Community News (V11-I53)

Malcolm X’s daughter speaks

Ilyasah Shabazz, the third daughter of the late American Muslim leader Malcolm X, is the keynote speaker at the eighth annual Martin Luther King Jr. and Days of Dialogue (MLK/DOD) celebration Jan. 18-22, at the University of Wyoming.

Shabazz, an author, lecturer and human rights activist, will speak at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 21, in the Wyoming Union Ballroom. “Poverty, Politics and Race” is the theme of this year’s event. MLK/DOD renews UW’s commitment to making campus a more welcoming and empowering place for people from different backgrounds, heritages, orientations or abilities. UW events celebrate the continuing impact of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s life and ideals.

Author of “Growing Up X,” Shabazz is committed to developing educational programs that foster self-empowerment; expanding government to teach individual responsibility for improving society; and capitalizing on the arts and entertainment to encourage the understanding of history, culture and self expression.

She is the daughter of Malcolm X, an African-American Muslim minister, public speaker and human rights activist. To his admirers, he was a courageous advocate for the rights of African Americans, but his detractors accused him of preaching racism, black supremacy and violence. Malcolm X has been described as one of the greatest and most influential African Americans in history. Shabazz was only 2 years old and present when her father was assassinated in 1965 in New York.

Shabazz produces “The WAKE-UP Tour,” her exclusive youth empowerment program designed to inspire young people to think and act critically to safeguard their futures. She also is corporation president and trustee of her parents’ legacy, The Malcolm X and Dr. Betty Shabazz Memorial, Educational and Cultural Center, Inc. at The Audubon, the place of her father’s assassination.

Among other highlights of MLK/DOD are the annual MLK March and Willena Stanford Supper; panel and book discussions, observation of National Service Day, movies, art reception and entertainment.

Lawsuit claims religious bias

CHICAGO, IL–The Council on American-Islamic Relations has filed a lawsuit on behalf of an African-American Muslim who worked as a truck driver in the Chicago area, and who says he was harassed both for his race and for his religion.

Reginal Exson worked as a truck driver for the Cook County location of USF Holland, according to a news release form the council.

Exson says a company representative made insulting remarks calling him a “liar,” making derogatory remarks against African-Americans and telling Exson that lying “must be part of your gene pool.”

In November 2007, Exson suffered severe injuries in an accident that wasn’t his fault, and the company would not honor the work restrictions recommended by his doctor, the lawsuit said. Exson was also punished based on unspecified false allegations, the council said.

Furthermore, a worker’s compensation coordinator allegedly called Exson a “terrorist,” and remarked, “Did you think I was going to let you and Osama bin Laden get off with all this money that we’re paying you?” the council said.

Exson also alleged that his benefits provider, USF Holland parent company YRC Worldwide Inc., would not compensate him for his injuries, nor accommodate his work restrictions.

Iowa poultry plant receives state loan

CHARLES CITY, IA– newly  poultry plant in Charles City with plans to do halal poultry has received a $250,000 loan from Iowa’s Department of Economic Development.

Custom Poultry Processing plans to purchase the former Allstate Quality Foods facility in Charles City and convert it to a poultry processing facility. The plant is expected to process 14 million chickens every year and employ 126 people.

The company will focus on specialty market segments including fresh organic, halal and antibiotic-free poultry. It will offer private label processing as well as developing its own brand. Production is expected to begin by April.

Half of the loan will be forgiven if the company reaches $20 million in sales in three years.

Pakistani and Indian Americans meet

NEWARK, CA– Americans of Indian and Pakistani origin would be meeting on Dec. 25 in New Ark to discuss issues such as running an ethical business and educating their children.

Billed as “Vision 2047: First 100 Years Conference, Creating New Values and Principles for New World Powers,” the conference is sponsored by Universal News Broadcasting and WBT Television. The event will be held at the Chandni restaurant in Newark and will include dinner and classical Ghazal, the Mercury News reported.

“My parents came from the India side of Pakistan in the 1950s,” said Farrukh Shah Khan, a key organizer who grew up in Saudi Arabia and Pakistan before coming to the US when he was 17. “I have always thought of India as the motherland and Pakistan as the fatherland and I’ve always thought of the shared values the two countries have had.”

Khan, a TV producer at WBT Television and co-founder of San Jose’s Pakistani American Cultural Center, lined up an array of speakers to talk about business, government, culture and education from a South Asian perspective, purposely choosing entrepreneurs, philosophers and educators with nondogmatic viewpoints to speak to an audience of predominantly Hindus and Muslims.

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