(GIN) – Globe-trotting civil rights activist, the Rev. Jesse Jackson, was in South Africa this week where he was acknowledged by Pres. Jacob Zuma for his many years organizing Americans against apartheid. At a ceremony marking “Freedom Day,” Jackson received the Order of the Companions of O.R. (Oliver) Tambo from Pres. Zuma.

(Minneapolis) – Hennepin County Sheriff Rich Stanek will conduct a swearing-in ceremony for 27 new detention deputies and 30 new Deputy Sheriffs.  Among those who will receive their badge – is Deputy Haissan Hussein. He is the first Somali American to be sworn-in as a Deputy Sheriff in Hennepin County.
 
“We want Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office personnel to reflect the communities we serve and Deputy Hussein is an asset to public safety and our efforts to work in partnership with the Somali American community in Hennepin County,” said Hennepin County Sheriff Rich Stanek.
 

Cameroonian poet and writer Enoh Meyomesse has been named an Honorary Member of the U.S. international freedom to write group, PEN America, which launched a dynamic interactive timeline to draw attention to his case.

Last December, Meyomesse was sentenced to seven years in prison on charges of stealing and illegally selling gold.

ST. PAUL, Minn.—The Ramsey County Regional Railroad Authority (RCRRA) has approved the selection of artist Ralph Gilbert to create a series of six historical and multicultural murals in the grand waiting room of Union Depot, located in St. Paul’s Lowertown neighborhood. The artist will begin design work, which will involve research, outreach and input from community members. The murals are expected to be complete in late 2013.

Streets will be swept and bunting will be hung this week in the run-up to the public swearing-in ceremony of Kenya’s newly elected president, Uhuru Kenyatta, scheduled to take place at the 60,000 seat Moi International Sports Center, April 9.
 
By law, the event must take place in broad daylight, between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m.
 
“We are now focusing on the day which will be historic in many ways. The whole of this week will be for preparation of the swearing in ceremony,” said Francis Kimemia, head of Civil Service.

Cineastes of all stripes and nationalities brightened this year’s Film and Television Festival in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso – a biennial event that recognizes the best works of the African continent with major prizes.
 
Jurors, who viewed 101 entries including shorts, features, documentaries and TV serials, singled out “Tey” (Today, in English) from Senegal for the much-coveted Golden Stallion of Yennenga award.

MinneapolisYouth Violence Prevention Week—held March 18-22—is a chance for kids and adults to take part in reducing youth violence in the city.

(GIN) – Announced plans by an Amsterdam-based court to prosecute Uhuru Kenyatta for his role in the mayhem that convulsed Kenya in disputed polls in 2007, may have given him the edge to trounce his nearest rival, Raila Odinga, according to locally-based analysts.
 
Presidential candidate Kenyatta was proclaimed the winner of Kenya's election with 50.07 percent of the March 4 vote.
 

~ First Lady Michelle Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry Present International Women of Courage Awards ~

Colleen Curtis

First Lady Michelle Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry honor the recipients of the International Women of Courage Award in the Dean Acheson Auditorium at the U.S. Department of State in Washington, D.C., March 8, 2013. 

Kenyans by the millions turned out to vote Monday in a much-anticipated poll that was the first under a new constitution. Pollsters predicted a win for Uhuru Kenyatta, son of founding President Jomo Kenyatta, who had gained an edge over his closest rival, Raila Odinga, in early returns.
 
The high number of spoiled ballots – over 300,000 – and the failure of biometric voter registration machines in several areas, may create a prickly predicament for the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission which has announced it will count all votes cast, even spoiled ones.

By Anab Guled

University of Minnesota is conducting a surveillance project in Minneapolis regarding autism/autism spectrum disorders (ASD) in the Somali community. The study is sponsored by the Centers for Disease Control, the National Institutes of Health, and Autism Speaks, and managed through the Association of University Centers on Disability. The project aims to determine autism/ASD prevalence in Minneapolis residents during the year 2010 in children between the ages of 7 to 9.

(GIN) – The much-awaited swimsuit issue of Sports Illustrated magazine has waded into a public relations nightmare with its display of bikini-clad white models prancing alongside Africans carrying spears or Chinese paddling rafts in cone shaped hats.
 

By Mary Garca

Uchechukwu Iroegbu, outstanding Twin-Cities based photographer and owner of Uchefotography, enjoys capturing and creating images of the world around him.  Uchechukwu shoots events, portraitures, families, fashion, and conceptual photography, and especially likes doing weddings, cultural events, and covering social justice issues. His passion captures emotional and physical aspects of the human expression, allowing him to catch what’s within, the different characters of each of us, and portraitures, in particular, reflect the sacredness of the bond between people in their own spaces, within the community, and in the studio.

(GIN) - The blind musical couple Amadou and Mariam from the embattled nation of Mali is this year’s winner of the French Victoire de la Musique prize for the best World Music album entitled 'Folila'.
 
In 2005, they won the same prize for their song: 'Les Dimanches à Bamako' (Sundays in Bamako) - a day normally reserved for weddings.
 
The couple received a giant trophy from Youssou N'Dour, Senegal’s music icon who is currently that country’s minister of tourism and entertainment.

By Stephanie Fox, Global Groceries

Abdur Omer, co-owner of Shabelle, the little Ethiopian grocery store and restaurant on Franklin Avenue, opened his store 13 years ago after moving to Minnesota to be near friends. He first moved to Washington, D.C. from Ethiopia in the 1980s and it was there, just a couple of years before he arrived, where I first became aware of Ethiopian cuisine. The city’s many Ethiopian restaurants were popular with the many Ethiopian cab drivers, and although I was only an Iowan cabdriver, I’d grab the same take-out as my fellow cabbies, nibbling on dinner as I trolled for fares. I loved the fragrant stews and the bread it was served on. They were unlike any cuisine I’d tried.