04-27-2024  2:11 am   •   PDX and SEA Weather
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NORTHWEST NEWS

City Council Strikes Down Gonzalez’s ‘Inhumane’ Suggestion for Blanket Ban on Public Camping

Mayor Wheeler’s proposal for non-emergency ordinance will go to second reading.

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. 

NEWS BRIEFS

Chair Jessica Vega Pederson Releases $3.96 Billion Executive Budget for Fiscal Year 2024-2025

Investments will boost shelter and homeless services, tackle the fentanyl crisis, strengthen the safety net and support a...

New Funding Will Invest in Promising Oregon Technology and Science Startups

Today Business Oregon and its Oregon Innovation Council announced a million award to the Portland Seed Fund that will...

Unity in Prayer: Interfaith Vigil and Memorial Service Honoring Youth Affected by Violence

As part of the 2024 National Youth Violence Prevention Week, the Multnomah County Prevention and Health Promotion Community Adolescent...

Mt. Tabor Park Selected for National Initiative

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

Oregon's Sports Bra, a pub for women's sports fans, plans national expansion as interest booms

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — On a recent weeknight at this bar in northeast Portland, fans downed pints and burgers as college women's lacrosse and beach volleyball matches played on big-screen TVs. Memorabilia autographed by female athletes covered the walls, with a painting of U.S. soccer legend Abby...

Oregon university pauses gifts and grants from Boeing in response to student and faculty demands

PORTLAND, Oregon (AP) — An Oregon university said Friday it is pausing seeking or accepting further gifts or grants from Boeing Co. after students and faculty demanded that the school sever ties with the aerospace company because of its weapons manufacturing divisions and its connections to...

Elliss, Jenkins, McCaffrey join Harrison and Alt in following their fathers into the NFL

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) — Marvin Harrison Jr., Joe Alt, Kris Jenkins, Jonah Ellis and Luke McCaffrey have turned the NFL draft into a family affair. The sons of former pro football stars, they've followed their fathers' formidable footsteps into the league. Elliss was...

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...

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

South Africa remembers an historic election every April 27. Here's why this year is so poignant

CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AP) — South Africans celebrate their “Freedom Day” every April 27, when they remember their country's pivotal first democratic election in 1994 that announced the official end of the racial segregation and oppression of apartheid. Saturday is the 30th...

Paramedic who injected Elijah McClain with ketamine before his death avoids prison

BRIGHTON, Colo. (AP) — A former paramedic who injected Elijah McClain with a powerful sedative avoided prison Friday and was sentenced to 14 months in jail with work release and probation in the killing of the Black man that helped fuel the 2020 racial injustice protests. Jeremy...

Trump promised big plans to flip Black and Latino voters. Many Republicans are waiting to see them

NEW YORK (AP) — Donald Trump says he wants to hold a major campaign event at New York's Madison Square Garden featuring Black hip-hop artists and athletes. His aides speak of making appearances in Chicago, Detroit and Atlanta with leaders of color and realigning American politics by flipping...

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

Harvey Weinstein due back in court, while a key witness weighs whether to testify at a retrial

Harvey Weinstein will appear in a New York City court next week, the first step in potentially retrying the film...

The Latest | Trump speaks with reporters after 4th day of witness testimony in hush money trial ends

NEW YORK (AP) — Defense lawyers in Donald Trump’s hush money trial dug Friday into assertions of the former...

Biden officials indefinitely postpone ban on menthol cigarettes amid election-year pushback

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden’s administration is indefinitely delaying a long-awaited menthol...

Egypt sends delegation to Israel, its latest effort to broker a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas

CAIRO (AP) — Egypt sent a high-level delegation to Israel for talks Friday seeking to push through a cease-fire...

Burkina Faso suspends BBC and Voice of America after they covered a report on mass killings

DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — Burkina Faso suspended the BBC and Voice of America radio stations for their coverage of a...

Head of Vietnam's parliament resigns amid corruption probe

HANOI, Vietnam (AP) — The head of Vietnam’s parliament has resigned, according to state media, making him the...

Nima Elbagir and Laura Smith-Spark CNN

(CNN) -- Somali authorities said Thursday they are investigating the alleged rape of Somali woman by soldiers belonging to an African Union peacekeeping force.

The woman was allegedly attacked at Maslah Military Camp in the capital, Mogadishu, a week ago, a statement from the prime minister's office said.

"The Somali government will not tolerate violation of human rights, in particular sexual violence towards the most vulnerable members of our society and perpetrators will be dealt with to the fullest extent of the law," Prime Minister Abdi Farah Shirdon is quoted as saying at a meeting with his senior Cabinet members.

The prime minister has ordered an investigation into the allegation.

The African Union Mission to Somalia, AMISOM, said it had formed a joint team with the Somali National Army to look into the claims.

"Appropriate action will be taken once the facts of the case have been established," it said.

"The AU mission strongly condemns any incidents of alleged sexual abuse or exploitation and takes the issue extremely seriously as it reiterates the mission commitment to enhancing the safety of women and indeed protecting all Somali citizens."

Every AMISOM soldier is given training on Somali culture and "good conduct and discipline, particularly regarding sexual behavior" before deployment to the country, the statement said.

Somalia's government has pledged to do more to tackle the ongoing problem of sexual violence against women, as it rebuilds the country after more than two decades of conflict.

At least 1,700 women were raped in camps for internally displaced people last year in Mogadishu, according to United Nations figures.

The United Nations says 70% of the rapes perpetrated in Somalia are carried out by men in military uniforms.

 

The Skanner Foundation's 38th Annual MLK Breakfast