---Boston Bank of Commerce and Family Savings Bank sign merger agreement creating nation's largest Black-owned bank---Boston Bank of Commerce ("BBOC") and Los Angeles-based Family Savings Bank ("Family") jointly announced the signing of a definitive agreement to merge and create the largest Black-owned bank in the country. The merger combines BBOC in Boston, Peoples Bank of Commerce in Miami and Founders Bank of Commerce in Los Angeles with Family Savings Bank. The combined entity with its A-list of celebrity shareholders including NBA Hall of Famer turned businessman Earvin "Magic" Johnson, entertainer Janet Jackson and music executive Jheryl Busby has over $460 million in assets and will continue its mission to be the premier banking institution for urban communities. The merger, which is structured as a cash deal with BBOC acquiring all the stock of Family Savings Bank, was approved by the respective Boards of Directors and is subject to shareholder and regulatory approval. "With the addition of Family Savings Bank to the Boston Bank of Commerce network of banks, we are realizing our vision of fostering economic growth and individual opportunity in urban neighborhoods from coast-to-coast by offering affordable financial services to all," said Johnson. "This merger will serve as a model and source of strength for Black businesses as we unite to share resources and expertise," stated Kevin Cohee,Chairman & CEO of BBOC. The BBOC Board of Directors will continue to manage the combined entity, led by Kevin Cohee, Chairman & CEO and Kenneth T. Lombard, Vice Chairman of BBOC and President of Johnson Development Corporation and Magic Johnson Theatres. The Board of Family Savings Bank will be retained. "In these times of economic turbulence, this merger serves as a beacon of light and hope to the people living in our often forgotten communities," said Jheryl Busby, the previous Chairman of Founders National Bank of Los Angeles. "It guarantees access to capital, the key ingredient to our communities stability and growth." Representative Maxine Waters, who represents Los Angeles' 35th District, said, "We are proud that together our institutions will build on this tradition. As a member of the Committee on Financial Services of Congress I have worked hard to expand the opportunities for bank ownership by minorities. This purchase is a giant step for our community." Boston Bank of Commerce is the first inter-state and fastest growing African-American bank in the U.S. with over $260 million in assets and branches in Massachusetts, Florida and California. Family Savings Bank is a thrift institution in Los Angeles with over $208 million in assets. For more information call: Robert Patrick Cooper (617) 457-4415 or send email to: bcooper@bboc.com.

----FORTUNE partners with UnityFirst.com and African American Newswire to distribute special diversity section, "Talking to Diversity Experts: Where do we go from here?"----- FORTUNE magazine and UnityFirst.com/African American Newswire will partner to distribute FORTUNE's Special Diversity section found in the September 30 issue. The special section, "Talking to Diversity Experts: Where do we go from here?," is FORTUNE's sixth annual special advertising section produced in cooperation with the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), a national industry organization of 165,000+ professional and student members throughout the U.S. The FORTUNE special section will share individual interviews with senior corporate executives, consultants and researchers, who give their expert opinions about: 1) Current recommended priorities of diversity programming 2) Diversity's continued influence on the bottom line 3) The impact of September 11 on diversity management, and 4) Best practices for retaining a diverse workforce in an economic downturn. With the UnityFirst.com/African American Newswire partnership, journalists and readers of all backgrounds, industries and regions across the U.S. will learn more about the special section and gain insight about how corporations and individuals are dealing with more complex diversity issues than ever. Given the heightened view of diversity issues since September 11, this special section is invaluable to people of all backgrounds and professions, from diversity practitioners to community- based organizations, who want to more fully understand the ever- increasing multicultural world that we live and work in. The section uncovers the new issues and challenges as well as resources and strategies designed to promote inclusiveness. For more detailed information regarding this special advertising section, special opportunities for corporations to participate in the section, send an email to glolernerfortune@aol.com, call 212-831-7068 or click here to view the section's prospectus." If you would like to review the section or join a national discussion about the section's topic --"Where do we go from here?"-- contact Janine Fondon at jfondon@unityfirst.com or call 800-286-3659.

---Millions for Reparations---
Millions for Reparations, a grassroots led and organized rally, will be held August 17, 2002 on the National Mall (Between 3rd and 14th Streets) in Washington, D.C., from noon to 5:30 p.m. Viola Plummer, one of the co-chairs of the Millions for Reparations' National Steering Committee, says, "This is a grassroots rally for the masses of people, who will come to exchange and give information to the people. The masses make history and make change. This is a first step for getting people involved. Some reparations bills have been sitting around for more than 30 years. Reparations have to be the people's demand." For more information, call 718-398-1766.

---National Frederick Douglass Freedom Day Observance---
Frederick Douglass' escape from slavery in Baltimore on September 3, 1838, is being celebrated with a series of activities that focus on enhancing reading and public speaking skills among youths throughout America. Organized by his great-great grandson, Frederick Douglass, IV, the National Frederick Douglass Freedom Day Observance calls for bringing groups of young people together to read aloud the writings of famous African American authors. The focal point of the campaign involves reading Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, An American Slave -- written by himself, which chronicles his ascendancy from being born as a slave through his escape and ultimate evolution as an abolitionist, author, orator, editor, suffragist and confidante to U.S. presidents. Describing elements of the Freedom Day Observation, Douglass says "Once again, we are asking people throughout American to convene for reading of my
great-great grandfather's speeches, laying of wreathes and other activities at sites bearing the name Frederick Douglass of that have an affiliation with religion, civil rights or other facets of the African American Diaspora. Frederick Douglass, IV and his wife, B.J., will present "Frederick and Anna: Alive and in Love" a reenactment of the lives of his great-great grandparents, Frederick Douglass and Anna Murray Douglass at the Central Branch of Enoch Pratt Library in Baltimore at 6:30 on September 3, 2002.

---Diane Redd appointed development director of NAACP Legal Defense Fund----NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. (LDF) President and Director-Counsel Elaine R. Jones announced the appointment of J. Diane Redd as Development Director. In her new position, Ms. Redd will develop and implement a broad range of strategies to raise funds for LDF's litigation, public education and scholarship programs. Prior to joining LDF, Redd was Director of Development for Foundations and Major Gifts at Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Inc.

---Florida's Virginia Key Beach----
The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources recently passed a bill authorizing the study of Virginia Key Beach in Florida as a candidate for the National Park System. In April, the U.S. House of Representatives passed similar legislation, introduced by Representative Carrie Meek, which could be signed into law this year. These bills offer national recognition of a special place that highlights the rich history of the civil rights movement in South Florida. Virginia Key Beach has a long, diverse history. The island was the site of an 1838 battle in the Seminole Wars and, as a national park, would in part commemorate three Seminoles killed in that battle. On August 1, 1945, a segregated Dade County designated Virginia Key Beach "for the exclusive use of Negroes," after which the island, despite the racist overtones, became a favored place for African Americans gathering for religious ceremonies, romantic evenings, celebrity visits, and family events. This largely undeveloped barrier island and its adjacent waters lie in close proximity to the bustling metropolis of Miami, threatening it with development. This study gives South Florida a chance to highlight the key's cultural diversity and historical importance. The National Parks Conservation Association looks forward to working with the National Park Service in ensuring the protection of this treasured gem.

----Mai's America on PBS---
A spunky, mini-skirted daughter of Ho Chi Minh's revolution leaves cosmopolitan Hanoi on a high school exchange program. Anticipating Hollywood, Mai crash lands in rural Mississippi where her relationships with White Pentecostal and Black Baptist host families, self-proclaimed rednecks, transvestites, and South Vietnamese immigrants challenge her long-held ideas about herself, about freedom, about America, and even about Vietnam. MAI'S AMERICA is a 72 minute color video directed, produced and shot by Marlo Poras. MAI'S AMERICA will air on most PBS stations August 6 at 10pm

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