(L to R) F.A.C.E. List Awards Host Eric Henderson, F2FA Founders Sandra Appiah, Isacc Boateng

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The event, which was sponsored by State Farm and Arik Airlines, was filled with moving performances and attendees from all over the continent of Africa. Nathan Wise kicked off the evening with a moving spoken word performance and Eric J. Henderson of the Huffington Post followed up with opening remarks.

George Ntim, F.A.C.E. List Service Award Honoree

“It’s a little emotional for me because I just think I’m doing what I enjoy doing so I don’t even know why I’m being rewarded, but certainly I’m very humbled by the whole recognition,” George Ntim told NewsOne.

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Ntim, who holds the title of Director of VIP Guest Relations and Community Services at the Marriot Marquis Hotel, was honored for his youth-oriented initiatives in Ghana carried out by his foundation, African Development Foundation (ADF).

Ntim’s primary goal with ADF has been introducing the sport of baseball to African youth. His organization is currently building the first ever baseball field in Africa. “My hope is one day to see a Ghanian or African at Yankee Stadium hitting home runs. That’s my dream,” said Ntim. “I want them to be able to compete with the millions of dollars that the Latin athletes come here to make.”

The philanthropist was given a beautiful musical tribute by close friend and former American Idol contestant, Nicole Ortiz, who sang “One Moment in Time” and Whitney Houston’s “I Will Always Love You.”

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Honoree Peace Anyiam-Osigwe, who was recognized for her impact in the African film industry as well as founding the African Movie Academy Awards, emphasized the importance of events like the F.A.C.E. List Awards. “It’s true that it’s rare for Africans to celebrate their own, but it’s important that we do,” she told the audience. “I’m so proud to receive this honor from my own people, because that’s what means the most to me.”

Throughout the evening, attendees enjoyed a solid lineup of entertainment, including an upbeat performance from African gospel singer Yaw Osei-Owusu, a trumpet number from Akroft & Co Live and smooth vocals from Peter Jericho.

Y.A.C.E. winner Nadia Sasso with F2FAfrica magazine co-founder Sandra Appiah

The ceremony concluded with the announcement of the F.A.C.E. List Awards Sweepstakes winner. A lucky audience member walked away with a $500 State Farm Visa Gold Gift Card and two tickets from Arik Airlines, West Africa’s largest commercial airline. Proceeds from the awards program will be going towards the Raising Hope Foundation, an organization that aims to raise awareness and funds for orphans in Africa.

Kelly Rowland‘s hit single “Dirty Laundry” has been a hot topic on the blog sites for the past few weeks but Kelly ain’t trippin’ because she has a new man! I ain’t one to gossip but you ain’t heard that from me. Oh no you haven’t! Find out what lucky man Kelly Rowland has scooped up.

Meet Rowland’s new man.

Cover athlete LeBron James meets “Video Game James” in your first look at NBA 2K14 on PlayStation 4, from Sony’s E3 Press Conference! Check out the video below.

Jay-Z & Lebron James Host ‘Two Kings Dinner’ [PHOTOS]

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James Weldon Johnson (pictured) lives on in history and is often best-known for his leadership of the NAACP by becoming the organization’s first Black manager. Johnson was born in to a family that promoted education, and as a result, he went on to achieve amazing feats despite living in a time period that still shunned educated African Americans.  NewsOne takes a look back in to the life and triumphs of James Weldon Johnson on his birthday.

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Johnson was born in Jacksonville, Fla., to parents Helen Louise Dillet and James. Johnson’s mother was the first Black female teacher in Florida and taught her son literature and music in order to bolster his studies. Johnson’s father was a headwaiter at a posh hotel; Johnson was inspired to succeed based on watching his father’s hard work.

Consequently, Johnson entered Atlanta University (now Clark-Atlanta) at the age of 16, graduating in 1894.

As a college freshman, Johnson went to a rural community in Georgia to teach children of former slaves. The experience changed him, giving him the motivation to do more for his people.

Johnson shared in written account in 1891 of the venture:

In all of my experience, there has been no period so brief that has meant so much in my education for life as the three months I spent in the backwoods of Georgia. I was thrown for the first time on my own resources and abilities.

Johnson kept education as the core of his work, heading Jacksonville’s largest school in 1906 at age 35. Although Johnson was qualified as any other principal, he received less than half the wages of White principals who led schools of his size. Johnson added ninth and tenth grade courses to the Stanton School (now Stanton College Prep), improving the stakes for the young people there by virtue of challenging them.

During his time at Stanton, Johnson was appointed by President Theodore Roosevelt as U.S. Consul in Venezuela and Nicaragua, and later married Grace Nail (pictured at right) in 1910. The pair was familiar with each other as they crossed paths during Johnson’s time as a songwriter in New York in 1901. One of Johnson’s greatest achievements was penning the lyrics to “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” which was set to music by his brother and composer, John Rosamond Johnson.

Working in the Foreign Service during his diplomatic years, Johnson wrote his most well-known book, “The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man,” which was published in 1912. While the book was a novel, it was inspired by events in Johnson’s life and based on accounts from friends and associates. The premise of the book detailed the struggles of a biracial man living in post-Reconstruction-era America in the late-19th to early 20th centuries.

In 1920, Johnson became the first African-American manager of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). Working for the NAACP since 1916 as a field secretary, Johnson’s devotion to civil rights activism was affirmed. In 1919, he organized protests against the racially motivated riots of that year and coined the term “Red Summer,” after Whites began attacking Blacks in dozens of cities across the country. Historians say that the tensions between Blacks and Whites grew as a result of the ending of World War I and veterans on both sides clamoring for jobs and housing.

Johnson gained prominence in the NAACP, rising to the ranks of secretary for the organization, becoming the first man to do so. However, He would leave his post in 1930 to accept the Spence Chair of Creative Literature position at Fisk University in Nashville, Tenn. Lecturing on literature, civil rights, and a host of other issues as they related to Black Americans, Johnson’s position solidified his status as one of the Harlem Renaissance’s greatest minds. The position was created for him because of his achievements as an author, poet, and educator.

Johnson tragically lost his life in 1938 while vacationing in Maine. A train struck his car while he was driving it in the small town of Wiscasset. He was 67.

Johnson’s life and his lists of achievements cannot be captured in a few paragraphs. What he was able to obtain from hard work and focusing on his own ascension while promoting the same in others speaks volumes about his integrity and preserves his ongoing legacy. Johnson is forever cemented in the annals of history as a man who did not allow his surroundings or other barriers to keep him from being all he could be.

Rest In Powerful Peace, James Weldon Johnson!

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Kim Kardashian and Kanye West had their first child on Saturday- a healthy baby girl.

The due date was set for July, but the baby decided on an early arrival as Kim was rushed to the hospital Saturday morning.

According to sources, West was by Kim’s side when she delivered the baby, despite his busy tour schedule.

Kim has been reported as “doing well” after giving birth, with the Kardashian clan expressing their love and support for her.

A body found in a pool by Henrico Police on Monday belonged to a missing child.

The 11-year old missing Frederick Fitzgerald Jr had been reported as missing by his parents on Saturday night. He went to the pool at the Shannon Townhomes around 4pm and had not returned. His parents called the police at 11pm when he hadn’t come home.

Roughly an hour and a half after the call, a body had been found at the bottom of the pool, which has since been confirmed as Frederick Fitzgerald.

There’s a reason why Ken Cuccinelli, the Republican nominee for Virginia governor, distanced himself from E.W. Jackson (pictured) within hours of Jackson securing the nomination as his No. 2: Jackson is crazy.

Back in May, the Virginia gubernatorial hopeful said, “We are not going to be defending our running mates’ statements, now or in the future. The people of Virginia need to get comfortable with each candidate individually, and that’s what this process is all about.”

Translation: Don’t put that man’s crazy on me.

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You’d think that would’ve been the clue Jackson needed to tame it down, but no. Last week, the minister and politician held a news conference to diffuse controversy surrounding many of his past comments, including the notion that yoga can lead to Satanism and birth defects are spurred by sin.

The Richmond Times-Dispatch reports:

Jackson said many of his statements have been taken out of context to try to make it sound as though he believes that birth defects are caused by parents’ sins or that yoga leads to Satanism.

‘I do not believe that birth defects are caused by parents’ sin unless, of course, there’s a direct scientific connection between the parents’ behavior and the disabilities of the child,’ he said, giving the example of birth defects that might result from a child born to a Mother addicted to heroin.

He added, I do not believe that yoga leads to Satanism. One of my ministers is a yoga instructor. What I said was that Christian meditation does not involve emptying oneself but filling oneself…with the spirit of God. That is classic biblical Christianity.

The uproar over yoga came earlier this month when the National Review posted an excerpt of a book that Jackson had written. Jackson wrote:

When one hears the word meditation, it conjures an image of Maharishi Yoga talking about finding a mantra and striving for nirvana. … The purpose of such meditation is to empty oneself. [Satan] is happy to invade the empty vacuum of your soul and possess it.”

Jackson said he felt compelled to address his theology “because it has been twisted and distorted and I’m not going to spend the campaign talking about these issues, so let’s get it out of the way now.”

Jackson also touched on some of his past issues, which include drug use and filing for bankruptcy. I don’t begrudge the man for his faults as we all have them. What I do take issue with, though, is his damning of people different from him and then lying about it.

In 2008, Jackson wrote in the book “Ten Commandments to an Extraordinary Life”:

Keep in mind that the whole cosmos has been made imperfect — wounded — by sin. It is the principle of sin, rebellion against God and His truth which has brought about birth defects and other destructive natural occurrences.

In that same book he wrote the following about yoga:

When one hears the word meditation, it conjures an image of Maharishi Yoga talking about finding a mantra and striving for nirvana … The purpose of such meditation is to empty oneself … [Satan] is happy to invade the empty vacuum of your soul and possess it. That is why people serve Satan without ever knowing it or deciding to, but no one can be a child of God without making a decision to surrender to him.

What exactly did any of us misconstrue here? Don’t cop out on the crazy now, Bishop Jackson. It’s gotten you this far. Besides, there’s video evidence of Jackson’s nonsense floating around Al Gore‘s Internet.

Here Jackson calls President Obama being a Christian “laughable”:

Jackson also claimed that Obama has “Muslim sensibilities.”

Here is Jackson telling Black Christians to abandon the “slavish devotion” to Democrats:

Note how he goes on to and accuse Planned Parenthood of doing more damage to the Black community than the Ku Klux Klan. He feels the same about liberals too.

Here is Jackson saying there should be no federal aid for natural disasters:

Not to be outdone, here’s Jackson accusing the Obama administration of playing racial politics:

And yet, it’s the press who is responsible for “taking his comments out of context.” The only thing worse than a bigoted jackass is one who punks out when it is time to own up. If you can repeat such ignorance among friends, you might as well say it everywhere. It’ll get out one way or another. Case in point.

It’s funny that E.W. Jackson has made a career out of being a Black face to the bigotry held by certain White men, and yet, the very minute he gets close to attaining legitimate political clout via a run for lieutenant governor, his would-be superior all but leaves him out to fester. This sort of abandonment could’ve have happened to a better person, because Jackson is an embarrassment to anyone with extra melanin. May he lose miserably in the fall.

Michael Arceneaux is a Houston-bred, Howard-educated writer and blogger. You can read more of his work on his site, The Cynical Ones. Follow him on Twitter: @youngsinick

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A man was killed and two people were injured during a car crash in Chesterfield over the weekend.

The driver and one of the passengers are in a stable condition at the hospital, but the other passenger died in the accident.

Police are still investigating and believe speed to be a factor.

Federal authorities state that the raids are a part of an on-going investigation into human smuggling, money laundering and identity theft according to the AP.  The store owners allegedly helped smuggle the workers into the U.S. from Pakistan.