Omaha Magazine: Faces 2017
“Everybody says that it takes a village to raise a child, but what happens when the village needs to be rebuilt?” asks Willie Barney, founder and president of the Empowerment Network. The “village” concept is integral to the Empowerment Network’s philosophy, and the organization has been […]
“Willie Barney, one of Omaha’s ‘most significant leaders…”
Willie Barney, one of Omaha’s ‘most significant leaders,’ is constantly bridging the city’s dividing lines of geography, race and social class… Wearing his standard uniform of suit coat and slacks, Willie Barney held open a college lecture hall door, greeting the teenagers streaming out. “Looking good, […]
Omaha in Black and White: A Decade Later
10 years after activists charted a new path for north Omaha, the problem-plagued community may be turning a corner. By Henry Cordes / / World-Herald staff writer Ten years ago, a group of north Omaha activists met in a cafe amid the hollowed-out North 24th Street […]
Continuing Dr. Martin Luther King’s Legacy (KMTV Omaha)
OMAHA, NEB (KMTV) – Where do we go from here was one of the main points in UNMC’s Dr. Martin Luther King Jr event. “How can we make sure we can all win and be apart of this society,” said Willie Barney. Guest speaker Willie Barney […]
Empowering North Omaha
“Everybody says that it takes a village to raise a child, but what happens when the village really needs to be brought back together in order to do that work?” asks Willie Barney, the founder and president of the Empowerment Network. This holiday season, Christmas in […]
Grass-roots Omaha 360 Becomes Leader in Tackling the Root Causes of Gun Violence
Each meeting of the anti-violence Omaha 360 task force begins with a report by Omaha police captains on the previous week’s gun assaults in north Omaha. But the discussion quickly turns to how to prevent the next shooting. During a May meeting, police officials pinpointed a […]