The Top Highlights, Issues, Themes, Sayings and Sightings of the Day – July 26, 201
1. Twitter Server Overload – During the conference’s official opening Thursday morning, the Urban League became one of Twitter’s trending topics. So many people were tweeting that Twitter’s server slowed down and completely stopped working.
2. Quote of the Day – “New Orleans is like a Polaroid picture: we develop from the negative.” Nolan Rollins Greater New Orleans Urban League President
As New Orleans moves closer to the seventh anniversary of its levees breaking, many speakers like Greater New Orleans’ Urban League President Nolan Rollins reflected on the resilience and perseverance of the “Who Dat” nation in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.
3. Saving Our Sons – At Thursday morning’s opening session, New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu gave riveting, visual heart-wrenching remarks on the hundreds of murders that have taken place in New Orleans within the last seven months and mentioned the thousands of senseless murders that occurred throughout other predominately= Black cities across the nation. He reminded us all that eradicating violence in our communities should be a top priority.
4. “We must Occupy the Vote!” – Occupying the Vote is the 2012 National Urban League Conference’s overarching theme. During his annual State of the Urban League Address, NUL President Marc Morial got the crowd energized about fighting against “modern-day poll-taxes” such as the voter-ID legislations that were passed in a number of states who are intentionally attempting to disenfranchise millions of voters.
5. New Orleans Jazz Sound – The Big Easy is the birthplace of Jazz and with the National Urban League Conference taking place in New Orleans this year, it would be incomplete without a jazz band making an appearance and filling the room – particularly the N.U.L. Experience Expo Hall – with that authentic ‘Nawlins’ sound.
6. Broadband is a Civil Rights Issue – At the “Job Creation and Education: Programmatic Efforts to Increase Broadband Adoption in African American Communities” workshop, panelists emphasized how broadband or internet adoption in minority communities can improve economic conditions and spur job growth.
7. Star-Studded Concert – Hundreds of people donned in either all-white or white linen packed into the New Orleans Arena to listen to music living legend Chaka Khan bring down the house and Hip-Hop legends Doug E. Fresh and Biz Markie take us back to the Golden Age of another African-American original music form.
8. Can The Weather Make Up Its Mind? – It’s sunny! …. It’s raining?! …. Wait, what is it?!
9. Urban League is admired for continually standing by its word – We came across a founding member of the Birmingham, AL Chapter of NUL Young Professionals, Marquelon Sigler, who said the following: “ … One thing I like about the Urban League, unlike some other organizations, the Urban League is about direct services. They come up with concrete, workable goals …”
10. Whitney Houston’s Rendition of Star Spangled Banner – In addition to the color guard, recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance, The National Urban League played Whitney Houston’s version of the Star Spangled Banner, which is often noted as the greatest rendition of the national anthem of all time.
