The Economy’s Invisible People: What if Congress Held a Jobs Hearing and Nobody Came?

That’s almost what happened last week when the Joint Economic Committee’s April 24 hearing opened with just one of its members seated

2013-04-29

Lee A. Daniels NNPA Columnist

Suppose one of the key committees in Congress scheduled a hearing on one of the country’s most debilitating economic problems – the long-term unemployment that’s ensnared millions – and none of the committee members showed up? Read the complete article

After the Boston Bombings What Has Dr. King to Teach Us?

A civil rights scholar on the 50th Anniversary of Dr. Kings Letter from a Birmingham Jail:

2013-04-24

By Jose-Antonio Orosco

This week marked the fiftieth anniversary of Martin Luther King’s “Letter from a Birmingham City Jail.”  This letter is now a classic document in American history and compelling testimony to the power of nonviolence and the struggle for equality. Read the complete article

CNN’s John King Needs to Answer: Why Blame a Dark-Skinned Man?

I wonder if you will apologize as many times as you said 'dark-skinned man' or if you will ever explain where you got your false information

2013-04-22

Julianne Malveaux NNPA Columnist

I don’t know where CNN’s John King got the information that a suspect in the Boston bombing was “a dark-skinned male,” but beyond apologizing, he needs to explain himself.  Read the complete article

The Boston Marathon's Media Frenzy

'Perhaps there’s a problem with the contrast on my TV, but they don’t look dark skinned to me'

2013-04-22

George E. Curry NNPA Columnist

I am a certified news junkie, but even I had to step away from the oversaturated media coverage of the Boston Marathon bombings Read the complete article

Letter to the Editor: Portland Equity Bureau Director Dante James Responds

'My bureau has advocated for underrepresented communities to have their concerns addressed by appropriate agencies'

2013-04-22

The Skanner voiced concerns and asked questions regarding my role as Director of the City’s Office of Equity and Human Rights—concerns I am eager to address. I know some folks in the community have similar questions. Read the complete article

Senate Bill 807: Oversight of Energy Trust of Oregon's $146 Million

Because the Energy Trust is a non-governmental entity, there is no statutory authority to review the ETO's budget

2013-04-16

Sen. Alan Olsen, R-Canby

For some reason every two years the Legislature continues to allow $146 million of ratepayer fees to flow to the Energy Trust of Oregon with little accountability or oversight. This is just one example of a government program desperately in need of oversight and transparency. Read the complete article

Advocate for Communities Of Color? Not My Job, Equity Director Dante James Says

We had heard from many quarters that James has not reached out to ethnic communities – but now we saw it first-hand

2013-04-15

Bernie Foster Of The Skanner News

We have some bad news: If you are being discriminated against in Portland, don’t expect anything from the Equity Bureau. Read the complete article

Jackie Robinson: 'Too Bad He’s The Wrong Color'

It's a change which has yielded enormous benefits but which also remains both incomplete and resisted

2013-04-15

Lee A. Daniels NNPA Columnist

“42” is not just a baseball story. It’s a compelling history lesson as well. It tells the story of not just baseball, but of a central facet of 20th Century American life – the suffocating reach of racism – in the decades before the 1960s. Read the complete article

Political Maneuvering Over the Budget

2013-04-15

George E. Curry NNPA Columnist

There has been much discussion about the big picture items in President Obama’s proposed budget for fiscal 2014. If the devil is in the details, as politicians like to say, some parts of Obama’s budget will mean hell for some needy citizens. Read the complete article

Mortgage Borrowers Wrongfully Harmed by Servicers to Receive Checks

Starting April 12, checks will begin going into the mail for 4.2 million mortgage borrowers ripped off by robo-signing and other unethical practices

2013-04-12

Charlene Crowell NNPA columnist

The old saying, ‘the check is in the mail,’ is often considered a ruse not worth heeding. But beginning April 12, checks will begin going into the mail for 4.2 million mortgage borrowers who were in the foreclosure process in 2009 or 2010 and who likely experienced robo-signing or other deficiencies by their mortgage servicer. Read the complete article