A Look Back at the Year Past

• Published in: Los Angeles sentinel Vol. 66; no. 41
• Main Author: Dungee, Ron
• Format: Newspaper Article
• Language: English
• Published: Los Angeles, Calif Los Angeles Sentinel 10.01.2001
• Subjects: African Americans; Berry, Halle; Black culture; Black people; Culture; Davis, Gray; Minority & ethnic groups; Murray, Kevin; Parks, Bernard; Politics; Race relations; Young, Ann; United States > US; California
• ISSN: 0890-4340

A Crenshaw District landmark, for nearly two decades, the Boulevard Cafe, closed its doors in July and the much-ballyhooed "Return to Love" concert tour of Diana Ross was abruptly canceled after drawing on 3,000 out of a possible 19,000 in Columbus, Ohio and only 5,000 of a possible 20,000 in Tampa, Fla. The Democratic presidential nominee, Vice President Al Gore, shocked the world and made history by naming Sen. Joe Lieberman as his running mate. Lieberman became the first Jew to be nominated as a vice presidential candidate. The GOP had already anointed Texas Gov. George W. Bush and Dick Cheney as its standard-bearers. What turned out to be the biggest story of 2000 started in November and dragged on until mid-December. Al Gore and George Bush finished in a dead heat after the votes were tabulated on Election Night, with the tabulation of Florida votes in dispute. After much legal wrangling in Florida, the election was finally decided by the justices of the U.S. Supreme Court, who stopped the election before all of Florida's votes--many the votes of African Americans--could be counted and declared George W. Bush the winner.