Queen Of Gospel Music, Albertina Walker, Has Passed Away

Walker was born in Chicago in 1929. She had been in the hospital since Aug. 29, the day she celebrated her 81st birthday, and she died this morning at 81 years old.

At the age of four, Albertina began singing in the Children’s Choir of the West Point Baptist Church under the direction of Professor Pete Williams. It was during this time that America had undergone a major economic collapse and the country was experiencing a great social and political upheaval.

Albertina is committed to the preservation of gospel music and the enhancement of the human experience. To this end, she has lent her support to many charitable organizations such as The United Negro College Fund, The American Cancer Society, The National Council of Negro Women, The Nation of Islam’s “Million Family” March, One Voice “A Fight Against AIDS”, The NAACP and Operation Push. Year of 1988 Albertina founded The Albertina Walker Scholarship Foundation for the Creative and Performing Arts. The foundation offers financial assistance to college students in the form of scholarships to further their education in the field of music.

Ms. Walker’s personal and television appearances worldwide are too numerous to mention. However, she has sung for United States President George Bush, former President Bill Clinton, and The President of South Africa, President Nelson Mandela. Albertina has appeared on “The Oprah Winfrey Show”, “Good Morning America”, and “The Travis Smiley Show”. Albertina is a frequent guest on the nationally syndicated BET and Word television show, “Bobby Jones Gospel”, “Testify” and “Singsation”. Her fans have also enjoyed her in the motion picture “Leap of Faith” starring Steve Martin, “Going Home to Gospel with Patti Labelle”, the Off Broadway play “The Gospel Truth”, and “The Evolution of Gospel”.

Over the summer, Albertina had taken very ill and was hospitalized with breathing complications stemming from her battle with emphysema. During this time, many had reported that she has died when in fact she hadn’t. Unfortunately, this time it is true and she will be missed. Let ’s pray for her family, friends and all of those that loved her in the gospel music industry

45. "The Elders" and The Self-Empowered Woman

Dear Followers,

On Sunday I was reading the latest NY Times column by Nicholas Kristof, and learned about a new movement designed to urge religions around the world to stop oppressing women. Kristof points out that warlords in Congo may not use scripture to justify mass rapes, and Hindus in India who burn brides may not excuse that tradition by quoting Hindu rituals, and Afghans do not rely on the Koran to justify throwing acid into the faces of girls who try to go to school. But because these behaviors reflect a social belief that women are second-class citizens, religions do little to change such abuses.

To fight these ingrained behaviors, Nelson Mandela brought together a small group of retired leaders (called "The Elders") to focus on the role of religion in oppressing women. The group includes Bishop Desmond Tutu, Ireland's Mary Robinson, and former president Jimmy Carter.

Carter has noted that religion is one of the "basic causes of the violations of women's rights....The belief that are inferior human beings in the eyes of God gives excuses to the brutal husband who beats his wife, the soldier who rapes a woman, the employer who has a lower pay scale for women employees, or parents who decide to abort a female embryo."

Who would have thought that the Dalai Lama would agree that religion is part of the problem, and declare himself "a feminist"? As Kristof wrote "The Elders are right that religious groups should stand up for a simple ethical principle: any person's human rights should be sacred, and not depend on something as earthly as their genitals."

Looking forward to your comments...