After Oprah appearances, Vanzant returns to best-selling glory /1 I --- M . Pieces: How to Get Through What You're Going Through,' skyrocket- ed four months after its initial release. The no-holds-barred interview - where Winfrey confronted the spir- lyanla has once again S after her Oprah appe, itual teacher and once- S- popular media person- ality about her past transgressions -- became much fod- der immediately after its Feb. 16 airing. "[The] tension was so thick that it seemed to suck the oxygen out of the room," wrote BlackVoices.com blogger Dr. .n soared back into the mainstream arance (left). Boyce Watkins about the interac- tion, which --at times -- didn't seem appropriate for daytime television. Nevertheless, the book, which was published via Tavis Smiley's SmileyBooks imprint on Nov. 15, 2010, is #1 on the Times' Hardcover Advice & Misc. list. "We are thrilled that lyanla's inspiring message has reached so many people." offered Smiley. "Her mission -- to promote family heal- ing -- affirms why she remains one of the nation's most beloved teach- ers." This marks Vanzant's fifth time on the New York Times' Best Sellers list, and her first with SmileyBooks. She previously spent 20 weeks on the list with 'In the Meantime.' Part metaphorical teaching story, part wrenching personal chronicle, .Broken Pieces' is Vanzant's phoenix-rising-from-the-ashes story about overcoming great loss after experiencing major triumph. "A story about how a New York Times best-selling author ends up flat broke, looking for a place to live, how a 37-year relationship ends in divorce by e-mail," she sur- mised, adding that she shared "the intimate details of how an interna- tionally recognized spiritual teacher ends up on the edge of the bed in a million-dollar home slated for fore- closure, contemplating suicide." Wyclef recovering from gunshot wounds in Haiti B B Hollywood _"GOSSIP SCOOP IRS targeting Forrest Whitaker and Wife Actor Forest Whitaker is reportedly in tax trouble. The state of California filed a $185,253 Stax lien against Whitaker and his wife Keisha Jan. 26 with the Los Angeles County Recorder of Deeds. The tax bill is surfacing almost two years after the Detroit News reported the Oscar winner owed $1.27 million in state and federal taxes Cedric the Entertainer to helm new game show NBC today announced its summer lineup which including a game show hosted Ced the Entertainer. Titled "It's Worth What?," it is a cross between "Pawn Stars" and "The Price is Right," where contestants have to guess the value of items found in attics, etc. No rush for Evelyn and Ocho Unlike many celebrity couples, Chad Ochocinco and "Basketball Wives" star Evelyn Lozada are not rushing to tie the knot. Instead, they've decid- ed to be engaged for a year before the big day so they can enjoy their children. "He has four kids. I have one. We want to be engaged for at least a year and enjoy our time with our children, and then we're going to plan our wed- ding," Lozada tells People. For their wedding, she said a simple ceremony and celebra- tion will be nice, but there is sure to be some compromise along the way. The NFL star is very happy with his blossoming relationship and he says the key to their success is his grandmother. "My grandma says, 'Always marry your best friend, because your best friend will be able to tell you anything and not hide nothing.' That's one of the things I really like, which is one of the reasons why she's wearing that ring." Wyclef Jean (R) speaks to reporters after attending Haiti's first pres- idential debate last week in Port-au-Prince. Hip hop artist Wyclef Jean was treated and released from a hospital in Haiti after receiving a minor gunshot wound to the hand during a campaign rally. Jean, who was in Port-au-Prince to support fellow musician and Haiti presidential candidate Michel "Sweet Micky" Martelly, was shot Saturday night on the eve of the country's presidential elections. Following the incident, a rep tweeted on his account, "We have spoken to Wyclef, he is ok. Thank you for your thoughts and prayers - - Management" Spokeswoman Cindy Tanenbaum said that the wound was superficial. "He is doing well," she added. Jean, a Haiti native, runs Yele Haiti, a foundation focused on pro- viding aid and relief to the nation still recovering from a devastating January 2010 earthquake. He briefly pursued a bid to be president of Haiti in September, but was ruled ineligible by election officials. Ironically enough, one of the sin- gles off of his last album is enti- tled, "Death Threats". Dr. Henry Louis Gates' latest documentary to look at Black in Latin America Dr. Henry Louis Gates, Jr., will uncover Latin America's African roots in the new four-part series, Black in Latin America, The series takes a on the influ- ence of African descent on Latin America and is Gates' llth docu- mentary film. It will examine how Africa and Europe came together to create the cultures of Latin America and the Caribbean. Black in Latin America is the third of a trilogy that began in 1999 with the broadcast of Professor Gates' first series for public televi- sion, Wonders of the African World, an exploration of the relationship between Africa and the New World, a story he continued in 2004 with America Beyond the Color Line, a report on the lives of modem-day African Americans. Latin America is often associated with music, monuments and sun, but each of the six countries fea- tured Brazil, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Mexico and Peru, has a secret history. On his jour- ney, Professor Gates discovers, behind a shared legacy of colonial- ism and slavery, vivid stories and people marked by African roots. 12.5 million Africans were shipped to the New World during the Middle Passage. While just over 11.0 million survived the jour- ney, only about 450,000 of them arrived in the United States. The rest-over ten and a half million- were taken to the Caribbean and Latin America and kept in bondage far longer than the slaves in the United States. This astonishing fact changes the entire picture of the history of slavery in the Western hemisphere, and of its lasting cul- tural impact. These millions of Africans created new and vibrant cultures of various African, English, French, Portuguese and Spanish influences. Despite their great numbers, the cultural and social worlds that they created remain largely unknown to most Americans, except for certain popular, cross-over musical forms. Gates sets out on a quest to discov- er how Latin Americans of African descent live now, and how the countries acknowledge-or deny- their African past; how the fact of race and African ancestry play themselves out in the multicultural worlds of the Caribbean and Latin America. Starting with the slave experience and extending to the present, Professor Gates unveils the history of the African presence in the countries through art, music, cuisine, dance, politics and reli- gion, but also through the presence of anti-black racism that has some- times sought to keep the black cul- tural presence from view. The series will premiere on Tuesday, April 19 at 8 p.m. on PBS. $359 PP/DO Price includes *Room *Air & Transfers for 3 days and 2 nights at the beautiful Crystal Palace Casino in Nassau, Bahamas US PASSPORT REQUIRED rr* -..L 1 _ -~ 'I I - FULL SERVICE CASINO - Slot Machines - Roulette - Poker - Craps Blackjack 3 Card Poker Caribbean Stud Call Casino Steve at 1-800-553-7773 **MONTHLY TRIPS ALSO TO ATLANTIC CITY,NJ BILOXI and TUNICA, MS ** Who would have thought? Garrett Morgan did in 1923. The Traffic Signal, developed by Garrett Morgan. is ust one of the many life-changing innovations that came from the mind of anAfricanAmerican. -'- \\c must do all we can to suplxprt minority education today, so we don't miss out on the next bie idea lonmorrox To find out more about Aflican American innovators and to support the IUnitcd Negro Colleic Fund- visit us at uncf.org or call 1-800-332-UNCF A mind is a terrible thing to waste. UNCF A mind is a terrible thing to waste* ,2008 UNCF March 24-30, 2011 Page 8 Ms. Perry's Free Press I Y' C -- LIUrf;- -I mc, 0