Wal-Mart Honors The Contributions Of African Americans To The Nation During Black History Month And Beyond

Retailer Emphasizes “Every Day is a Good Day to Learn Black History”

BENTONVILLE, Ark. — History is made each day and African Americans continue to contribute to our country’s rich legacy. During Black History Month, Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. encourages its associates and customers to celebrate black history every day. The company reminds Walmart customers that “Every day is a good day to learn black history” through a series of radio and television ads, along with in-store and online educational material designed to promote awareness of black history.

“This year’s Black History Month theme encourages our associates and customers to honor the positive impact African Americans have made throughout our nation’s history,” said Esther Silver-Parker, senior vice president of Corporate Affairs. “Our company continues to be committed to the communities it serves through education, opportunity and celebration, and our campaign to celebrate black history throughout the year is perfectly aligned with this commitment. We proudly engage in initiatives to celebrate black history and we encourage our customers to join us in making this a year-round observance.”

Walmart customers will be able to pick up the complimentary “Profiles and Pride” and “Black History Timeline” pamphlets at select stores. The pamphlets provide insightful black history information ideal for schools, organizations or individuals. This year’s “Profiles in Pride,” produced in partnership with Kraft, features African-American heritage and cultural events that take place throughout the country. Featured events include the National Black Arts Festival in Atlanta, the Gullah Festival in South Carolina and the Pan-African Film Festival in Los Angeles. Organizers of the highlighted events will also share their insights on how black history can be celebrated throughout the year. Additionally, in light of the historic presidential election, Wal-Mart’s “Black History Month Timeline,” produced in conjunction with Colgate-Palmolive, will feature African-American firsts and milestones from the 1900s to the present.

To help parents and children increase their knowledge of black history, select Walmart stores nationwide and Walmart.com will feature the GEEBEE Black Heritage Series TM games and puzzles. The offerings will include an African counting game, a game about The Underground Railroad, black history trivia games, and an assortment of puzzles.

In an effort to stay connected to its African-American customers, Walmart’s “Our Voice” Web site offers resource information for families to enjoy throughout the year. The Web site - www.wmourvoice.com - provides an online platform for reinforcing the company’s black history message through games and useful information. Users can enjoy an online version of the GEEBEE Black Heritage Series TM games and puzzles or access the site to obtain updated information about Wal-Mart’s corporate initiatives supporting the African-American community. Walmart has also established a partnership with ancestry.com, which allows them to offer an interface on the site to aid users in tracing their family genealogy

Wal-Mart proudly engages in year-round cultural initiatives. As an employer of choice for more than 251,000 African-American associates, Wal-Mart’s commitment to the African-American community extends to a variety of partnerships and corporate programs reaching customers where they live. Some major initiatives include:

* Walmart announced its commitment to serve as the presenting sponsor of Tavis Smiley’s America I AM: The African American Imprint, a mobile and museum exhibit that celebrates the imprint African Americans have had on nearly 500 years of American history. The mobile exhibit visited more than 40 communities and events throughout the country in 2008 as it made its way to the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia for the unveiling of a 15,000 sq. ft. museum exhibit. The museum exhibit will travel to major cities across the country until 2012.
* In 2008, the Wal-Mart Foundation provided a $12.5 million letter of credit to the Martin Luther King, Jr. National Memorial Project Foundation, Inc., which will allow the foundation to begin construction of the Martin Luther King, Jr. National Memorial.
* In 2008, Wal-Mart associates and the Wal-Mart Foundation, contributed more than $300,000 in charitable donations to the United Negro College Fund (UNCF). These contributions were in addition to the $1 million grant by the Wal-Mart Foundation to support the UNCF’s Institute for Capacity Building Fiscal and Strategic Technical Assistance Program (FASTAP). The program helps Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) strengthen their operations.

About Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WMT)
Every week, millions of customers visit Walmart Stores, supercenters, Neighborhood Markets, and Sam’s Club locations across America or log on to its online store at www.walmart.com. The company and its Foundation are committed to a philosophy of giving back locally. Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) is proud to support the causes that are important to customers and associates right in their own neighborhoods, and last year gave more than $296 million to local communities in the United States. More information about Walmart can be found by visiting www.walmartstores.com. Online merchandise sales are available at www.walmart.com.

Ed. Note: The terms “Wal-Mart” and Wal-Mart Stores” refer to the corporate entity. “Walmart,” expressed as one word and without hyphenation, refers to the brand name of the company’s U.S. operations. This distinction came after the Company announced the introduction of a new logo for its U.S. store operations in June 2008.