Category: Afro Briefs

A new directive to the Baltimore City Police Department (BCPD) allowing citizens to record police actions was only a few hours old when it was tested by a casual observer of an arrest. The new policy emerged on Nov. 8 and states that “upon discovery that a bystander is observing, photographing, or video recording the […]

Unemployment benefits first-time claims fell to the lowest point in four years showing improving health for a still anemic economy. “The housing starts and unemployment claims numbers add to the belief that the economy is shifting gears,’’ Joel Naroff, president of Naroff Economic Advisers, told the Associated Press. “The decline in the unemployment rate is […]

Rep. Barbara Lee (D-Calif.), who once chaired the Congressional Black Caucus, and Rosa Whitaker, former assistant U.S. trade representative for Africa, were honored for their contributions to civil rights, social, global and economic justice and African development by a group of international affairs advocates Feb. 16. The United Nations Association of Washington D.C., (UNA-NCA) in […]

“For young people in my neighborhood, getting stopped and frisked is a rite of passage,” wrote Nicholas K. Peart, a student at Borough of Manhattan Community College, in a December 2011 opinion page essay in the New York Times titled, “Why Is the N.Y.P.D. After Me?” And, according to figures released by the New York […]

The founding members of the Black Stuntmen’s Association (BSA) were honored with the NAACP President’s Award at the 43rd annual NAACP Image Awards that aired live on Friday, Feb. 17 on NBC. “I am proud to honor the men and women of the Black Stuntmen’s Association with the NAACP President’s Award,” NAACP President and CEO […]

The National Action Network (NAN) is considering legal action against the New York Police Department in response to allegations that the department spied on the civil rights group and its leader, Rev. Al Sharpton. The NYPD allegedly planted a confidential informant in NAN’s Harlem headquarters to report on any large-scale protests planned in response to […]

Comedian David Ackerman wanted to see how much Brigham Young University students knew about Black history. So he got a makeup artist to paint him in blackface, and made a disturbing video documenting the experiment. Ackerman asked various students around the Utah campus about historical Black figures, and what those figures did to contribute to […]

Survivors of two Gulf Coast hurricanes may be spared from repaying disaster assistance funds that were improperly disbursed, according to a new plan announced by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. In early January, six years after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita wrecked the Gulf Coast, FEMA sent notices to some 90,000 aid recipients announcing its intent […]

Revised regulations will soon allow women positions closer to live combat, the Pentagon announced Feb. 9. Under new regulations, positions such as tank mechanic and field artillery radar operator will be opened to women in the Armed Forces. Currently, the 1994 Direct Ground Combat Definition and Assignment Rule prohibits women from taking positions that will […]

U.S. Marines have created a new wave of international furor, sending officials scrambling to explain another incident of unbecoming behavior and ignorance. A September 2010 photo showing 10 U.S. Marines purposely posing with a Nazi SS flag began to circulate on news and social media sites in recent months. The picture features the men in […]

President Obama announced Feb. 9 that 10 states will be no longer be bound in the classroom by the No Child Left Behind Act. The bill has caused controversy on both sides of the aisle since it was passed with bipartisan efforts in 2001 under the Bush Administration. The legislation aimed to increase reading and […]

Washington State is on the verge of making history, and is set to become the seventh state to legalize same-sex marriage when Gov. Christine Gregoire signs the measure into law Feb. 13. “This is truly a historic day in Washington State, and one where I couldn’t be more proud,” Gregoire said in a statement. “With […]