Education
Brothers Code Comes Back to Oakland
Students sit in on a session at last year’s Brothers Code event. This year’s fourth annual Brothers Code event will be held from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 9 at Merritt College. Photo courtesy of The Hidden Genius Project.
The Hidden Genius Project, an Oakland-based organization that aims to connect young black males with opportunities in the tech sector, will host their fourth annual Brothers Code event from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 9 at Merritt College.
The event takes place during National Computer Science Education Week, and is part of the larger Hour of Code initiative focused on introducing people from across the country to the basics of coding education.
Young men of color in middle and high school are invited to attend; however, the event is free and open to the public.
Brothers Code is designed to demystify what it means to work in tech, while also addressing the cultural roadblocks and barriers African Americans face in its trajectory.
“The most important thing that the event attempts to highlight is the misunderstanding of tech, and what that is,” said Akeem Brown, Programs Director at The Hidden Genius Project.
“Every company is a tech company, or technology is what serves as the backbone behind their product or service.”
Brown said that by exposing young people and their families to the tech sector and its various career prospects, events like Brothers Code provide a more communal approach to learning.
“What I really love about the event, is we bring families out,” said Brown.
“The kids will go to one track. The older folks in the family will go to another track. They both will be exposed, some in non-traditional ways. The fun part for everybody is the hands-on coding.”
Participants old and young, can look forward to flexing their coding and programming skills, exploring education pathways and career opportunities in the tech sector, and networking with tech professionals.
About 2,400 black male youth have been served since The Hidden Genius Project was founded in 2012.
However, one of the main challenges the organization currently faces is addressing the growing need for their free services in the Oakland area.
In addition to their Immersion Program, a 15-month intensive boot camp and mentorship program for black male students, the organization also provides mental health referrals, and case management services for local youth.
“We feed our kids, we pull up at their school and request transcripts,” said Brown.
“You can’t just expect to sit a kid down at a computer without understanding what they’ve been through during the day.”
Brown said that the one thing he hopes young people walk away with from Saturday’s event is exposure to a multifaceted tech sector, right alongside peers from their community.
“We’re not a farm system for Silicon Valley; we’re not training them to ‘get out the hood,’” said Brown.
“We’re training our students to create their own companies as big as Facebook, and Apple, and Google. We want them to create companies just as big in their own communities.
“We don’t leave the hood, because when you get out the hood you leave it open for gentrification.”
Although the Brothers Code event is aimed specifically at black male youth, all participants are encouraged to find various ways in which they can leverage technology to strengthen their communities and reach their goals.
For more information about The Hidden Genius Project, visit http://www.hiddengeniusproject.org.
Art
A Prolific Painter: Artist and Advocate Lois Mailou Jones
Lois Mailou Jones was a prominent African American artist whose career spanned more than seven decades, from the Harlem Renaissance to the modern art movement. She was not only a prolific painter but also an influential educator, bridging cultural gaps and challenging stereotypes through her vibrant and diverse works.
By Tamara Shiloh
Lois Mailou Jones was a prominent African American artist whose career spanned more than seven decades, from the Harlem Renaissance to the modern art movement. She was not only a prolific painter but also an influential educator, bridging cultural gaps and challenging stereotypes through her vibrant and diverse works.
Her unique journey of self-expression, dedication to art, and advocacy for African American and African themes made her a crucial figure in the evolution of American art.
Jones was born on Nov. 3, 1905, in Boston. Raised in an intellectual and supportive family, she demonstrated an early interest in art, encouraged by her mother, who believed in the importance of creativity. Lois studied at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, where she faced racial challenges but persisted in pursuing her passion.
Her pursuit of higher education led her to the prestigious Design Art School, where she perfected her skills in textile design. Later, Jones attended Harvard University and received further training at the Académie Julian in Paris. This European experience greatly influenced her style and broadened her perspective on art.
Jones’s career began in textile design, creating works that were used by leading textile companies. However, her true passion was painting. During the Harlem Renaissance, she moved away from textile design to focus on fine art, exploring themes that reflected her heritage and the African diaspora.
Her early works were influenced by European Post-Impressionism, featuring landscapes and still life, but Jones’s style evolved over time. After spending time in Haiti, she was deeply inspired by Caribbean culture, and her palette became more vivid, her subject matter more symbolic. The influence of African and Caribbean culture is evident in her later works, where she used bright colors and geometric patterns to convey the spirit and stories of the people she encountered.
Her contributions to African American art were significant during a time when Black artists struggled for recognition. She often focused on themes of African heritage, pride, and unity, blending African illustrations and portraits with Western artistic techniques to create a unique visual language that celebrated Black culture.
She was also a dedicated educator. She began her teaching career at Palmer Memorial Institute in North Carolina and later became a professor at Howard University in Washington, D.C., where she taught for almost 50 years. Through her teaching, she influenced generations of young Black artists, encouraging them to explore and express their cultural heritage through art.
In the 1930s and 1940s, she worked to exhibit her work alongside other Black artists, helping to create a platform for voices that had long been excluded from mainstream galleries.
Recognition and Legacy
Jones achieved significant recognition throughout her lifetime, both in the United States and internationally. She exhibited her work across the globe, including in Paris, Africa, and the Caribbean.
Jones continued painting until her death in 1998, leaving behind a rich legacy of artistic achievements and contributions to art education. She broke boundaries by celebrating Black identity and heritage at a time when these themes were often marginalized.
California Black Media
New California Law Will Protect Students During Extreme Weather
On Sept. 22, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bill that will protect students from extreme weather conditions by requiring the California Department of Education to develop guidelines for school districts to implement during weather patterns harmful to student health. Authored by Sen. Melissa Hurtado (D-Sanger), “Yahushua’s Law” or Senate Bill 1248 addresses an extreme heat-related fatality in Lake Elsinore. During the summer of 2023, a student died after participating in physical education suffered extreme heat-related illness.
By Bo Tefu, California Black Media
On Sept. 22, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bill that will protect students from extreme weather conditions by requiring the California Department of Education to develop guidelines for school districts to implement during weather patterns harmful to student health.
Authored by Sen. Melissa Hurtado (D-Sanger), “Yahushua’s Law” or Senate Bill 1248 addresses an extreme heat-related fatality in Lake Elsinore. During the summer of 2023, a student died after participating in physical education suffered extreme heat-related illness.
“No student should ever lose their life on campus to extreme weather when we can take steps to protect them by preparing statewide plans to minimize exposure to the most harmful elements of exposure,” Sen. Hurtado stated last Spring. “I commend the family of Yahushua Robinson, the twelve-year student who lost his life due to heat related illness during on-campus physical education, for lending their emotional strength and compassion for others in order to help ensure that no other student loses their life this way.”
Supporters of the legislation say the lack of uniform guidelines and protocols across schools and school districts in California intensifies the issue, creating an urgent need for safeguards to ensure student safety during extreme weather conditions.
California Black Media
More Than 1.2 Million Youth Pre-Registered to Vote, Secretary of State Weber Announced
Secretary of State Shirley N. Weber announced on Sept. 26 that more than 1.2 million young people between the ages of 16 and 17-years-old have pre-registered to vote since the state launched the initiative in September 2016. The state program automatically activates voter registration for pre-registered youth when they turn 18 years of age.
By Bo Tefu, California Black Media
Secretary of State Shirley N. Weber announced on Sept. 26 that more than 1.2 million young people between the ages of 16 and 17-years-old have pre-registered to vote since the state launched the initiative in September 2016. The state program automatically activates voter registration for pre-registered youth when they turn 18 years of age.
Weber, who has visited dozens of high schools across the state to promote voting initiatives, said that students are eager to vote and look forward to casting their first ballot, and “the numbers back them up.”
“Young Californians want to be engaged, active participants in our democracy and they can position themselves to do so by preregistering to vote,” said Weber.
Weber said that she is committed to encouraging young people to pre-register to vote, adding that she looks forward to partnering with the California Department of Education, State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond, school officials, and leaders of community-based organizations to expand this effort.
According to Weber’s office, approximately 42% of young voters are registered Democrats, while over 13% are registered Republicans. Another 35% of young voters registered as having “no party preference.”
For more information, Californians can visit the online pre-registration website at www.RegisterToVote.ca.gov. Registration is open to residents who are 16 or 17 and meet all the following criteria:
- A United States citizen and a resident of California.
- 18 years old or older on Election Day.
- Not currently serving a state or federal prison term for the conviction of a felony
- Not currently found mentally incompetent to vote by a court.
More information about pre-registration for California youth can be found at sos.ca.gov/elections/pre-register-16-vote-18.
Upcoming key deadlines and dates for the November 5, 2024, General Election can be found at here.
Plus, visit http://elections.cdn.sos.ca.gov/statewide-elections/2024-primary/section-08-general-election-calendar.pdf to view a complete California General Election Calendar with more voting details and updates.
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