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NEWS ABOUT: African-Americans

Prop 8 Splits California's Gays, Blacks

African-Americans argue gay marriage isn't a civil rights issue

(Newser) - California's narrowly passed ban on gay marriage has divided many of the state's gays and blacks on the issue, the Los Angeles Times reports. Exit polls show that black voters—who turned out in record numbers—backed the ban by around 70%, the biggest margin of any ethnic group. Some... More »

Influential Blacks Eye Fresh Opportunities

Obama backers stand to gain status in wake of historic victory

(Newser) - A circle of black power brokers who helped Barack Obama in his rise to the White House are ready to see their influence grow under his administration, Wall Street Journal reports. The close-knit group of fundraisers, execs, and Harvard grads believe their presidential connections will pay major dividends in the... More »

On Film, a Black President Is Nothing New

From 24 to The Fifth Element

(Newser) - America may be on the verge of electing its first black president, but pop culture is way ahead of reality. James Earl Jones portrayed the first in The Man (1972), and several have followed. As an entertainment-obsessed nation, asks Slate, might these fictional forebears affect our perception of the real... More »

ATF Foils Skinhead Plot to Kill Obama

Tenn. neo-Nazis would have shot, decapitated 102 blacks before going after candidate

(Newser) - Federal agents have broken up a plot by two neo-Nazi skinheads to assassinate Barack Obama and shoot or decapitate 88 black people, the AP reports. ATF agents said the pair planned to rob a gun store and target a predominantly African-American high school in a murder spree that was to... More »

Miss. McCains Descended From Plantation Slaves

Mississippi descendants of McCain family slaves plan to vote for Obama

(Newser) - The McCain family of Teoc, Miss., is watching this year's election with particular interest, the Wall Street Journal reports. The African-American clan is descended from plantation slaves owned by the family of John McCain's great-great-grandfather. The white and black McCains meet for regular family reunions, although the senator himself has... More »

Black Politicians' Rise Signals Changing Electorate

More white voters may be growing comfortable with black officials

(Newser) - A change in the electorate may be under way as a growing number of blacks are winning local elections nationwide—more and more often across color lines, the New York Times reports. Some 16% of black legislators represented mainly white districts in 2001; by 2007, that figure had nearly doubled.... More »

New HIV Study Shows Disease Accelerating

CDC finds 40% more cases than thought; blacks' rate alarming

(Newser) - A new CDC study of Americans with HIV conducted with new technology shows that the virus is spreading faster than previously thought, reports the New York Times. In 2006, more than 56,000 were newly infected with the virus that causes AIDS—40% more than anticipated. The study also showed... More »

Rice Laments Lack of Black Diplomats

Calls shortage of African-Americans 'unacceptable'

(Newser) - Condoleezza Rice may be the second African American to become secretary of state, but she remains unimpressed by the number of blacks in the foreign service. "I can go into a whole day of meetings at the Department of State and actually rarely see somebody who looks like me.... More »

Black Museums Fight for Funding

Economy, depressing subject matter are issues; others cite little tradition in community

(Newser) - As Barack Obama’s fundraisers pull in huge sums of money for his historic candidacy, African-American museums across the country are struggling for cash and visitors, Portfolio reports. Part of the problem may be the flagging economy, but for the likes of the National Slavery Museum, the subject matter can... More »

Top Black Donors Emerge as New Force

Business leaders see parallel of their own rise in Obama

(Newser) - Barack Obama's rise to the top of the Democratic Party has a special resonance for one group: African-American business leaders who, like the candidate, were among the first blacks to enter into all-white industries. As the New York Times reports, black lawyers, bankers, and corporate titans see in Obama an... More »

Yeah, She Made History—What About the Guy Who Won?

DNC skirts around Obama's breakthrough

(Newser) - Last night's Hillaryfest was the culmination of a months-long homage to the New York senator's "historic" achievement of almost winning a major party's presidential nomination. But it's odd, notes Alessandra Stanley, that while an "also-ran" has made her candidacy a milestone, there's been little mention of the "... More »

Jesse Jackson Jr.: Obama's Like Jackie Robinson

Candidate has to endure jeers with a smile, can't strike back

(Newser) - Barack Obama is like Jackie Robinson: he’s got to perform despite racist taunts, Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr., son of the civil-rights leader, said during a Politico-sponsored panel discussion today ahead of the Democratic convention. Like the baseball pioneer, Obama “has to keep smiling,” in the face of... More »

It's Not Race That's Holding Him Back

Blaming white voters will only be counterproductive, says Bai

(Newser) - Barack Obama goes into this week's convention in Denver with only the slimmest of leads—or, as some polls suggest, trailing John McCain. In a year when it's widely assumed that any Democratic candidate should be a shoo-in, many in the press have suggested that Obama's race is costing him... More »

Some Blacks Think Obama Could Threaten Progress

Experts fear success could close discussion

(Newser) - Despite being a landmark in black American history, Barack Obama’s pending nomination could stall civil rights progress, some blacks say, because his success could fuel an argument that racial divisions have been healed, the New York Times reports. The danger is “that we declare victory,” a sociologist... More »

Obama's Run Forces Debate on Black Identity

Candidacy highlights growing divides in black America

(Newser) - Barack Obama's candidacy has drawn overwhelming support from the black community but also sparked debate on how much of a community it really is. The Wall Street Journal examines how Obama's international and biracial heritage highlights the growing diversity of black America, and some of the tensions this has created.... More »

Trouble the Water Vividly Mixes Katrina, Race

Documentary traces one couple's story through New Orleans disaster

(Newser) - Trouble the Water, a new documentary, is ostensibly about Hurricane Katrina, centered around home-video footage shot during the disaster by a resident of New Orleans’ Ninth Ward. But the film, which frames Kimberly Roberts’ footage within a larger context, transcends that one event to put forth a peerless discussion of... More »

Blacks Support Gay Marriage as Much as Whites

Age, gender, party affiliation are more significant factors

(Newser) - Conventional wisdom hold that African-Americans are overwhelmingly against gay marriage, but recent trends in voting show blacks have more problems with homophobia than any other group, writes gay-issues scholar Timothy Stewart-Winter for the LA Times. In fact, "views on same-sex marriage are a rapidly moving target that's tough to... More »

Minorities Surging to Majority

Changes will dramatically alter political landscape

(Newser) - America's demographics will dramatically change by mid-century, with the white population slipping to a minority of 46% of Americans, according to projections  from the Census Bureau. Minority kids will make up 66% of the nation's population of children, reports the Washington Post. The number of Hispanics is expected to... More »

Menthol Debate Splits Black Caucus

Tobacco row erupts over exemption from cigarette flavoring ban

(Newser) - The exemption of menthol from a bill banning flavored cigarettes is causing a rift in the Black Congressional Caucus, the New York Times reports. Some members of the caucus, which has strong financial ties to tobacco companies, argue that menthol cigarettes cause disproportionate harm to blacks and are pushing for... More »

Can Michelle Defy Stereotypes?

Why hasn't the 'Claire Huxtable' generation been accepted into the mainstream?

(Newser) - It's no wonder Michelle Obama is being criticized from all sides: She's an outspoken, successful black woman, writes Sophia A. Nelson in the Washington Post. "This society can't even see a woman like Michelle Obama. All it sees is a black woman and attaches stereotypes," a prominent female... More »

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