Via the Muncie Free Press:

The Family and Social Services Administration’s (FSSA) Indiana Commission on the Social Status of Black Males (ICSSBM) began its 14th Annual Black Male State Conference. The two-day event at the new Indianapolis central library started this morning with a new theme to focus on the “Total Education of the Black Male”.

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Today’s keynote address was presented by Emmy-winning actor Louis Gossett, Jr. Gossett’s Broadway theatre credits include A Raisin in the Sun, Golden Boy, and Chicago. Gossett also earned an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor in An Officer and a Gentleman. The format for this year’s conference has changed slightly enabling the ICSSBM to focus solely on adults on the first day and turn to the African-American youth on the second day.

Read the full article.

Ashford and Simpson, Lou Gossett Jr.and Colette Phillips on The Red Carpet at The Opening Gala of Tyler Perry's new Motion Picture & Television Studio on October 4, 2008 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Rick Diamond/Getty Images North America)

Mr. Gossett and publicist Colette Phillips helped friend and film-maker Tyler Perry celebrate a historical and momentous event - the opening of his new movie and TV studio complex in Atlanta, Georgia.  Its opening marks the first state of the art Black owned movie studio in the United States.

Perry says he will film House of Payne at the facility as well as his other ongoing TV show, Meet The Browns.  With a string of cinema successes to his credit, Perry has stated that he will also use the complex for his film projects.

The event was star studded with guests such as Oprah, Sidney Poitier, Ruby Dee; Cecily Tyson, Danny Glover; Will Smith, Patti La Belle, Gladys Knight, John Legend, Andrew Young, Hank Aaron, and a host of other celebrities.  R&B singer Mary J Blige performed at the event.

The weekend celebration culminated with a Gospel brunch at Perry’s home, a property which is rich in its own history.  The home was once owned by a southern segregationist who sued to revoke the sale of the property once he found out that it had been purchased by a Black man.

Congratulations Tyler!

Academy Award-winning actor Louis Gossett Jr. (left) joined Colette Phillips, president and CEO of Colette Phillips Communications (center) and Boston City Council President Maureen Feeney. Photo Courtesy Don West

From the Malibu Times:

Academy award winning actor Louis Gossett Jr. is seen here with Boston City Council President Maureen Feeney (far right) and his publicist Colette Phillips, president and CEO of Colette Phillips Communications Inc. Gossett, a Malibu resident, was the guest of honor at Get Konnected, a monthly multicultural professional and social networking event founded by Phillips.

From Bay State Banner:

With an acting career spanning over five decades in film, television and theater, Gossett is perhaps best known for his roles as Fiddler in the groundbreaking television miniseries “Roots” and as Gunnery Sgt. Emil Foley in the 1982 film “An Officer and a Gentleman.” The former earned him an Emmy; the latter, an Oscar.

In 2006, Gossett decided to focus his energies on fighting social ills when he founded The Eracism Foundation, a nonprofit organization designed to create a “conscious offensive against racism, violence and ignorance.” Toward that end, the foundation has created programs focused on youth mentoring, anti-gang violence initiatives and diversity sensitivity training sessions known as “Shamba Centers.”

While the Eracism organization’s work is part of the solution, Gossett said, there is much more work to be done — and he thinks the classroom is a good place to start.