Black History

Black History Month-Inspired Tribute Showcases Career of Smokey Robinson

WASHINGTON INFORMER — The tribute follows Robinson’s career from his early years as a lovestruck teen to his winning the 2016 Library of Congress Gershwin Prize.

Published

6 years ago

February 27, 2019

Oakland Post

By WI Web Staff

“A Black History Tribute to Smokey Robinson,” written and directed by Washington Informer staff writer Dorothy Rowley, will be presented at 6 p.m., Saturday, March 2 at Broomfield Memorial Church in Richmond, Va.

The tribute follows Robinson’s career from his early years as a lovestruck teen to his winning the 2016 Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for a lifetime of contributions to popular music.

“Like so many of my friends from school and our neighborhoods who grew up in the 1960s and early ’70s, I’d always enjoyed listening to soft, silky and mesmerizing sounds Smokey Robinson and the Miracles, as well as other Motown-grown talent,” Rowley said. “So, this past summer while driving home from D.C., I was listening to one of Robinson’s staples on the radio when I got the notion to showcase his stellar career as a Black History Month project.”

Rowley, who said it took her about six weeks off and on to write the script, added that her goal was to take her peers down memory lane while introducing the iconic singer-songwriter to millennials just beginning to grasp the sound of old-school R&B.

The presentation was initially slated for the last weekend of February, but was moved to March 2 due to scheduling conflicts.

“Nevertheless, we got it done and everyone involved is super excited,” Rowley said.

There is no cost for admission.

This article originally appeared in the Washington Informer.

Oakland Post

Posts by Oakland Post

Up Next

Virginia Lt. Gov. Fairfax Compares Himself to Lynching Victims

Don't Miss

National Museum of African American Music receives $1M from Regions and Curb Foundation

Oakland Post

Click to comment

Activism

Oakland Post: Week of June 4 – 10, 2025

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of June 4-10, 2025

Published

5 days ago

June 7, 2025

Oakland Post

To enlarge your view of this issue, use the slider, magnifying glass icon or full page icon in the lower right corner of the browser window.

Oakland Post

Posts by Oakland Post

Activism

Remembering George Floyd

BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — Minnesota State Attorney General Keith Ellison acknowledges that the Floyd case five years ago involved a situation in which due process was denied, and five years later, the president is currently dismissing “due process. “The Minnesota Atty General also says, “Trump is trying to attack constitutional rule, attacking congressional authority and judicial decision-making.” George Floyd was an African American man killed by police who knocked on his neck and on his back, preventing him from breathing.

Published

2 weeks ago

June 2, 2025

Oakland Post

Mural showing the portrait of George Floyd in Mauerpark in Berlin. To the left of the portrait the lettering "I can't Breathe" was added, on the right side the three hashtags #GeorgeFloyd, #Icantbreathe and #Sayhisname. The mural was completed by Eme Street Art (facebook name) / Eme Free Thinker (signature) on 29 May 2020. (Wikimedia Commons)

By April Ryan
BlackPressUSA Newswire

“The president’s been very clear he has no intentions of pardoning Derek Chauvin, and it’s not a request that we’re looking at,” confirms a senior staffer at the Trump White House. That White House response results from public hope, including from a close Trump ally, Georgia Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene. The timing of Greene’s hopes coincides with the Justice Department’s recent decision to end oversight of local police accused of abuse. It also falls on the fifth anniversary of the police-involved death of George Floyd on May 25th. The death sparked national and worldwide outrage and became a transitional moment politically and culturally, although the outcry for laws on police accountability failed.

The death forced then-Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden to focus on deadly police force and accountability. His efforts while president to pass the George Floyd Justice in policing act failed. The death of George Floyd also put a spotlight on the Black community, forcing then-candidate Biden to choose a Black woman running mate. Kamala Harris ultimately became vice president of the United States alongside Joe Biden. Minnesota State Attorney General Keith Ellison prosecuted the cases against the officers involved in the death of Floyd. He remembers,” Trump was in office when George Floyd was killed, and I would blame Trump for creating a negative environment for police-community relations. Remember, it was him who said when the looting starts, the shooting starts, it was him who got rid of all the consent decrees that were in place by the Obama administration.”

In 2025, Police-involved civilian deaths are up by “about 100 to about 11 hundred,” according to Ellison. Ellison acknowledges that the Floyd case five years ago involved a situation in which due process was denied, and five years later, the president is currently dismissing “due process. “The Minnesota Atty General also says, “Trump is trying to attack constitutional rule, attacking congressional authority and judicial decision-making.” George Floyd was an African-American man killed by police who knocked on his neck and on his back, preventing him from breathing. During those minutes on the ground, Floyd cried out for his late mother several times. Police subdued Floyd for an alleged counterfeit $20 bill.