Sunday, September 29, 2013

The Curious story of Afro-Turks - the Black Citizens of Turkey


 Authored by Lachin Hatemi M.D.
Published by www.KultureKritic.com

In 2010, Dutch-Turkish Photographer Ahmet Polat published the photo book AfroTurks, which documented the pictures of Turks of African descent living in the region of Izmir- Turkey’s third largest city. Ahmet had been working on this project since 2006. The pictures from his collection open the doors to the inner worlds of black minority in Turkey.

Who are Afro-Turks? Where did they come from and where they are heading?

Friday, September 27, 2013

Book Review: “The Internal Enemy” - Founding Fathers’ attitude towards Slavery after the American Revolution


 Authored by Lachin Hatemi M.D.
Published by www.blackbluedog.com

Pulitzer Prize-winning author - Alan Taylor describes the events around the issue of slavery during and after the American Revolution in his most recent book “The Internal Enemy”. Alan examines the mass exodus of slaves to the ranks of the Royal British Army. “The Internal Enemy” shows the personal side of the Founding Fathers from Virginia and points a finger at the contradiction between their well-publicized rhetoric and attitudes towards the institution of slavery.

Controversial portrait of freed slave now on view at National Portrait Gallery


Authored by Lachin Hatemi M.D.
Published by www.blackbluedog.com

The portrait of Ayuba Suleiman Diallo is currently open to public viewing on a long-term loan to the National Portrait Gallery in London, from the Orientalist Museum in Qatar. However I am very hard-pressed to describe this “loan arrangement” as a voluntary exchange. This loan was only made possible as a result of the British Government’s intervention to prevent its exportation to its rightful owner from the small and wealthy sheikhdom of Qatar.

Tuesday, September 24, 2013

Lachin Hatemi: Spirit of 1968 is dead at University of Kentucky


Authored by Lachin Hatemi M.D.

In the 1968 Mexico City Olympics, two black athletes, Tommie Smith and John Carlos made history with their black power salute. As world class athletes, they used the Olympic platform to protest the mistreatment of black people. Early in John Carlos’ life he desired to be a swimmer, not a runner, but most swimming pools were open exclusively to the white elite.  Mr. Carlos found his calling in running because it did not require access to costly facilities that were off-limit to blacks like swimming.

Thursday, September 19, 2013

Before Oprah: Scholar’s Philanthropic Work Has Huge Impact on Africa

                                                  Authored by Lachin Hatemi M.D.                                                    
  Published by  www.yourblackworld.com



Centuries of colonization, slavery and diseases ravaged the sub-Saharan Africa. The entire continent was left with a desperate need for an educated and skilled workforce, which can transform the economy and improve the daily lives of Africans. Education is the key to such a transformation and ending poverty in Africa. What are we doing to educate the African youth.

Classmate of President Obama is Fighting to Reform America’s Prison Systems

                                              Authored by Dr. Lachin Hatemi                                                   


       David Singleton is the executive director of the Ohio Justice and Policy Center (OJPC), a non-profit law firm working to reform and improve the Ohio’s criminal justice system.  Singleton was President Obama’s classmate at Harvard Law School’s class of 1991.  His wife was also classmates with Michelle Obama at the same law school. The Singletons remained close to the Obama family over the years; they even hosted a fundraiser in Cincinnati for the Obama’s 2004 US Senate Campaign.

Being a Harvard Law School alumnus, Singleton could easily have a lucrative career as partner in a prestigious law firm. He instead found his calling in public advocacy for some of the most disadvantaged and despised members of society:  people caught up in the criminal justice system.

Under Singleton’s leadership, OJPC has striven to make Ohio’s criminal justice systems more fair, intelligent, and redemptive.  In 2003, OJPC brought a landmark class action lawsuit which over a nine-year period reformed health care for Ohio prisoners.  Over the years, OJPC has represented prisoners who have suffered violence and sexual assault at the hands of correctional staff, and has successfully fought for prisoners seeking to exercise their religious rights behind bars, including access to religious meals.