Category: National News

As the highest ranking African-American lawmaker in Congress, South Carolina Democrat James Clyburn is no stranger to high pressure negotiations or controversy. Clyburn’s latest assignment, however, as the only Black panelist on the 12- member Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction, will call on his considerable political skills and his social insights, honed over decades […]

The recent riots in London were largely depicted by media as young Blacks rampaging through the northern section of the city, looting stores and vandalizing property as a stunned world looked on. And through the specific lens of the Black American perspective most believed the volatile situation was rooted solely in racism. But, many Black […]

A Black man killed by police. Mobs of looters. Cities charred and shaken. The riots in London mirror some of the worst uprisings in modern U.S. history. And there are more parallels: Stubborn poverty and high unemployment, services slashed due to recessionary budget cuts, a breakdown of social values, social media that bring people together […]

Dr. Conrad Murray, Michael Jackson’s former personal physician, is expected to stand trial on manslaughter charges beginning Sept. 26. According to reports, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Michael Pastor hopes to begin jury selection on Sept. 8 to make sure that there’s enough time to complete that process before the date he’s set for the […]

During her last round of picks for the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction (“Debt Supercommittee”) intended to help solve the nation’s debt crisis, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi appointed Rep. James Clyburn (D-S.C) and Rep. Xavier Becerra (D-Calif.), adding diversity to the important panel. The Democrats are also represented by the only woman on […]

A fatal police shooting has sparked the most severe cases of civil disturbances Britain has experienced in 25 years. On the night of Aug. 11, Mark Duggan, a 29-year-old father of four, was allegedly gunned down by police in Tottenham, a Black community in North London. Police report Duggan was shot and killed during an […]

LONDON (AP) — Britons swept up, patched up and feared further violence Tuesday, demanding police do more to protect them after three nights of rioting left looted stores, torched cars and blackened buildings across London and several other U.K. cities. Police said they were working full-tilt, but found themselves under attack — from rioters roaming […]

The story reads as one straight out of the 1950s or ‘60s: White vigilantes murder Black man in Jackson, Miss. But, the incident happened in June of this year, belying recent claims that America has outrun its racist history. According to an Aug. 7 CNN news report, a posse of White teens allegedly hunted for […]

A recent analysis of the U.S. Census Bureau revealed that Black and Hispanic households that earn more than $75,000 annually live in poorer neighborhoods. These groups were found to live in poorer communities than the average low-income non-Hispanic White household that makes less than $40,000 per year, USA Today reports. Blacks and Hispanics live in […]

Conservative pundit Pat Buchanan is playing damage control after creating a bit of controversy when he referred to President Barack Obama as “your boy” in a discussion with Rev. Al Sharpton. Buchanan, a former Republican presidential candidate, was appearing on a show Sharpton was hosting on MSNBC Aug. 2 when he brought up the issue […]

President Barack Obama joined the 50-and-over club on Aug. 4, reaching a milestone that often brings wisdom with age. “Once you get to 50, you realize what is really important and what is not,” said Saundra Chipungu, chair of the doctoral program at Morgan State University. As years progress, people begin to understand what they […]

Congress may have averted a global financial meltdown of their own making with the passage of a controversial deficit control bill on Aug. 2, but some members of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) say the worst is yet to come. “This is a choice between a job killing default and a job killing austerity plan,” […]