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Sunday, July 20, 2003

By Ervin Dyer, Post-Gazette Staff Writer

The National Urban League rolls its 93rd annual conference into town this week, an event that will put Pittsburgh at the heart of a ranging exploration of the 21st-century black family.

Dozens of nationally known speakers and more than 3,000 registered delegates from the league's 105 affiliates will begin arriving Thursday for speeches, workshops and communitywide events pegged to the conference's theme: "The Black Family: Building on Its Resilience."

At 93 years old, the Urban League is one of the nation's oldest justice and social service organizations. Since its founding in New York as a group focused on helping rural black immigrants adjust to city life, the league has broadened its agenda to include housing, health care and employment issues affecting families, businesses and young people.

Nationally, there are 8.1 million black families, and statistics offer a mixed picture of their status.

Marriage rates are up, but so are the number of single female-headed households; median income is up, but one-third of all black families still live in poverty.

The issues, as well as the organization's national jobs fair, a large-scale health pavilion and social activities, are expected to draw an additional 7,000 people to the conference and its spillover events, making it one of the largest conventions to have been held at the new David L. Lawrence Convention Center.

This year's conference was originally headed for Cincinnati, but plans to hold it there were derailed when three days of civil unrest followed the police shooting of a black youth in April 2001. The league's leadership was further upset by a July 2002 incident in the city when a black assistant police chief was suspended after being accused of falsifying an accident report.

With less than a year to go before conference time, the league went looking for a new site.

At least five cities were considered. A strong leadership team in the Pittsburgh chapter made the case for convening here, said Hugh Price, the recently retired president of the National Urban League who helped make the decision to bring the gathering to Pittsburgh.

This will be the fifth National Urban League conference to be held here. The first, in 1922, came just four years after the Pittsburgh Urban League's founding. That was followed by national conferences in 1932, 1942 and 1954, the year the Supreme Court struck down school segregation.

Though the conference is national in scope, local issues on health disparities, justice, underemployment and educational opportunity will be "touch points" for debate.

Esther Bush, chief executive officer of the local Urban League, said the increase in black female-headed households, which at 39.4 percent locally is 11 percentage points higher than national rates, was a concern.

Because these families are more likely to live in poverty, the local Urban League designs education, structured after-school activities, housing and employment programs to give children a boost toward a more stable future.

"I'm pleased the national conference will focus on the family," Bush said. "It underscores what the Urban League is all about."

The new president of the organization, Marc Morial, 45, a lawyer and former New Orleans mayor, will make his first national address at the convention. He was named to the post in May, succeeding Price, who retired after nine years at the helm of the group.

So far, Morial said, 2003 has been a watershed year for many black families. "Despite the Supreme Court's favorable decision on affirmative action, we continue to see other challenges to our community," he said.

Among them are declining standards in urban schools, growing rates of HIV infection among young blacks and more incarceration of young black men.

The conference is about offering solutions to these situations, Morial said. It's about "building bridges and networks to create a powerful black community."

Before the conference wraps up, convention-goers will debate affirmative action, HIV/AIDS, the role of social services on black family life, entrepreneurship, urban education, early literacy, housing and more.

A number of high-profile speakers will weigh in during the week, among them: pediatric neurosurgeon Ben Carson; U.S. Secretary of Education Rod Paige; Deputy Housing Secretary Alphonso Jackson; Congressional Black Caucus chair Elijah Cummings; Rainbow/Push Coalition director Jesse Jackson Sr.; Willie E. Gary, chairman and CEO of the family values-based Major Broadcasting Cable Network; Betsy Bernard, president of AT&T; and Phill Wilson, founder and director of the Black AIDS Institute.

On the lighter side, entertainers Stephanie Mills, Frankie Beverly and Maze, and Broadway's Three Mo' Tenors will perform.

Paid registration is required to participate in the panel discussions and workshops, which run from Saturday to July 30, but there are free events tied to conference. Most are in the convention center. They include:

Health Pavilion, an arena-size fair offering health screenings, healthy cooking demonstrations and "Ask the Doctor" sessions. Representatives from cancer, heart and diabetes associations will be there. The pavilion opens next Sunday and ends July 29.

A Career Fair, with dozens of prospective employers from some of the nation's largest companies, including Office Depot, PNC Financial, UPS, Target and Verizon. It is open from noon to 5 p.m. Saturday; 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. next Sunday ; and 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 2:30 to 5 p.m. July 28.

African Marketplace, featuring arts and crafts from Pittsburgh vendors, and the Opportunity Showcase, a chance to view new products in arts, entertainment, media and technology. Most events are open daily during the convention but are closed noon to 2:30 p.m. to give conference-goers a chance to attend the day's keynote luncheon.

An art gallery, featuring the works of 27 local sculptors, painters, fiber artists and more.

An exhibit of photography by Charles "Teenie" Harris and other local black photographers, compiled by the African American Cultural Center and on display in a gallery at 937 Liberty Ave., through Aug. 2. It is open Monday through Friday, noon to 6 p.m.; on weekends from noon to 4 p.m.

The conference also is making a special effort to reach out to people 40 and younger.

The Urban League Young Professionals will host a three-day seminar, "The Training Ground: A Leadership Development Institute," which runs Friday through next Sunday.

Sessions will focus on the growing influence of the Latino community, how not to live paycheck to paycheck and keeping the doors to higher education open.

There also is the National Urban League Incentives to Excel and Succeed, or NULITES, which starts Thursday.

About 350 teens and their sponsors will hold rallies, job tours and hear motivational speakers, such as Sharon Robinson, daughter of baseball pioneer Jackie Robinson.

Dozens of local companies are getting in on the act, too.

PNC Financial Services Group has contracted with workers from Goodwill Industries of Pittsburgh to stuff welcome-bags full of Penguins bobblehead dolls, miniature Heinz Ketchup bottles, Snyder's pretzels and other items for conference-goers.

Behind the scenes, a squadron of more than 800 volunteers will set up computers, register guests and handle myriad other tasks.

Will Thompkins, executive assistant to County Executive Jim Roddey and coordinator of many of the volunteers, called them "ambassadors."

"We have to be tactful and diplomatic," Thompkins said. "No detail is too small."

The registration deadline for the formal conference has been extended through Monday. The fee of $230 provides access to all plenaries and workshops, and includes a ticket to see the Three Mo' Tenors concert as well as a conference bag and badge.

It does not cover meal functions and special events.

Separate rates for children, seniors and Urban League affiliate staff are available.

There also are separate packages for events, luncheons and dinners. For example: the Guild Luncheon with physician Ben Carson is $50; Business and Labor Luncheon, $75; and the gala, with ticket prices of $50, $75 and $125.

Registration for the Young Professional program is $250, which includes the three seminars, a ticket to the gala Saturday night and all the other social and networking sessions. For more information: Visit www.nul.org or call 1-800-263-9926.