Animal-friendly in China

WASHINGTON LITTLE ROCK, Ark. LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- The Humane Society of the United States and the Humane Society International are offering advice for Americans traveling to China for the Olympics or at any other time.

The organization says its tips on what to buy and eat are "to help those wishing to make animal-friendly decisions while in China."

For example, the Society says that although selling ivory is legal in China, bringing it back to the United States is not legal because the ivory comes from poached elephants.

Some traditional Chinese medicines contain ingredients from endangered animals. Also, beware of items made from or trimmed in fur or leather. The Humane Society says dogs and cats are among the animals killed for their fur in China.

The Society cautions against buying items made of wood because China imports tropical timber from places such as Indonesia, "which destroys orangutan habitat."

Souvenirs recommended by the Humane Society include tea, and crafts made from cloth, pottery, paper, stone or metal.

The organization also urges caution in menu choices. Dog meat has been banned from menus in China during the Olympics, but the Humane Society says the use of snakes, turtles and other small animals in various recipes is hurting wild populations.

Even bird's nest soup, the Humane Society says, involves removing nests from the wild.

The Humane Society says the phrase "wo chi su" may be interpreted as "I want to eat vegetables," while the phrase "quan su" means "vegetarian in the Chinese Buddhist tradition, which prohibits eating onions and garlic."

Arkansas to open black history museum Sept. 20

A new state museum opens next month in Arkansas to honor African-American heritage.

The Mosaic Templars Cultural Center opens Sept. 20 on the site of the Mosaic Templars of America, a fraternal organization founded by two former slaves, John Edward Bush and Chester W. Keatts, to offer health and burial insurance to blacks.

The organization's headquarters, in the heart of what was then the black business district on Little Rock's Ninth Street, became much more than an insurance office. It provided other black-owned businesses retail space, opened a nursing school and had a ballroom.

Director Constance Sarto told a news conference that, although the Mosaic Templars are dedicated to African-American history, "it's everyone's history, it's everyone's center."

On opening day, the public can tour the four-story building after a formal ribbon-cutting ceremony and enjoy live music while viewing the exhibits. Admission is free year round.

The center will include exhibits on the history of blacks in Arkansas, the Arkansas Black Hall of Fame, the Mosaic Templars, the life of sculptor Isaac Scott Hathaway, and Paul Laurence Dunbar High School in Little Rock.

When the headquarters was built in 1913, Booker T. Washington delivered the dedication speech to an audience of 2,100 black and white people, according to the Encyclopedia of Arkansas.

At its peak in the 1920s, the Mosaic Templars had more than 100,000 members and had chapters in 26 states, the Caribbean, and South and Central America. Before its decline in the 1930s, the group also had a building and loan association, a publishing company, a business college and a hospital.

Details at www.mosaictemplarscenter.com.

Photos of Kennedys, MLK featured in Louisville

Photographer Stanley Tretick is known for his personal, behind-the-scenes shots of the Kennedy family. The Look magazine photographer was so close to the family, a longtime friend said he had to set aside his career for several months after Robert F. Kennedy was assassinated.

Tretick's relationship with the Kennedys is evident in his images of Robert and John F. Kennedy, which are on display through Oct. 5 at the Frazier International History Museum in Louisville. The show, "Bobby, Martin & John: Once Upon an American Dream," also features Tretick's photos of Martin Luther King Jr.

The Tretick photographs show the three slain leaders of the 1960s interacting with family, campaigning and making personal appearances. Included in the exhibit is a video of King's 1963 "I Have a Dream" address at the Washington Monument.

Tretick was an official White House photographer. One of his more memorable shots shows President Kennedy in the Oval Office as his son, John Jr., peers out from underneath the desk.

The exhibit includes music from the 1960s, including Joan Baez singing "Blowing in the Wind" and Aretha Franklin's "You Make Me Feel Like a Natural Woman."

Buttons and other campaign souvenirs are shown along with memorabilia of the decade, including a 1969 Volkswagen Beetle and G.I. Joe dolls.

Details: fraziermuseum.org.