04-24-2024  4:29 pm   •   PDX and SEA Weather
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NORTHWEST NEWS

A Conservative Quest to Limit Diversity Programs Gains Momentum in States

In support of DEI, Oregon and Washington have forged ahead with legislation to expand their emphasis on diversity, equity and inclusion in government and education.

Epiphanny Prince Hired by Liberty in Front Office Job Day After Retiring

A day after announcing her retirement, Epiphanny Prince has a new job working with the New York Liberty as director of player and community engagement. Prince will serve on the basketball operations and business staffs, bringing her 14 years of WNBA experience to the franchise. 

The Drug War Devastated Black and Other Minority Communities. Is Marijuana Legalization Helping?

A major argument for legalizing the adult use of cannabis after 75 years of prohibition was to stop the harm caused by disproportionate enforcement of drug laws in Black, Latino and other minority communities. But efforts to help those most affected participate in the newly legal sector have been halting. 

Lessons for Cities from Seattle’s Racial and Social Justice Law 

 Seattle is marking the first anniversary of its landmark Race and Social Justice Initiative ordinance. Signed into law in April 2023, the ordinance highlights race and racism because of the pervasive inequities experienced by people of color

NEWS BRIEFS

Mt. Tabor Park Selected for National Initiative

Mt. Tabor Park is the only Oregon park and one of just 24 nationally to receive honor. ...

OHCS, BuildUp Oregon Launch Program to Expand Early Childhood Education Access Statewide

Funds include million for developing early care and education facilities co-located with affordable housing. ...

Governor Kotek Announces Chief of Staff, New Office Leadership

Governor expands executive team and names new Housing and Homelessness Initiative Director ...

Governor Kotek Announces Investment in New CHIPS Child Care Fund

5 Million dollars from Oregon CHIPS Act to be allocated to new Child Care Fund ...

Boeing's financial woes continue, while families of crash victims urge US to prosecute the company

Boeing said Wednesday that it lost 5 million on falling revenue in the first quarter, another sign of the crisis gripping the aircraft manufacturer as it faces increasing scrutiny over the safety of its planes and accusations of shoddy work from a growing number of whistleblowers. ...

Authorities confirm 2nd victim of ex-Washington officer was 17-year-old with whom he had a baby

WEST RICHLAND, Wash. (AP) — Authorities on Wednesday confirmed that a body found at the home of a former Washington state police officer who killed his ex-wife before fleeing to Oregon, where he died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, was that of a 17-year-old girl with whom he had a baby. ...

Missouri hires Memphis athletic director Laird Veatch for the same role with the Tigers

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Missouri hired longtime college administrator Laird Veatch to be its athletic director on Tuesday, bringing him back to campus 14 years after he departed for a series of other positions that culminated with five years spent as the AD at Memphis. Veatch...

KC Current owners announce plans for stadium district along the Kansas City riverfront

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The ownership group of the Kansas City Current announced plans Monday for the development of the Missouri River waterfront, where the club recently opened a purpose-built stadium for the National Women's Soccer League team. CPKC Stadium will serve as the hub...

OPINION

Op-Ed: Why MAGA Policies Are Detrimental to Black Communities

NNPA NEWSWIRE – MAGA proponents peddle baseless claims of widespread voter fraud to justify voter suppression tactics that disproportionately target Black voters. From restrictive voter ID laws to purging voter rolls to limiting early voting hours, these...

Loving and Embracing the Differences in Our Youngest Learners

Yet our responsibility to all parents and society at large means we must do more to share insights, especially with underserved and under-resourced communities. ...

Gallup Finds Black Generational Divide on Affirmative Action

Each spring, many aspiring students and their families begin receiving college acceptance letters and offers of financial aid packages. This year’s college decisions will add yet another consideration: the effects of a 2023 Supreme Court, 6-3 ruling that...

OP-ED: Embracing Black Men’s Voices: Rebuilding Trust and Unity in the Democratic Party

The decision of many Black men to disengage from the Democratic Party is rooted in a complex interplay of historical disenchantment, unmet promises, and a sense of disillusionment with the political establishment. ...

AFRICAN AMERICANS IN THE NEWS

Biden just signed a bill that could ban TikTok. His campaign plans to stay on the app anyway

WASHINGTON (AP) — When President Joe Biden showed off his putting during a campaign stop at a public golf course in Michigan last month, the moment was captured on TikTok. Forced inside by a rainstorm, he competed with 13-year-old Hurley “HJ” Coleman IV to make putts on a...

Students protesting on campuses across US ask colleges to cut investments supporting Israel

Students at a growing number of U.S. colleges are gathering in protest encampments with a unified demand of their schools: Stop doing business with Israel — or any companies that support its ongoing war in Gaza. The demand has its roots in the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions...

2021 death of young Black man at rural Missouri home was self-inflicted, FBI tells AP

ST. LOUIS (AP) — A federal investigation has concluded that a young Black man died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound inside a rural Missouri home, not at the hands of the white homeowner who had a history of racist social media postings, an FBI official told The Associated Press Wednesday. ...

ENTERTAINMENT

Music Review: Jazz pianist Fred Hersch creates subdued, lovely colors on 'Silent, Listening'

Jazz pianist Fred Hersch fully embraces the freedom that comes with improvisation on his solo album “Silent, Listening,” spontaneously composing and performing tunes that are often without melody, meter or form. Listening to them can be challenging and rewarding. The many-time...

Book Review: 'Nothing But the Bones' is a compelling noir novel at a breakneck pace

Nelson “Nails” McKenna isn’t very bright, stumbles over his words and often says what he’s thinking without realizing it. We first meet him as a boy reading a superhero comic on the banks of a river in his backcountry hometown in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Georgia....

Cardi B, Queen Latifah and The Roots to headline the BET Experience concerts in Los Angeles

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Cardi B, Queen Latifah and The Roots will headline concerts to celebrate the return of the BET Experience in Los Angeles just days before the 2024 BET Awards. BET announced Monday the star-studded lineup of the concert series, which makes a return after a...

U.S. & WORLD NEWS

Biden says the US is rushing weaponry to Ukraine as he signs a billion war aid measure into law

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden said Wednesday that he was immediately rushing badly needed weaponry to...

A conservative quest to limit diversity programs gains momentum in states

A conservative quest to limit diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives is gaining momentum in state capitals...

New Jersey is motivating telecommuters to appeal their New York tax bills. Connecticut may be next

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — Telecommuting, a pandemic-era novelty that has become a permanent alternative for many...

Teenage girl arrested after a student and 2 teachers were stabbed at a school in Wales

LONDON (AP) — A teenage girl was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder Wednesday after stabbing a student...

Australian police arrest 7 alleged teen extremists linked to stabbing of a bishop in a Sydney church

SYDNEY (AP) — Australian police arrested seven teenagers accused of following a violent extremist ideology in...

European leaders laud tougher migration policies but more people die on treacherous sea crossings

RABAT, Morocco (AP) — Children dead in the English Channel. Morgues full of migrants reaching capacity in...

Kam Williams Special to The Skanner

A year ago, newly-elected President Barack Obama dominated the NAACP Image Awards. But this go-round, the movie "Precious" enjoyed that honor, walking away with a half-dozen trophies in the movie categories, including Best Picture, Director (Lee Daniels), Independent Film, Actress (Gabby Sidibe), Supporting Actress (Mo'Nique) and Screenplay (Geoffrey Fletcher).As for television, "Tyler Perry's House of Payne" proved the voters' favorite, netting four awards.
Among the evening's highlights were an array of gracious acceptance speeches, especially those by Mo'Nique and her teary-eyed co-star Gabby Sidibe, and by their director/producer Lee Daniels who brought down the curtain by continuing to speak until the closing credits began to roll. Tyler Perry dedicated his accolade to his late mother who just passed away last December.
Daryl "Chill" Mitchell, who's been wheelchair-bound since the 2001 motorcycle accident that left him paralyzed from the waist down, choked up while expressing how much winning for his work on the comedy series "Brothers" meant to him. Meanwhile, comedian Chris Rock might have gotten off the funniest joke when he feigned presenting an award "for the best light-skinned actress in a mini-series," especially given that when his own picture, "Good Hair," won for Best Documentary, he called it "the Blackest movie of all time."


Complete List of NAACP Image Award Winners

Outstanding Comedy Series: "Tyler Perry's House of Payne" (TBS)

Outstanding Actor in a Comedy Series: Daryl "Chill" Mitchell, "Brothers" (FOX)

Outstanding Actress in a Comedy Series: Cassi Davis, "Tyler Perry's House of Payne" (TBS)

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series: Lance Gross, "Tyler Perry's House of Payne" (TBS)

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series: Keshia Knight Pulliam, "Tyler Perry's House of Payne" (TBS)

Outstanding Drama Series: "Lincoln Heights" (ABC Family)

Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series: Hill Harper, "CSI: NY" (CBS)

Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series: Jada Pinkett Smith, "HawthoRNe" (TNT)

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series: Delroy Lindo, "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" (NBC)

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series: S. Epatha Merkerson, "Law & Order" (NBC)

Outstanding Television Movie, Mini-Series or Dramatic Special: "Gifted Hands" (TNT)

Outstanding Actor in a Television Movie, Mini-Series or Dramatic Special: Cuba Gooding Jr., "Gifted Hands" (TNT)

Outstanding Actress in a Television Movie, Mini-Series or Dramatic Special: Kimberly Elise, "Gifted Hands" (TNT)

Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series: Cornelius Smith Jr., "All My Children" (ABC)

Outstanding Actress in a Daytime Drama Series: Debbi Morgan, "All My Children" (ABC)

Outstanding News/Information - (Series or Special): "The Inauguration of Barack Obama, 44th President of the United States" (BET)

Outstanding Talk Series: "The Mo'Nique Show" (BET)

Outstanding Reality Series: "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" (ABC)

Outstanding Variety - (Series or Special): "The Michael Jackson Memorial: Celebrating the Life of Michael Jackson" (ABC, BET, CNN, MTV, NBC ...)

Outstanding Children's Program: "Dora the Explorer" (Nickelodeon)

Outstanding Performance in a Youth/Children's Program - (Series or Special): Keke Palmer - "True Jackson, VP" (Nickelodeon)

Outstanding New Artist: Keri Hilson (Mosley Music Group/Zone 4, Inc./Interscope Records)

Outstanding Male Artist: Maxwell (Columbia Records)

Outstanding Female Artist: Mary J. Blige (Matriarch/Geffen)

Outstanding Duo, Group or Collaboration: The Black Eyed Peas (Interscope Records)

Outstanding Jazz Album: "He and She" - Wynton Marsalis (Blue Note Records)

Outstanding Gospel Album - (Traditional or Contemporary): "Still" - BeBe & CeCe Winans (B & C Records)

Outstanding World Music Album: "Black President" - Sila and the Afrofunk Experience (Visila Records)

Outstanding Music Video: "I Look To You" - Whitney Houston (Arista Records)

Outstanding Song: "God In Me" - Mary Mary (Columbia Records)

Outstanding Album: "Stronger With Each Tear" - Mary J. Blige (Matriarch/Geffen)

Outstanding Literary Work - Fiction: "The Long Fall" - Walter Mosley (Riverhead Books)

Outstanding Literary Work - Non-Fiction: "In Search of Our Roots: How 19 Extraordinary African Americans Reclaimed Their Past" - Henry Louis Gates Jr. (Crown)

Outstanding Literary Work - Debut Author: "A Question of Freedom" - R. Dwayne Betts (Avery Books)

Outstanding Literary Work - Biography/Autobiography: "Michelle Obama" - Deborah Willis (W. W. Norton)

Outstanding Literary Work - Instructional: "Act Like A Lady, Think Like A Man" - Steve Harvey (Amistad)

Outstanding Literary Work - Poetry: "Bicycles" - Nikki Giovanni (William Morrow)

Outstanding Literary Work - Children: "Our Children Can Soar: A Celebration of Rosa, Barack, and the Pioneers of Change" - Michelle Cook (Author)(Bloomsbury Children's Books)

Outstanding Literary Work - Youth/Teens: "Michelle Obama: Meet the First Lady" - David Bergen Brophy (Collins - An Imprint of HarperCollins Children's Publishing)

Outstanding Motion Picture: "Precious: Based on the Novel "Push" by Sapphire" (Lionsgate)

Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture: Morgan Freeman - "Invictus" (Warner Bros. Pictures)

Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture: Gabourey Sidibe - "Precious: Based on the Novel "Push" by Sapphire" (Lionsgate)

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture: Adam Rodriguez - "Tyler Perry's I Can Do Bad All By Myself" (Lionsgate)

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture: Mo'Nique - "Precious: Based on the Novel "Push" by Sapphire" (Lionsgate)

Outstanding Independent Motion Picture: "Precious: Based on the Novel "Push" by Sapphire" (Lionsgate)

Outstanding Foreign Motion Picture: "The Stoning of Soraya M." (Mpower Pictures)

Outstanding Documentary (Theatrical or Television): "Good Hair" (Roadside Attractions)

Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series: Halsted Sullivan and Warren Lieberstein - "The Office" - Café Disco (NBC)

Outstanding Writing in a Dramatic Series: Shonda Rhimes - "Grey's Anatomy" - What a Difference A Day Makes (ABC)

Outstanding Writing in a Motion Picture (Theatrical or Television): Geoffrey Fletcher - "Precious: Based on the Novel "Push" by Sapphire" (Lionsgate)

Outstanding Directing in a Comedy Series: Ken Whittingham - "30 Rock" - The Funcooker (NBC)

Outstanding Directing in a Dramatic Series: Chandra Wilson - "Grey's Anatomy" - Give Peace a Chance (ABC)

Outstanding Directing in a Motion Picture (Theatrical or Television): Lee Daniels - "Precious: Based on the Novel "Push" by Sapphire" (Lionsgate)

The Skanner Foundation's 38th Annual MLK Breakfast