Katrina, profiling, education—minorities still lag, study says
Reuters Dec 10, 07 9:42 PM CST
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From racial profiling to voting discrimination and Hurricane Katrina, US race relations are "abysmal," according to a new report. The Human Rights Network, an umbrella organization of some 250 nonprofits, found that minorities aren't given the same educational resources and are disproportionately represented in prisons. The findings counter Washington's own report on race relations to the UN last spring.
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Candidate's wife, stumping in SC,
zeros in on women
McClatchy Newspapers Nov 27, 07 2:20 PM CST
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Barack Obama has been careful to present himself as a post-racial candidate, but not so Michelle Obama, at least in South Carolina, where she has been testing the boundaries of racial campaigning. In a speech last week she said black voters—who make up as many has half the state's Democrats—are falling prey to the conventional wisdom that America’s not ready for a black president.
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UPDATED
Students chant "Nazi Scum" at attendees of Oxford debate
BBC Nov 26, 07 6:08 PM CST
(Newser)
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An Oxford Union debate is underway despite 30 students who rushed inside and delayed proceedings with a sit-down protest, BBC reports. Five hundred more are picketing outside and blocked about half of attendees from entering. Students chanted "Keep Oxford fascist-free! Shame on you!” in opposition to right-wing leader Nick Griffin and holocaust denier David Irving speaking at the event.
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Civil rights leaders want show canned after star uses 'N' word
Associated Press Nov 3, 07 4:07 PM CDT
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Star bounty hunter Duane "Dog" Chapman is off-air after his "N" word-laced rant hit the Internet this week, ABC News reports. A&E has shelved his series, Dog The Bounty Hunter , and civil rights leaders are pushing to have it canned for good. One Los Angeles coalition called the comments "a vicious attack on and call to end interracial relations, as well as an incitement to violence."
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Determined to "succeed in life" after two years behind bars for teen sex conviction
CNN Oct 27, 07 6:54 CDT
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"I've got a new life," Genarlow Wilson said yesterday as he left prison after two years behind bars for a teen sex conviction. "You will not be disappointed," he vowed to his supporters. "I plan on succeeding in life." Wilson was released after the Georgia Supreme Court ruled yesterday that his 10-year sentence for consensual oral sex at age 17 with a 15-year-old girl was "cruel and unusual," CNN reports.
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He'll serve on federal court in the South
New York Times Oct 24, 07 5:10 PM CDT
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The Senate today confirmed a judge opposed by civil rights groups to a seat on a federal appeals court in the South. Judge Leslie Southwick will serve on the 5th Circuit, which comprises Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas, the New York Times reports. A civil rights leader called the appointment “a slap in the face to African Americans,” but Southwick's defenders say his detractors exaggerate.
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Watson claims blacks lag in reasoning powers
Independent (UK) Oct 17, 07 12:05 PM CDT
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One of the most decorated modern scientists has ignited an explosion after telling the Independent that white people are smarter than black people—a view also reflected in his new book. James Watson, who helped discover the structure of DNA, claimed Western policies towards Africa should not assume "that their intelligence is the same as ours." Politicians and scientists alike are decrying Watson's propositions.
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Black educator teaches class on racial justice
Associated Press Oct 10, 07 12:57 PM CDT
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Columbia University erupted today after a noose was found hanging from the door of Madonna Constantine, a black professor who often writes about racism. The New York Police Department said it is investigating the incident as a hate crime. Columbia’s president called it “an attack on all of us,” and students vowed to wear black and rally.
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Older people
unable to inhibit stereotypical thoughts
Newsweek Sep 26, 07 2:03 PM CDT
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Grandma’s verbal faux pas might signal not that she’s more prejudiced than younger relatives, but rather that she’s unable to disguise or overcome stereotypes, a study shows. Anecdotal evidence suggests, and earlier studies confirmed, that older Americans are more racist, but new research shows age-related brain shrinkage may be behind “social inappropriateness,” Newsweek reports.
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Locals resent activists, fear violence; tiny LA town will shut down
USA Today Sep 20, 07 7:35 CDT
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Tiny Jena, LA, is bracing for the tens of thousands of activists expected to descend on the town of 3,000 today to protest the handling of six black high school students charged with attempted murder for beating a white classmate in December. Led by the Rev. Al Sharpton, protesters say the teens, who've become known as the "Jenna Six," were treated harshly after responding to racial taunting.
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Neo-Nazi arrests point to frustrations of Israeli non-Jews
Economist Sep 16, 07 8:15 PM CDT
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Israel may seem an odd place for anti-Semitism, but as more immigrants claim Jewish heritage to gain citizenship through the loose "law of return," though they aren't technically Jewish, neo-Nazism is on the rise. Poverty, unemployment and social exclusion mark the lives of many non-Jews in Israel, reports the Economist , and those frustrations explain why some youths fall under the spell of racist ideologies.
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Columbus cop referred to blacks, Jews, Cubans, and illegal immigrants as "filthy"
Columbus Dispatch Sep 15, 07 1:07 PM CDT
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The Ohio patrol officer who made racially charged comments in homemade videos posted on YouTube resigned yesterday, the Columbus Dispatch reports. Susan Purtee, who was reassigned to desk duty after the videos drew national attention, will resign effective Sept. 22 and seek retirements from an unnamed disability. “Clearly, she does not deserve to wear the badge,” Columbus’ mayor said.
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Campaign ad draws Nazi comparisons; expected to help in election
Associated Press Sep 1, 07 11:27 CDT
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Using the image of three white sheep kicking a black sheep out, Switzerland’s biggest political party has begun a campaign to institute mandatory deportation of criminal immigrants and their families. Though critics compare the proposal to Hitler and Stalin practices, the party is expected to prevail in October elections. "We haven't had any complaints," said the party president.
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BBC Aug 17, 07 4:58 PM CDT
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After pleading guilty, five former security officials in South Africa received suspended jail sentences today for their involvement in a bizarre, apartheid-era murder plot. Onetime law and order minister Adriaan Volk and four others admitted they had tried to kill Frank Chikane, a priest and anti-apartheid activist, in 1989 by lining his underwear with a deadly nerve toxin.
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Baseball umpires
treat same-race pitchers more kindly
Time Aug 14, 07 11:58 CDT
(Newser)
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Major League Baseball umpires call more strikes when they share a race with the pitcher, and they call more balls when they don’t. Th