Black women’s expo to kick off

Donning and new name and a return to what made it a success from the beginning, The Black Women’s Expo is set to get underway at McCormick Place Aug. 1-3. A spin off of An Expo for Today’s Black Woman, TBWE confab organizer, Merry Green said the expo chan

Donning a new name and a return to what made it a success from the beginning, the Black Women’s Expo is set to get underway at McCormick Place Aug. 1-3.

A spin-off of An Expo for Today’s Black Woman, TBWE confab organizer, Merry Green, said the expo changed its name to reflect “what women call it.”

The expo was on hiatus last year after a change in focus and scope produced a similar 2007 event, Uplift Chicago, that was not well received.

“We got away from it,” Green said of the shift in content and other caveats that had made the expo a success in previous years.

With a bevy of major corporate and local sponsorships, Green, president and CEO of Merry Green Promotions Group, is billing this year’s expo as one of the best since the event started back in 1993.

“We’re taking it back to where we started,” she said at a media briefing for the upcoming three-day expo.

The Black Women’s Expo is deemed a celebration of Black women, empowering them through informative and motivational seminars, providing them with entertainment and exposing them to economic information and opportunities.

Organizers say TBWE also offers the opportunity for discussion of important issues that are particularly relevant to the Black community.

This year’s event kicks off with a July 31 gala that will pay tribute to a number of “phenomenal Black women” in various sectors, including business, culture and education. Michelle Obama, wife of Democratic presidential hopeful, Sen. Barack Obama, will be honored as Phenomenal Woman of the Year.

Green said this year marks the first time the expo has offered the “phenomenal” awards.

Other guests slated to appear over the course of the expo include Anita Hill, made famous for testifying at the confirmation hearings for now-Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas; Susan L. Taylor; author and motivational speaker, Iyanla Vanzant; and Democratic political strategist, Donna Brazile.

On Friday of the expo, the Chicago Public Schools will sponsor a youth panel where young people will be able to sound off on safety issues and concerns.

Hill will be speaking as part of a Saturday leadership summit at the expo. The same day, professor and author, Dr. Michael Eric Dyson, along with Dick Gregory, will host a political town hall meeting.

There will be health and wellness exhibition at TBWE that will offer various health screenings, a spa pavilion as part of a pampering sanctuary, as well as a kids’ section for the youngsters. There will also be live entertainment. Additionally, a number of exhibitors will be selling wares and services.

Admission to TBWE is $12 for adults and $7 for children each day.

 

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