Largest State Has Low Participation

California is the largest state in the union,
so how come it has the lowest participation
with the food stamp program. After Reading the
story below, I'm sure that you will have something
to say about it.



Despite persistent economic woes, California leaves billions of federal food stamp dollars on the table each year that could help ease hunger and boost the local economy, officials say.

Only 48% of eligible Californians are enrolled in the nutrition program, according to federal figures from 2007, the most recent year available. That is well below the national average of 66%. Only Wyoming has a slightly lower rate.

California officials dispute the way the figures are calculated and say they do not reflect recent steps to improve the state's record, including greater outreach and simplified procedures.

As of December, more than 3 million people, about 1 in 11 California residents, were receiving food stamps, according to state figures. That is nearly 46% more than in December 2007. Because the number of people eligible for the program has soared during the recession, it is unclear whether the participation rate has gone up.

Federal officials say the state has taken steps in the right direction but needs to do more to improve access to the program.

"We're concerned that there are people, particularly in this economy, who need help putting healthy food on the table and aren't getting that assistance," said Jean Daniel, spokeswoman for the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food and Nutrition Service.

Potential recipients aren't the only ones losing out. Last year, California residents received $4.8 billion in food stamps.

Federal officials estimate that every $5 in benefits generates as much as $9.20 in economic activity by freeing income that would otherwise be spent on food and creating business for local companies. Many of these purchases are subject to sales tax, boosting state revenue.

A number of factors contribute to California's lagging participation.





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"From Atlanta to the Mountain top
It's the 3-Hour Docudrama that
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To learn more and hear
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Entire Senior Class Accepted To College

An entire senior class at a Chicago
prep school has been accepted to go
to college. What makes this unique
is the fact that the students are
all black This is the first time
this has ever happened. Check out
the story below and feel free to
comment.




The entire senior class at Chicago's only public all-male, all-African-American high school has been accepted to four-year colleges. At last count, the 107 seniors had earned spots at 72 schools across the nation.

Mayor Richard Daley and Chicago Public Schools chief Ron Huberman surprised students at an all-school assembly at Urban Prep Academy for Young Men in Englewood this morning to congratulate them. It's the first graduating class at Urban Prep since it opened its doors in 2006.

Huberman applauded the seniors for making CPS shine.

"All of you in the senior class have shown that what matters is perseverance, what matters is focus, what matters is having a dream and following that dream," Huberman said.

The school enforces a strict uniform of black blazers, khaki pants and red ties -- with one exception. After a student receives the news he was accepted into college, he swaps his red tie for a red and gold one at an assembly.

The last 13 students received their college ties today, to thunderous applause.

Ask Rayvaughn Hines what college he was accepted to and he'll answer with a question.

"Do you want me to name them all?"

For the 18-year-old from Back of the Yards, college was merely a concept--never a goal--growing up. Even within the last three years, he questioned if school, let alone college, was for him. Now, the senior is headed to the prestigious Morehouse College in Atlanta, Ga. next fall.




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"From Atlanta to the Mountain top
It's the 3-Hour Docudrama that
tells the story of the Civil Rights
movement and the life of
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
To learn more and hear
excerpts from this treasured
program,click here:
http://www.kingprogram.net/

A Moment Of Self Control

A moment of self control could have
saved David Jassy the better part of
his young life. Now he must spend time
with the low-lifes and scum of California
in prison. This story could have happened
to any of us. Think about the times you
have become outraged at someone on the street.
Your comments are welcomed.




A judge sentenced a Swedish hip-hop artist to 15 years to life in prison Thursday for the road rage murder of a pedestrian in a Hollywood crosswalk.

Superior Court Judge Michael Johnson rejected a motion by defense attorneys to reduce David Jassy’s second-degree murder conviction to manslaughter, citing the brutality of the 2008 killing and the defendant’s “phony” trial testimony in which he claimed he acted in self-defense.

“I’ve independently reviewed the evidence, and I agree completely with the jury verdict,” Johnson said.

Under the terms of the mandatory sentence, Jassy, 35, who has been jailed since the incident, will be eligible for parole in 2024, when he is 49. He was convicted last month of the fatal assault on John Osnes, a 55-year-old jazz pianist, during a late-night confrontation at the intersection of Selma Boulevard and Schrader Avenue.

Witnesses said Osnes, who was on foot, struck the hood of Jassy’s rented sport utility vehicle with his hands after the vehicle edged into the crosswalk. Jassy responded, the witnesses said, by leaping from his vehicle, punching Osnes in the face and then kicking him in the head as he bent over.

Johnson told Jassy he did not believe his claim that Osnes, a tall, thin man, posed a danger to the rapper, his girlfriend and his automobile, which the judge described as “a three-quarter ton gross weight sport utility vehicle.”





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Get your copy of the award winning King:
"From Atlanta to the Mountain top
It's the 3-Hour Docudrama that
tells the story of the Civil Rights
movement and the life of
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
To learn more and hear
excerpts from this treasured
program,click here:
http://www.kingprogram.net/

Are His Underwear Next?

Where will it all end? Now there is
disagreement on who owns the suit of
clothes that O.J. Simpson was wearing
the day of his acquittal. So what's
next, who get his draws?




A settlement conference was scheduled Monday over whether the father of the man O.J. Simpson was accused of murdering should get the suit the former football star was wearing the day of his acquittal.

Fred Goldman, the father of Ron Goldman, filed the lawsuit against Simpson and his former agent, Mike Gilbert, who allegedly has possession of the suit. Ron Goldman was killed in 1994 with Simpson's ex-wife, Nicole.

“This is a mandatory settlement to attempt to resolve who owns the suit and who has the right to the suit,” said Ronald Slates, Simpson's lawyer. "Gilbert said Simpson gave him the suit. If you believe that, you also believe in Santa Claus and the tooth fairy.”





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Get your copy of the award winning King:
"From Atlanta to the Mountain top
It's the 3-Hour Docudrama that
tells the story of the Civil Rights
movement and the life of
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
To learn more and hear
excerpts from this treasured
program,click here:
http://www.kingprogram.net/

Blacks Splitting On Obama?

Black leaders are now divided on
Obama and how he should be handling
black issues. How will this division
effect the final outcome of this issue?
Check out the article below and then let
us know what you think.



*Some noted Black leaders recently have suggested publicly that President Obama does not need to focus on Black issues.
In response to mounting evidence showing African Americans are disproportionately lagging behind on all economic indicators despite assertions of a so-called “post-racial” era, Tavis Smiley said Tuesday he will moderate a national conversation examining whether in fact there needs to be a Black agenda and the accountability of leadership to address issues facing Black Americans.

Smiley formally announced the forum this morning on the Tom Joyner morning Show. Reaction to his statements and position was swift. Immediately after, during a telephone press conference with EUR and several other black oriented media outlets, Smiley said that his comments had already prompted a heated response from Rev Al Sharpton, one of the “Black Leaders” that Smiley identified.




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Get your copy of the award winning King:
"From Atlanta to the Mountain top
It's the 3-Hour Docudrama that
tells the story of the Civil Rights
movement and the life of
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
To learn more and hear
excerpts from this treasured
program,click here:
http://www.kingprogram.net/

Another Black Physician Comes Under Fire

Once again another prominent black
doctor is under the microscope.
This time Dr. Andrew Rutland a Chula
Vista,California physician was caught
in a sting, violating a court order not
to practice. Check out the article below.
Your comments are welcomed.






Less than a month after Dr. Andrew Rutland was barred from performing surgeries after an abortion patient's death, state medical authorities say they caught the physician in an undercover sting apparently violating the court order.

For the second time in as many months, state officials are seeking the immediate suspension of the Chula Vista physician's license. A hearing is set for Thursday in San Diego. Rutland could not be reached for comment.

His lawyer, Paul M. Hittelman, said Rutland did nothing to violate the court's order.

"It's not asserted that he was doing any surgical procedures," said Hittelman, adding that Rutland's physician daughter performed those procedures.

On Jan. 7, Administrative Law Judge James Ahler stopped short of granting the request by lawyers for the Medical Board of California, deciding instead to temporarily limit his practice until a full hearing could be held. One potential problem for the state was proving that Rutland posed an immediate danger -- given that it took five months to bring its case.

This time, lawyers for the medical board will present evidence of a sting operation hatched a couple of days after the January hearing.

At that time, in response to a request from Rutland's lawyer seeking clarification of the no-surgery order, the judge amended it to specifically ban him from performing "first trimester abortions and endometrial curettage procedures."

Two weeks later, Medical Board investigator Carmen Aguilera-Marquez made an appointment for an abortion at A Women's Choice Family Planning Clinic in Chula Vista. She used an undercover alias and brought a urine sample from a pregnant woman.

At the clinic, she saw Rutland in a room through an open door standing by a woman lying on an examination table, according to a petition filed by the board. The patient's legs were bent, and Rutland was looking into the patient's cervical area, she said.

She spoke with a friend of the patient who told her that the woman was there for a "chemical abortion," a spontaneous miscarriage induced with pills inserted by a physician, she said in the petition.





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Get your copy of the award winning King:
"From Atlanta to the Mountain top
It's the 3-Hour Docudrama that
tells the story of the Civil Rights
movement and the life of
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
To learn more and hear
excerpts from this treasured
program,click here:
http://www.kingprogram.net/

Three Striker Tows The Line

Jerry Dewayne Williams the first person
convicted under California's three strike
law back in 1994 walks very carefully these
days. He has to or he could spend the rest
of his life in prison. Check out the story
below and feel free to offer an opinion.





If he ever returns to prison, Jerry Dewayne Williams knows he'll probably never get out.

To stay clear of trouble, he has left behind the Compton neighborhood where police knew him and cut ties with friends from wilder days. Once a hard partyer, the 43-year-old says he prefers the company of a mystery novel or a "Law and Order" episode on television.

Williams is one of more than 14,000 felons who, under California's three-strikes law, face a possible life sentence if they commit another felony. But few, if any, grasp the reality of that threat better than Williams.

Fifteen years ago, the gangly laborer made worldwide headlines when he was convicted of snatching a slice of pizza from a group of children near the Redondo Beach Pier. A judge, citing California's newly adopted three-strikes law, sentenced him to 25 years to life.

Williams -- dubbed the "pizza thief" -- became an iconic symbol in the political and ideological battle over California's push to get tough on crime. But as the public furor over his case subsided, Williams persuaded a judge to reduce his prison term, and he was quietly released after a little more than five years behind bars.

A decade later, Williams finds himself serving a different kind of life sentence.

"I walk on eggshells," he said. "Any little thing that I do, I could be back for the rest of my life."

Controversial life sentences under the three-strikes law are hardly novel. Those sentenced under the law include a thief caught shoplifting a bottle of vitamins and a drug addict who swiped nine videotapes to sell for heroin.

But few cases have polarized opinion as much as Williams' theft of an extra-large slice of pepperoni pizza. The case continues to divide today, resurfacing whenever opponents of the law launch another reform attempt.





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Get your copy of the award winning King:
"From Atlanta to the Mountain top
It's the 3-Hour Docudrama that
tells the story of the Civil Rights
movement and the life of
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
To learn more and hear
excerpts from this treasured
program,click here:
http://www.kingprogram.net/

Congresswoman Watson Steps Down

Congresswomen Diane Watson is stepping down
from her congressional seat. We commend this
great lady for her more than thirty years
of public service.



Ending more than three decades of public service, U.S. Rep. Diane Watson announced Thursday morning that she would step down from her congressional seat at the end of this term.

She declined to endorse a successor.

“I appreciate the trust … that you have placed in me,” said Watson, speaking at a Los Angeles news conference, flanked by community leaders including L.A. County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas, LAPD Assistant Chief Earl Paysinger, school board member Marguerite LaMotte and the Rev. Cecil L. “Chip” Murray.

Watson, a Democrat, said she was leaving to spend “quality time” with her mother, who just turned 100 and recently broke her hip.

The announcement capped a political career that began when she was the first black woman elected to the LAUSD school board and culminated with her election to the 37th Congressional District. She was also the first black woman elected to the state Senate, in 1978.






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Get your copy of the award winning King:
"From Atlanta to the Mountain top
It's the 3-Hour Docudrama that
tells the story of the Civil Rights
movement and the life of
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
To learn more and hear
excerpts from this treasured
program,click here:
http://www.kingprogram.net/

Black Jobs?

The country is recovering from one of the
worst recessions in history yet blacks seem
to be going under more and more. President
Obama needs to do more to assure that blacks
get a fair shake in this recovery. Do you
agree?





Reporting from Washington - Amid signs that black Americans are not sharing in the nation's fledgling economic recovery, President Obama on Wednesday met at the White House with African American leaders, who urged him to adopt a new approach more tightly focused on chronically depressed communities.

While the unemployment rate in January dropped below 10% for the first time in five months, joblessness among blacks increased slightly, to 16.5%.

"We're not looking for race-based programs but, like the president, we want to make sure that everyone is included," the Rev. Al Sharpton said after the meeting. "We need to make sure that those efforts to spur job creation are equally and fairly distributed so that, when the rubber meets the road, we're all in the car."

The meeting came at a time when some black leaders have faulted Obama for not pursuing policies more targeted on the economic woes of their community.

Sharpton and the two other leaders in the meeting -- NAACP President Benjamin T. Jealous and National Urban League CEO Marc H. Morial -- have been supportive of Obama in the face of those complaints.

Obama remains supremely popular among African Americans. David Bositis, a political analyst at the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies, recently surveyed blacks in four states and found that 80% approved of the job he was doing as president.

But even Obama's supporters want to be sure that the jobs legislation being drafted in Congress will be effective in minority-dominated communities with high unemployment.

"More must be done," said Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Los Angeles) after the January unemployment report was released. "As lawmakers, we must not shy away from targeted public policy that seeks to address the specific and unique issues facing minority communities."

The House in December passed a $154-billion jobs bill that included several provisions sought by the Congressional Black Caucus, such as a $500-million summer jobs program and a $1-billion fund for affordable housing. It also included $26.7 billion to help state and local governments maintain public service jobs -- workforces in which minorities are well represented.




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Get your copy of the award winning King:
"From Atlanta to the Mountain top
It's the 3-Hour Docudrama that
tells the story of the Civil Rights
movement and the life of
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
To learn more and hear
excerpts from this treasured
program,click here:
http://www.kingprogram.net/

Is The Trickle Down Effect Back For Blacks?

Obama says rather than pass laws that are
conducive to help blacks he wants to pass
legislation that will benefit all Americans.
This way no one is left out. When the chips
are down in this country it is black folks
that are the hardest hit. Will we ever get
preferential treatment? Even now with a
black man in the White House we must still
stand in line and wait. What's your take?
Check out the story below.






There was no big speech or fancy ceremony when President Obama observed the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday last month. Instead, for his first King holiday as president, Mr. Obama quietly installed a rare signed copy of the Emancipation Proclamation in the Oval Office and invited a small group of African-American elders and young people to come see it.
The private gathering — “an intimate discussion,” in the words of Dorothy Height, a 97-year-old grande dame of the civil rights movement — was typical of Mr. Obama, who has steered clear of putting race front and center in his administration. But that low-key approach is frustrating some black leaders and scholars, who are starting to challenge Mr. Obama’s language and policies.

On Capitol Hill, members of the Congressional Black Caucus are expressing irritation that Mr. Obama has failed to create programs tailored specifically to African-Americans, who are suffering disproportionately in the recession. In December, some of them threatened to oppose new financial rules for banks until the White House promised to address the needs of minority groups.

“I don’t think we expected anything to change overnight because we had an African-American in the White House, but the fact still remains that we’ve got a constituency that is suffering,” said Representative Elijah E. Cummings, Democrat of Maryland. “I think he could do more, and he will do more.”

Some black scholars fault Mr. Obama as failing to lead on the issue of race. The Kirwan Institute, which studies race and ethnicity, is convening a conference on Thursday to offer policy prescriptions. After analyzing the State of the Union address, the institute’s scholars warned that “continued failure to engage race would be devastating.”

Michael Eric Dyson, a Georgetown University sociologist and longtime supporter of Mr. Obama, is exasperated. “All these teachable moments,” Professor Dyson said, “but the professor refuses to come to the class.”

In an interview in late December with American Urban Radio Networks, a group of black-owned stations, Mr. Obama conceded that there was “grumbling” among African-Americans, especially about his jobs policies. But he rejected the idea that he should pay special attention to them — an argument that Earl Ofari Hutchinson, a black author and political analyst, called “disingenuous at best, and an insult at worst.”

Mr. Obama framed it this way: “I can’t pass laws that say I’m just helping black folks. I’m the president of the United States. What I can do is make sure that I am passing laws that help all people, particularly those who are most vulnerable and most in need. That in turn is going to help lift up the African-American community.”

Until now, black leaders have tended to tread lightly in criticizing Mr. Obama, and some find it personally painful. Black Americans remain overwhelmingly supportive of Mr. Obama; a recent ABC News poll found that 96 percent approve of his job performance.





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Get your copy of the award winning King:
"From Atlanta to the Mountain top
It's the 3-Hour Docudrama that
tells the story of the Civil Rights
movement and the life of
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
To learn more and hear
excerpts from this treasured
program,click here:
http://www.kingprogram.net/

Conrad Murray Negotiating Surrender

Conrad Murray the doctor at the center
of the Micheal Jackson controversy is
negotiating a surrender to the District
Attorney's office. The sticking point
is whether he should be handcuffed. The
police have taken the stance that he
should be handcuffed thus showing him
as some kind of thug criminal. How do
you feel the doctor should be treated?


An attorney for Michael Jackson’s doctor said he was in negotiations with a prosecutor Thursday morning about how the physician will surrender to face criminal charges in the pop icon’s death.

No case has been filed against Dr. Conrad Murray, but the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office is expected to file an involuntary manslaughter charge and potentially other counts against him this week, said numerous sources familiar with the case.

Murray’s lead attorney, Ed Chernoff, said he and Deputy Dist. Atty. David Walgren were discussing arrangements for booking and arraigning the doctor after the case is filed.

“We both share the goal of the efficient administration of this process,” Chernoff said.

A spokeswoman for the district attorney’s office did not immediately return messages seeking comment.

A sticking point appeared to be whether Murray, who is staying with the mother of his infant son in Santa Monica, will be arrested and placed in handcuffs or permitted to turn himself in at a police station or courthouse.

Los Angeles Police Department officials were pushing for an arrest, according to a departmental source who spoke on the condition of anonymity. The source said police were concerned that allowing Murray to turn himself in suggested to the public -- including future jurors -- that he was entitled to special treatment and was a “white-collar” case rather than an accused criminal.

Murray’s lawyer insisted there was no reason for handcuffs or police cars.

“An arrest of Dr. Murray would be a waste of money, time and resources. We’ve always made it clear: You tell us where; we’ll be there. I’m sure something can be arranged,” Chernoff said.

He said Murray and his defense team have met with bail bond companies in preparation for the charges.

“We’ve had eight months to prepare,” he said, referring to the criminal probe of Murray that began in the hours after Jackson’s June 25 death.

Murray acknowledged giving propofol, a powerful anesthetic intended for use in operating rooms, to Jackson as a sleep aid the morning of his death, according to court documents. The coroner’s department ruled the death a homicide and said it was caused by “acute propofol intoxication” in combination with the use of sedatives also administered by the doctor.

Involuntary manslaughter, which applies to unlawful killing committed without malice or an intent to kill, carries a maximum sentence of four years in prison.






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Get your copy of the award winning King:
"From Atlanta to the Mountain top
It's the 3-Hour Docudrama that
tells the story of the Civil Rights
movement and the life of
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
To learn more and hear
excerpts from this treasured
program,click here:
http://www.kingprogram.net/

The Soloist Debuts First CD

Nathaniel Ayers the cellist portrayed by Jamie Foxx
has finally cut his first CD with the help of a few
friends. Congratulations are in order. Check out
the story below then post your thoughts.



With a little help from his friends, the Soloist cuts his first CD.
I was beginning to think we'd never get around to making the CD that Nathaniel Anthony Ayers has been talking about for years.

Last summer, on a trip to San Francisco, where Mr. Ayers was honored for his spirit by the National Alliance on Mental Illness, we came up with the perfect name for it:

"Putting on Ayers."

But when readers and friends asked when it would be available, I had no good answer.

Some days Mr. Ayers is fine; some days not.

Some days he wants companionship; other days he needs to be alone.

As for the CD, he'd back off one day, calling it a terrible idea. And then he'd be ready to roll the next day.

Finally, a few weeks ago, it all seemed to be coming together. We had a day booked in a Silver Lake studio. A pal of his, Joe Russo, had agreed to fly in from Connecticut to record with him.

L.A. Philharmonic pianist Joanne Pearce Martin and violinist Robert Gupta had juggled schedules. And Michael Balzary, also known as Flea of the band Red Hot Chili Peppers, was eager to join us.

Then, the night before, Mr. Ayers -- a former Juilliard student who was homeless and playing a two-string violin when I met him five years ago -- backed out of the recording session.

"It's not going to happen," he said, complaining of an upset stomach that I suspected was caused in part by a case of nerves.

I woke the next day to an urgent message from Mr. Ayers: He was feeling better and ready to go, and I was relieved I hadn't called off the whole thing.

An hour later, he canceled, and I lost a few more strands of hair.

The other musicians were standing by. Would Mr. Ayers reconsider?

OK, he said.

I picked him up on skid row and packed his bass, cello, violin, guitar, trumpet and flute into my car. He left his viola, French horn, keyboards and trombone in his room, perhaps saving them for his second CD.

On the way to Silver Lake, Mr. Ayers was nervous but game. He wanted to know how the day would play out, and I reminded him there was no strategy other than for him to jam on as many instruments as he cared to play. Steven Argila, a pianist and owner of the studio, had met Mr. Ayers before and was ready to go with the flow, and the same was true of Stephen Krause, the recording engineer.




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Get your copy of the award winning King:
"From Atlanta to the Mountain top
It's the 3-Hour Docudrama that
tells the story of the Civil Rights
movement and the life of
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
To learn more and hear
excerpts from this treasured
program,click here:
http://www.kingprogram.net/

Black History Month

February which most of us black folks know is
Black History Month and to kick it off below
is a list of black history events. Check it
out, it's an interesting list.





Historical Front Pages from On This Day in History

1800s

* 1857: Decision of the Supreme Court in the Dred Scott Case
* 1863: President Abraham Lincoln issued the preliminary Emancipation Proclamation

1900-1950s

* 1947: Dodgers Purchase Robinson, First Negro in Modern Major League Baseball
* 1954: High Court Bans School Segregation; 9-to-0 Decision Grants Time to Comply
* 1956: High Court Rules Bus Segregation Unconstitutional
* 1957: Arkansas Troops Bar Negro Pupils; Governor Defiant
* 1957: President Sends Troops to Little Rock, Federalizes Arkansas National Guard; Tells Nation He Acted to Avoid An Anarchy
* 1957: Miss Gibson Wimbledon Victor

1960s-2000

* 1960: Negro Sitdowns Stir Fear Of Wider Unrest in South
* 1961: 400 U.S. Marshals Sent to Alabama as Montgomery Bus Riots Hurt 20; President Bids State Keep Order
* 1963: Birmingham Bomb Kills 4 Negro Girls In Church; Riots Flare; 2 Boys Slain
* 1963: Mississippi Gives Meredith Degree
* 1963: 200,000 March for Civil Rights in Orderly Washington Rally
* 1964: 3 In Rights Drive Reported Missing
* 1964: Civil Rights Bill Passed, 73-27; Johnson Urges All To Comply; Dirksen Berates Goldwater
* 1964: Martin Luther King Wins The Nobel Prize for Peace

1965: New Negro Riots Erupt on Coast; 3 Reported Shot
* 1965: The Big Parade: On the Way to Montgomery
* 1965: 25,000 Go to Alabama’s Capitol
* 1965: Malcolm X Shot to Death at Rally Here
* 1967: President Sees Marshall Take Supreme Court Seat
* 1968: Martin Luther King is Slain in Memphis
* 1968: 2 Black Power Advocates Ousted From Olympics
* 1971: Supreme Court, 9-0, Backs Busing to Combat South’s Dual Schools, Rejecting Administration Stand
* 1975: Ashe Triumphs at Wimbledon
* 1991: Police Brutality Under Wide Review by Justice Dept.
* 1992: Los Angeles Policemen Acquitted In Taped Beating

2000s

* 2008: Obama Elected President as Racial Barrier Falls





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Get your copy of the award winning King:
"From Atlanta to the Mountain top
It's the 3-Hour Docudrama that
tells the story of the Civil Rights
movement and the life of
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
To learn more and hear
excerpts from this treasured
program,click here:
http://www.kingprogram.net/

Fighting For All Against Poverty

In his final book Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
broadens his fight against poverty to include
all since there are more poor whites than blacks
in this country. After reading the article below
you may want to run out and purchase the book.



Many people are celebrating Martin Luther King Jr. Day by doing service or simply taking some time off. A few writers, however, have turned their attention to literary works by and about King. Here's a quick roundup.

Martin Luther King Jr.'s final manuscript, "Where Do We Go From Here: Chaos or Community?" was written in Jamaica in 1967. Originally published in 1968, "Where Do We Go From Here" was reissued by Beacon Press this month. The website The Root looks at its cross-racial call for economic justice:

“In the treatment of poverty nationally, one fact stands out,” King wrote in 1967. “There are twice as many white poor as [black] poor in the United States. Therefore I will not dwell on the experiences of poverty that derive from racial discrimination, but will discuss the poverty that affects white and [black] alike.”

This was a radical — and unpopular — change for the preacher who is best-known for pushing voting, employment, housing and other civil rights for black Americans. At this point in his career, during what would become the final months of his life, he was widening his field of vision to seek an end to poverty among all Americans.

The New Yorker's Book Bench blog also turned to King's last book, focusing on his prescient analysis of technology. King wrote:

We must work passionately and indefatigably to bridge the gulf between our scientific progress and our moral progress. One of the great problems of mankind is that we suffer from a poverty of the spirit which stands in glaring contrast to our scientific and technological abundance. The richer we have become materially, the poorer we have become morally and spiritually.





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Get your copy of the award winning King:
"From Atlanta to the Mountain top
It's the 3-Hour Docudrama that
tells the story of the Civil Rights
movement and the life of
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
To learn more and hear
excerpts from this treasured
program,click here:
http://www.kingprogram.net/

Blame The Politics

I guess the saying remains to be true
that it takes thick skin to be involved
in politics. Check out the story below
and feel free to express your comment
on Obama's choice for Transportation
Secretary, Erroll Southers.



Reporting from Washington - Erroll Southers, President Obama's choice to head the Transportation Security Administration, withdrew his name from consideration Wednesday, dealing a setback to an agency still grappling with the security failures that led to an alleged attempted airliner bombing on Christmas Day.

Southers, whose nomination had been blocked by Republican opposition, complained in a statement Wednesday that he had become a political lightning rod.

In an interview with the Associated Press, Southers said the confirmation process made him question his willingness to participate in public service.

"I am not a politician. I'm a counter-terrorism expert," said Southers, assistant chief of airport police in Los Angeles. "They took an apolitical person and politicized my career."

The White House accepted Southers' withdrawal while maintaining that he would have made an excellent TSA administrator.

Obama nominated Southers, a former FBI agent, in September to head the TSA. But Sen. Jim DeMint, a South Carolina Republican who complained that Southers hoped to make good on an Obama pledge to allow TSA workers to join unions, had placed a hold on his confirmation by the Senate.

Southers also had faced questions over an event years ago, when he had ordered criminal background checks on the boyfriend of his estranged wife.





This Article Continues Here





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"From Atlanta to the Mountain top
It's the 3-Hour Docudrama that
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movement and the life of
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
To learn more and hear
excerpts from this treasured
program,click here:
http://www.kingprogram.net/

The Smell Of Death

The people of Haiti can smell it coming
and there is very little that they can do
about it. Relief to this small island nation
in the Caribbean is coming at a very slow pace.
Does this also remind you of another disaster
that involved many people of color in recent years?
Why is relief always so slow when it comes to
non-whites? We certainly want to here from you on
this.




Reporting from Leogane, Haiti - Only the goats risk the cool shade of the century-old colonnades left standing in this provincial capital.

The people have hauled themselves and their possessions into the middle of the dirt roads, away from the fallen storefront arches and tin roofs that now rest on piles of brick like crumpled hats. Leogane looks like an archaeological dig overrun by squatters who wait for food, medical attention and shelter from the sun and coming rain.

International aid is starting to pour into Port-au-Prince, two hours to the east. On Monday, four ships carrying 2,200 Marines anchored off the coast and began ferrying supplies and personnel ashore. There were scattered reports of looting and gunfire in the capital, but U.N. officials said the relief effort was gaining momentum. And international teams were still finding victims alive under the rubble.

In Leogane, hub of Haiti's sugar cane country, residents have seen just an Argentine medical team and the Spanish Red Cross, which is assessing sanitation and water needs here.

In a city of 130,000, only one well is pumping water -- no faster than the flow of a garden hose. And it's not drinkable.

Residents have given up expecting that any of those still trapped in the rubble will be rescued. After the initial grief and fear, there is a strange pause in the story of last Tuesday's earthquake.

People here can smell the inevitable.





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Get your copy of the award winning King:
"From Atlanta to the Mountain top
It's the 3-Hour Docudrama that
tells the story of the Civil Rights
movement and the life of
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
To learn more and hear
excerpts from this treasured
program,click here:
http://www.kingprogram.net/

Shaq Attacked

Oh Boy!
Looks like another high profile athlete
is having mistress problems. Shaquille O'Neal
is being sued by his mistress. Check out
the video and the get back with us with
your thoughts on this news breaking controversy.



 





Get your copy of the award winning King:
"From Atlanta to the Mountain top.
It's the 3-Hour Docudrama that
tells the story of the Civil Rights
movement and the life of
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
To learn more and hear
excerpts from this treasured
program,click here:
http://www.kingprogram.net/

Shaq Attacked!

Oh Boy!
Looks like another high profile athlete
is having mistress problems. Check out
the video and the get back with us on
your thoughts.













This Article Continues Here





Get your copy of the award winning King:
"From Atlanta to the Mountain top.
It's the 3-Hour Docudrama that
tells the story of the Civil Rights
movement and the life of
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
To learn more and hear
excerpts from this treasured
program,click here:
http://www.kingprogram.net/

Is It In The Religion?

What was it that could have caused a young
black man from a wealthy family in Nigeria
to want to blow up a plane on Christmas Day?
Could it be in the religion? Umar Farouk
Abdulmutallab was practicing Muslim who's
behavior changed quite abruptly according
to family members. What's your take on this
situation? Check out story below.


Reporting from Johannesburg, South Africa - The family of Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, the man charged with attempting to destroy a transatlantic airliner, expressed shock at his actions in a statement released Monday, adding that they were thankful no lives were lost.

Abdulmutallab's father, Alhaji Umaru Mutallab, is a wealthy former Nigerian banker, who recently retired as chairman of First Bank and was a government minister under former President Olusegun Obasanjo.

A statement signed "The Mutallab Family" described the family's alarm in recent months as Abdulmutallab, known to friends and family as Farouk, cut off contact and disappeared.

Pledging to fully cooperate with all investigations, the family said in the statement that the change in Abdulmutallab's behavior was "very recent" and "completely out of character."

His father was so worried about his son's whereabouts and behavior that he had recently reported the issue to Nigerian security agencies and U.S. officials.

"The disappearance and cessation of communication . . . are completely out of character and a very recent development, as before then, from very early childhood, Farouk, to the best of parental monitoring, had never shown any attitude, conduct or association that would give concern," the statement said.

"As soon as concern arose, very recently, his parents reported it and sought help.

"Prior to this incident [the attempted bombing], his father, having become concerned about his disappearance and stoppage of communication while schooling abroad, reported the matter to the Nigerian security agencies about two months ago and to some foreign agencies about a month and a half ago, then sought their assistance to find and return him home.

This Article Continues Here

Get your copy of the award winning King:
"From Atlanta to the Mountain top
It's the 3-Hour Docudrama that
tells the story of the Civil Rights
movement and the life of
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
To learn more and hear
excerpts from this treasured
program,click here:
http://www.kingprogram.net/

Will The Real Tiger Woods Please Stand Up!

Well what you see is what get these days with
Tiger Woods. Since the the sex scandal story
broke about the world class golfer interest of
what he does off the golf course has become
somewhat bigger than what he does on the golf
course. What do you think is going on with Tiger?




Tiger Woods may be playing cat-and-mouse with the media, but readers of Vanity Fair will see much more of him than ever before when the February issue hits stands next week.

The cover shot, part of a spread taken by famed photographer Annie Leibovitz before his sex scandal, shows a bare-chested Woods in a black cap lifting weights. The magazine says the layout depicts "a raw, unguarded Woods," and captures him "in prophetic isolation."

At VanityFair.com, Leibovitz said of the images: "Tiger is an intensely competitive athlete – and quite serious about his sport. I wanted to reveal that in these photos. And to show his incredible focus and dedication."

In the cover story, author Buzz Bissinger ("Friday Night Lights") refers to Woods as “a sex addict who could not get enough” and cites a 1997 GQ interview with the golfer, who was 21 at the time, as evidence of the real Woods.

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Get your copy of the award winning King:
"From Atlanta to the Mountain top
It's the 3-Hour Docudrama that
tells the story of the Civil Rights
movement and the life of
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
To learn more and hear
excerpts from this treasured
program,click here:
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Kevin Cooper Cut And Dry?

I know a little sumtin-sumtin about justice in San Bernardino.
With a conviction rate of nearly 98% they like things neat and
tidy. San Bernardino can also be very sloppy when it comes to
real police work. I knew a black guy who fought a murder case
there for two years and the delays came from the prosecution.
When the case finally went to the jury it took them less than ten
minutes to acquit. Instead of good police work the prosecution
was trying to build it's case on a prior manslaughter conviction.
Kevin Cooper is more convenient and economical to that upscale
area of San Bernardino. It got the county untold millions of
dollars to protect the surrounding communities from the inmates
at Chino prison and Chino Hills name is not tarnished by the mention
of a drug hit gone wrong. The Kevin Cooper case is a real doozy.
Check it out and then let yourself be heard.



On a Sunday morning in June 1983, Bill Hughes arrived at a hilltop home in Chino Hills, concerned that his young son hadn't returned home in time for church after a sleepover.

Hughes had called from his own home nearby but had gotten no answer. No one stirred when he knocked on the back door. Stepping over to the master bedroom window for a glimpse inside, he was confronted by horrific carnage.

The bloodied bodies of Doug and Peggy Ryen, their 10-year-old daughter, Jessica, and his son, 11-year-old Christopher, lay strewn from bedroom to hallway. Amid the clumps of hair, flesh and bones lay Joshua Ryen, 8, still breathing despite a slashed throat and skull fracture.

San Bernardino County authorities initially blamed the slayings on a cult or gang, as the five victims had 143 stab wounds from three different weapons.

But suspicion soon turned to one man: Kevin Cooper, who had escaped from a state prison not far from the Ryens' home two days before the murders.

Now, after 26 years, the legal hurdles to Cooper's execution have been surmounted. With the Supreme Court's decision last month not to review his claim of innocence, the 52-year-old becomes only the sixth of California's 697 death row prisoners cleared for lethal injection once a federal judge approves revised procedures.

But the exhaustion of Cooper's legal recourse hasn't silenced supporters who claim he was the victim of corrupt law enforcement and stunning bad luck.

The opponents of capital punishment who have long clung to puzzling clues and hints of police misconduct have been joined by a prison warden, 11 federal judges and five jurors now bothered by allegations that Cooper was framed.

This Article Continues Here

Get your copy of the award winning King:
"From Atlanta to the Mountain top
It's the 3-Hour Docudrama that
tells the story of the Civil Rights
movement and the life of
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
To learn more and hear
excerpts from this treasured
program,click here:
http://www.kingprogram.net/