant Palace of Fine Arts, San Francisco.

Dr. Rice will discuss her amazing journey from growing up in segregated Birmingham, Ala., to becoming the first African American female Secretary of State. Dr. Rice, who lost her own mother to breast cancer, will also share her own personal experiences of caring for a loved one battling this deadly disease.

Dr. Rice’s memoir about her tenure as a top advisor in the administration of President George W. Bush is scheduled for release in 2011. As part of a three-book deal, Dr. Rice will also write a memoir about her family life, along with a young adult version—both scheduled for release in 2012.

After eight years of government service, Dr. Rice returned to the Hoover Institution where she is the Thomas and Barbara Stephenson Senior Fellow on Public Policy. She also is a professor of political science at Stanford University.

Friends of Faith, Inc. is a nonprofit organization founded by the late television news personality Faith Fancher of KTVU, whose valiant 7-year battle against breast cancer was an inspiration to countless women battling this deadly disease. The organization has a unique mission: to provide financial support and invaluable resources to underserved, uninsured, and at-risk women with breast cancer who have nowhere else to turn.

Since Faith’s death in 2003, her fellow Bay Area media personalities, along with many others in the community who are dedicated to her cause, have joined forces to continue the work that has been a Godsend for so many breast cancer survivors and their loved ones.

WHEN: Monday, March 29, 2010. 6-9pm

WHERE: Palace of Fine Arts, San Francisco (Free Parking at the Palace of Fine Arts)

TICKETS: $250 VIP (includes reception and Photo Op with Professor Rice)

$100 and $50 General Admission

For VIP tickets, call (510) 834-4142 for more information. VIP tickets will be held at the door.

All other tickets are available through
City Box Office
(415) 392-4400
Visa or Mastercard only

www.faithfancher.org

Saturday, January 23, 2010

Relationship Tip No. 1 - Listening for Understanding

By: Kevin L. Nichols

The art of listening is one of the most paradoxical problems in relationships. It is one of the easiest things to do (we all have ears and can pay attention when we choose to), yet if asked to summarize the conceptual understanding of what the speaker said, the listener either cannot or has no concept of what he/she just heard. In the beginning of relationships we all "hear" and listen very carefully with the goal of understanding. As time goes on and we get too relaxed and comfortable, we listen less, until we "hear" but do not listen at all. That is how our back door gets left open to the next person who is willing to make the time and effort to listen. Keep your back door closed tight. Lend an ear with the goal of understanding.



Copyright 2006 KLN Publishing, LLC All rights reserved


Friday, January 15, 2010

Thursday, January 14, 2010

Evaluating ‘the dream’ today



Commentary by Kevin L. Nichols

Americans often contemplate what our lives would be like if it were not for Martin Luther King Jr. Arguably, he is one of the most influential human beings of our time. A preacher’s son who promoted and demonstrated peaceful protest through nonviolent paths of resistance, King preached hope and love, predominately through his actions. In retrospect, we evaluate the relevance of his “dream” today in order to assess whether it has been achieved.

In various ways, our country has made tremendous strides and achievements. For example, rather than “desegregation” we have seen progress with “integration,” meaning our children now attend the same schools and are able to compete academically in ways never before seen. Moreover, religiously, we have seen the nation soften its stance on most religions. And, we have seen the country become more tolerant such that it did something that most of us thought we would never see: elect the first African-American president of the United States, Barack Obama.

Despite these advances, however, our country still has a long way to go before King’s “dream” becomes reality. We cannot use King’s “colorless” philosophy to circumvent our country’s strides with regard to affirmative action by eradicating it under the guise of non-discrimination, like in Proposition 209, which essentially eliminated the ability to use race in the admissions process or the procurement of government contracts.

Moreover, “post-9/11” has launched our country in a tailspin, destroying the advances made in our inalienable/civil rights since segregation and CointelPro. Privacy is becoming a thing of the past and our country is utilizing its powers to usurp the Bill of Rights, including the Fourth Amendment, which prevents illegal searches and seizures merely because people are DWB (driving while black or brown).

Senator Harry Reid’s comments released last Friday punctuate the fact that even though there are liberal Democrats that are sensitive to issues of race, we still have to remove the “field slave versus house slave” mentality that lighter-skinned African-Americans will progress further in life (including obtaining the presidency) compared to those with darker skin.

Progress is measured by being mindful of our starting and ending points. Our country is far better off than the lynchings, government-sanctioned terror and overt racism that existed in the past. Nevertheless, we still have distinct areas that need improvement. All we can do is pray and work to see that King’s dream is realized fully in our lifetime.

Kevin L. Nichols is an author and the president/CEO of KLN Publishing, located in San Francisco. For more information, visit http://klnpublishingllc.blogspot.com.