Jamestown 2007 Announces Hampton University as Site of the State of the Black Union 2007

WILLIAMSBURG, Va., Nov. 28 /PRNewswire/ -- Jamestown 2007, the organizers of America's 400th Anniversary, in partnership with Tavis Smiley Presents, Inc. announced today that the "State of the Black Union 2007" will be held at the Hampton University Convocation Center on February 10, 2007, as part of America's 400th Anniversary.

The symposium is free to the public, and will be broadcast live via C- SPAN. Anyone interested in attending can register online at http://www.tavistalks.com/ or by calling (213) 694-1883. More information about America's 400th Anniversary can be found at http://www.americas400thanniversary.com/

Originating in 1999 and hosted by television and radio personality Tavis Smiley, "The State of the Black Union" brings together America's black thought leaders, educators, public policy makers, religious leaders and community organizers to examine the African-American Imprint on America. The symposium takes on added poignancy in 2007 during the international commemoration marking the 400th anniversary of Jamestown, Va., and the arrival of the first Africans in America.

"Jamestown changed the world in many ways, but perhaps it shaped our nation most profoundly the day Africans arrived," Smiley said. "I can't think of a more relevant place to talk about the issues facing our community today than the place where African culture became American culture."

A 36-member panel, including Angela Glover Blackwell, Cornel West, the Rev. Dr. Otis Moss Sr., Cathy Hughes, Bruce Gordon, Michel Martin, Tim Reid and the Rev. Jesse L. Jackson, will join Tavis Smiley and co-host Tom Joyner to examine the impact of African Americans on western culture as well as current issues of importance to the African-America community.

Jamestown 2007, a sub-agency of the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation, is coordinating efforts to commemorate the 400th anniversary of Jamestown, Va., the first permanent English settlement in the Americas. The nation's first representative government, free enterprise system and culturally diverse society began at Jamestown. State, national, and international commemorative events to salute these legacies began in May 2006 and continue into 2008. Major corporate sponsors of America's 400th Anniversary include Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE: NSC) , Verizon (NYSE: VZ) and The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation. Other supporters include Anheuser-Busch Companies, Inc. (NYSE: BUD) , AirTran Airways (NYSE: AAI) , Dominion, James City County, Northrop Grumman, Philip Morris USA, SunTrust, TowneBank and Wolseley PLC/Ferguson Enterprises, Inc. Contributors include the City of Poquoson and Rutherfoord Insurance. More information about the commemoration is available at http://www.americas400thanniversary.com/.

Tavis Smiley Presents is an event production company dedicated to bringing thought provoking discussions, engaging town hall meetings, and consumer expos to communities across the country. During the last seven years its programs have reached more than 200,000 conference attendees and attracted millions of television viewers nationwide. Tavis Smiley is the host of Tavis Smiley on PBS, a weeknight half-hour talk show and the host of The Tavis Smiley Show from PRI, a two-hour news and opinion program featuring provocative commentary and exclusive interviews. He's the author of nine books including the 2006 release, What I know For Sure: My Story of Growing Up In America. He founded the Tavis Smiley Foundation to provide leadership training skills to youth ages 13 to 18. For more information, visit: http://www.tavistalks.com/.