School/Institution: Nashville State Community College

Major/minor: Health Information Managment

Giving back: I currently serve as Vice President of the National Society of Leadership and Success at Nashville State Community College in Nashville, Tenessee. My role is assisting the President with all duties necessary to successfully run the Chapter. I have participated in the Food Drive at Voltee Church of Christ hosted by National Society of Leadership and Success.

Five-Year Aspirational Plan: In five years, I endeavor to have my bachelor degree in Health Information Management. In addition to my degree I want to develop my leadership skills and receive the National Excellence in Leadership Award from National Society of Leadership and Success Organization. After my leadership skills are proven, I intend to be a leading motivational speaker who is determined to bring positive change in women's lives. I hope to bring lasting positive changes to less fortunate African sisters. Above all, I would like to see myself being an icon for African women whom everybody won't hesitate to turn their face for help.



Country you are representing: Ethiopia

New York (Tadias) - Grammy-nominated Ethiopian-American musician Kenna (né Kenna Zemedkun) is leading a team of friends including Jessica Biel, Lupe Fiasco, Isabel Lucas, Elizabeth Gore, and Alexandra Cousteau to climb Mount Kilimanjaro, Africa’s highest peak and one of the world’s largest stratovolcanoes, in an effort to raise more awareness about the global clean water crisis. Today marks Day 1 of the journey. The climb aims to raise funds for The Children’s Safe Drinking Water Program, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and PlayPumps International.

New York (Tadias) - Tommy T (Thomas T. Gobena), bass player for the New York-based multi-ethnic gypsy punk band Gogol Bordello, has released his first solo album entitled The Prestor John Sessions. The album includes collaborations with Gigi, Tommy T’s brother & bassist Henock Temesgen, members of the Abyssinnia Roots Collective, and a bonus remix including Gogol Bordello bandmates Eugene Hütz and Pedro Erazo. Tommy describes The Prestor John Sessions as “an aural travelogue that rages freely through the music and culture of Ethiopia.” His debut album features the diversity of rhythms and sounds of Ethiopian music - as multi-ethnic as has become the Lower East Side Gypsy band that has taken the world by storm. Who else but Tommy would produce an Oromo dub song featuring Ukranian, Ecuadorian, and Ethiopian musicians? We spoke to Tommy T about life as a Gogol Bordello member, the influences on his music, and the story behind The Prestor John Sessions. Normally Tommy T punctuates everything he says with so much humor that it’s difficult not to be immersed in sporadic moments of pure laughter. His message in this interview, however, remains serious: Are you ready to change the way you listen to and classify music?

DECEMBER 8, 2009: ADDIS NEGER ANNOUNCES ITS IMMEDIATE CLOSURE, CITING PERSECUTION OF ITS EDITORS.

Abiye Teklemariam (b. 1978) is a founding editor of Addis Neger (”New Addis”), Ethiopia’s leading dissident newspaper. I was introduced to Abiye by the Committee to Protect Journalists, and took the opportunity to interview him on May 25, 2009 at Ledig House in Omi, New York, where he was in residence working on a book about the prospects for Ethiopian democracy. Currently, he is doing a media and democracy project as a researcher at the University of Oxford.  A follow-up interview is anticipated for early 2011 in Addis. These interviews will form the basis for a chapter in my book, Uhuru Revisited: Interviews with African Pro-Democracy Leaders (Africa World Press/Red Sea Press).                                             -Ron Singer

[Note: all material in square brackets has been added by the author -RS]

RS: Tell me about your early life and motives for becoming a dissident journalist. [Abiye was raised in Addis, where he was educated and got his first degree, in Law.]

Interview with Haile Gerima - Director, screenwriter, writer, producer, and philosopher