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
Don’t Shoot Portland, University of Oregon Team Up for Black Narratives, Memory
The yearly Memory Work for Black Lives Plenary shows the power of preservation.
Grants Pass Anti-Camping Laws Head to Supreme Court
Grants Pass in southern Oregon has become the unlikely face of the nation’s homelessness crisis as its case over anti-camping laws goes to the U.S. Supreme Court scheduled for April 22. The case has broad implications for cities, including whether they can fine or jail people for camping in public. Since 2020, court orders have barred Grants Pass from enforcing its anti-camping laws. Now, the city is asking the justices to review lower court rulings it says has prevented it from addressing the city's homelessness crisis. Rights groups say people shouldn’t be punished for lacking housing.
Hundreds Gather at White House to Demand President Biden Let Youth Climate Case be Heard
‘We will not be silenced’ by the DOJ,' youth say ...
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 ...
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 and college governing boards, with officials in about one-third of the states now taking some sort of action against it. Tennessee became the latest when the Republican...
Ex-police officer wanted in 2 killings and kidnapping shoots, kills self in Oregon, police say
SEATTLE (AP) — A former Washington state police officer wanted after killing two people, including his ex-wife, was found dead with a self-inflicted gunshot wound following a chase in Oregon, authorities said Tuesday. His 1-year-old baby, who was with him, was taken safely into custody by Oregon...
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...
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. ...
Pro-Palestinian student protests target colleges' financial ties with 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 empower its ongoing war in Gaza. The demand has its roots in a decades-old campaign against Israel's...
Olympian Kristi Yamaguchi is 'tickled pink' to inspire a Barbie doll
Like many little girls, a young Kristi Yamaguchi loved playing with Barbie. With a schedule packed with ice skating practices, her Barbie dolls became her “best friends.” So, it's surreal for the decorated Olympian figure skater to now be a Barbie girl herself. ...
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 and college governing boards, with officials in about one-third of the states now taking some sort of action against it. Tennessee became the latest when the Republican...
What to stream this weekend: Conan O’Brien travels, 'Migration' soars and Taylor Swift reigns
Zack Snyder’s “Rebel Moon – Part Two: The Scargiver” landing on Netflix and Taylor Swift’s “The Tortured Poets Department” album are some of the new television, movies, music and games headed to a device near you. Also among the streaming offerings worth your time as...
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....
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...
Pro-Palestinian student protests target colleges' financial ties with Israel
Students at a growing number of U.S. colleges are gathering in protest encampments with a unified demand of their...
The Latest | Germany will resume working with UN agency for Palestinians, following review
Germany said Wednesday that it plans to follow several other countries in resuming cooperation with the U.N....
5 migrants die while crossing the English Channel hours after the UK approved a deportation bill
PARIS (AP) — Five people, including a child, died while trying to cross the English Channel from France to the...
World seeing near breakdown of international law amid wars in Gaza and Ukraine, Amnesty says
LONDON (AP) — The world is seeing a near breakdown of international law amid flagrant rule-breaking in Gaza and...
Villagers in Mexico organize to take back their water as drought, avocados dry up lakes and rivers
VILLA MADERO, Mexico (AP) — As a drought in Mexico drags on, angry subsistence farmers have begun taking direct...
BIG BUDGET FILMS
Bridge of Spies (PG-13 for violence and brief profanity) Cold War thriller about a lawyer (Tom Hanks) recruited by the CIA to represent an American spy (Austin Stowell) whose surveillance plane was shot down behind the Iron Curtain in 1960. With Amy Ryan, Alan Alda and Eve Hewson.
Crimson Peak (R for sexuality, graphic violence and brief profanity) Gothic horror film, set in England in the 19th Century, about a troubled author (Mia Wasikowska) who, after a whirlwind romance, marries an aristocrat (Tom Hiddleston) and moves into a haunted house he shares with his sister (Jessica Chastain). Cast includes Charlie Hunnam, Jim Beaver and Doug Jones.
Goosebumps (PG for scary images, intense action and rude humor) Kiddie-oriented horror fare adapted from the R.L. Stine children's book series and revolving around a couple of teenagers (Dylan Minnette and Ryan Lee) who unwittingly unleash monsters which were the product of Stine's (Jack Black) fertile imagination. With Amy Ryan, Halston Sage and Odeya Rush.
Room (R for profanity) Adaptation of the Emma Donoghue best seller of the same name about the harrowing ordeal of a young woman (Brie Larson) and the son (Jacob Tremblay) she bore while imprisoned as a sex slave in her kidnapper's (Sean Bridgers) backyard shed. Support cast includes William H. Macy, Joan Allen and Amanda Brugel.
INDEPENDENT & FOREIGN FILMS
All Things Must Change (Unrated) Music biz documentary revisiting the rise and demise of Tower Records. Featuring commentary by Chris Cornell, Chuck D., Elton John and David Geffen.
A Ballerina's Tale (Unrated) Reverential biopic chronicling the ascension of Misty Copeland from humble rootsin California to prima ballerina in Manhattan with the American Ballet Theatre company. Including commentary by Deirdre
Experimenter (PG-13 for mature themes and brief profanity) Peter Sarsgaard portrays Stanley Milgram in this biopic about the legendary social scientist's famous study of humans' willingness to obey authority. Ensemble cast includes Winona Ryder, Dennis Haysbert, Jim Gaffigan, Kellan Lutz, John Leguizamo and Vondie Curtis-Hall.
Meadowland (R for profanity, drug use and graphic sexuality) Marriage on the rocks saga, set in New York City, examining the emotional rift which develops between a cop (Luke Wilson) and his wife (Olivia Wilde) in the wake of their young son's mysterious disappearance. With Giovanni Ribisi, Juno Temple and John Leguizamo.
Tab Hunter Confidential (Unrated) Out-of-the-closet biopic recounting how the Fifties matinee idol hid his homosexuality until finally publishing a tell-all autobiography a half-century after his heyday. Featuring commentary by Clint Eastwood, Debbie Reynolds and Connie Stevens.
This Changes Everything (Unrated) Global warming documentary examining the effect of climate change in seven locales around the world, including communities in America, India, China, Canada and Germany.
Truth (R for profanity and a nude photo) Broadcast ethics is the theme of this thriller about the news story awhich cost CBS ' Dan Rather (Robert Redford) his career. With Cate Blanchett, Topher Grace, Dennis Quaid and Bruce Greenwood.
Woodlawn (PG for mature themes and racial tensions) Fact-based, coming-of-age saga, set in 1973, recalling how a black football star (Caleb Castille) and his white football coach (Nicholas Bishop) joined forces to alleviate tensions across the color line at a Birmingham, Alabama high school. Featuring Jon Voight, Sean Astin and Sherri Shepherd.