The issue of legalizing marijuana for medical purposes has been on the minds of District residents since 1998 when they overwhelmingly voted for Initiative 59, a measure many believed would have been of particular benefit to the elderly. But Congress failed to give its nod of approval and it wasn’t until last month that the […]
Category: NEWS
Legal Experts Question Reversal on Corporate Campaign Ads
Legal experts and campaign reform advocates are decrying the U.S. Supreme Court’s Jan. 21 decision that reversed a years-long ban on corporate campaign spending, a move that opens the door for a deluge of negative campaign ads that could transform November’s mid-term elections. “It’s not a happy day; it’s a very, disturbing, disturbing decision,” said […]
Yele Haiti Vows Better Accounting
After admitting mistakes involving questionable financial practices, Wyclef Jean’s Yele Haiti charity foundation announced Jan. 22 that it has hired a new accounting firm to help manage its finances. The announcement was made just hours before a globally-broadcast charity concert called “Hope for Haiti Now: A Global Benefit for Earthquake Relief.” The foundation’s finances were […]
State of the Dream 2010 Report: Instant Changes for Minorities Recession Recovery
Even as the U.S. economy recovers, African-Americans and Latinos continue to disproportionately experience hardships in their frantic efforts to find work and maintain homeownership, according to a new report from the Boston-based United for a Fair Economy. Release of the 25-page report, “State of the Dream 2010: Drained – Jobless and Foreclosed in Communities of […]
Haitians Respond to Media Portrayal of Homeland
As many Haitians live in peril amid indescribable destruction and death, their American relatives are vexed by the media’s depiction of their native country as an uninhabitable, poverty-stricken no man’s land. While Haiti’s history of widespread human suffering is irrefutable—something most Haitians recognize—some believe the Caribbean nation has been particularly demonized by international media following […]
Community Service Urged on MLK Holiday
The Corporation for National and Community Service, the federal organization which oversees the government’s public service efforts, has put out its annual call to citizens nationwide to honor the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday by volunteering and taking part in community events planned for January 18. In 1994, Congress designated the holiday a “day of […]
German Musical Showcases Obama’s Rise
A President Obama look-a-like will star in a new German musical which was scheduled to open January 15, according to the Associated Press. The production, titled “Hope: The Obama Musical Story,” is a bilingual musical performed in English and German that highlights Obama’s journey to the White House through various dance and song numbers. The […]
Top Banks Answer to Financial Crisis Panel
Several major bank executives finally admitted to missteps during the 2008 financial crisis during a January 13 hearing on Capitol Hill. “People are angry. They have a right to be,” Chairman Phil Angelides of the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission, or FCIC, told ABC News. “The fact is that Wall Street is enjoying record profits and […]
Top Banks Answer to Financial Crisis Panel
Several major bank executives finally admitted to missteps during the 2008 financial crisis during a January 13 hearing on Capitol Hill “People are angry. They have a right to be,” Chairman Phil Angelides of the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission, or FCIC, told ABC News. “The fact is that Wall Street is enjoying record profits and […]
Arenas Pleads Guilty to Felony Gun Charge
On January 15, Washington Wizards star Gilbert Arenas pleaded guilty to a felony charge of carrying a firearm without a license in Washington, D.C. Arenas pleaded guilty in D.C. Superior Court as part of a deal which will guarantee him receiving a penalty on the low end of the capital’s sentencing guidelines. Without the plea bargain, the 28-year-old Los […]
Mom Charged For Ditching Duty
A Black single mother serving in the Army faces charges for failing to report to duty after she said she needed to watch her young son instead. The Army filed charges on January 13 against Spc. Alexis Hutchinson, a 21-year-old Army cook from California, for missing a flight to Afghanistan, including being absent without leave, […]
Conservative Icons Draw Fire over Haiti Statements
Two prominent conservatives came under fire over comments made about the massive earthquake that hit Haiti on January 12. The Rev. Pat Robertson, a televangelist known for controversy as much as being a devout Christian, was the first to weigh in. During a Christian Bible Network telecast, Robertson said the Haitians made a deal with […]

