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
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 ...
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...
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. ...
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. ...
Sister of Mississippi man who died after police pulled him from car rejects lawsuit settlement
JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — A woman who sued Mississippi's capital city over the death of her brother has decided to reject a settlement after officials publicly disclosed how much the city would pay his survivors, her attorney said Wednesday. George Robinson, 62, died in January 2019,...
Movie Review: A lyrical portrait of childhood in Cabrini-Green with ‘We Grown Now’
Two 11-year-old boys navigate school, friendship, family and change in Minhal Baig’s lyrical drama “We Grown Now.” It’s an evocative memory piece, wistful and honest, and a different kind of portrait of a very infamous place: Chicago’s Cabrini-Green public housing development. ...
Ukraine uses long-range missiles secretly provided by US to hit Russian-held areas, officials say
WASHINGTON (AP) — Ukraine for the first time has begun using long-range ballistic missiles provided secretly by...
Australia and New Zealand honor their war dead with dawn services on Anzac Day
MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Hundreds of thousands of people gathered across Australia and New Zealand for dawn...
Relatives of those who died waiting for livers at now halted Houston transplant program seek answers
DALLAS (AP) — Several relatives of patients who died while waiting for a new liver said Wednesday they want to...
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...
Ethnic Karen guerrillas in Myanmar leave a town that army lost 2 weeks ago as rival group holds sway
BANGKOK (AP) — Guerrilla fighters from the main ethnic Karen fighting force battling Myanmar’s military...
CHICAGO (AP) — The Chicago Police Department has violated the constitutional rights of residents for years, permitting racial bias against blacks, using excessive force and killing people who did not pose threats, the Justice Department announced Friday after a yearlong investigation.
Among other findings, the report concluded that the pattern was "largely attributable to systemic deficiencies" within the department and the city. It also cited insufficient training and a failure to hold bad officers accountable.
"The resulting deficit in trust and accountability is not just bad for residents — it's also bad for dedicated police officers trying to do their jobs safely and effectively," Attorney General Loretta Lynch said. The report lays "the groundwork for the difficult but necessary work of building a stronger, safer, and more united Chicago for all who call it home."
The Justice Department began investigating the nation's third-largest police force in December 2015 after the release of dashcam video showing a white police officer shoot a black teenager named Laquan McDonald, who was shot 16 times as he walked away holding a small folded knife. The video of the 2014 shooting, which the city fought to keep from being released, inspired large protests and cost the city's police commissioner his job.
Under President Barack Obama, the Justice Department has conducted 25 civil rights investigations of police departments, including Cleveland, Baltimore and Seattle. The release of a report is one step in a long process that, in recent years, has typically led to talks between the Justice Department and a city, followed by an agreed upon reform plan that's enforceable by a federal judge.
Chicago's report comes just days before a change in administration, from a White House that strongly backed the process to President-elect Donald Trump's, whose commitment to federal review is unclear.
The perception that Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel badly mishandled the McDonald shooting hurt the former Obama chief of staff politically, and he may feel pressure to address many of the Justice Department's findings to restore his political fortunes.
The Chicago department, with 12,000 officers, has long had a reputation for brutality, particularly in minority communities. The most notorious example was Jon Burge, a commander of a detective unit on the South Side. Burge and his men beat, suffocated and used electric shock for decades starting in the 1970s to get black men to confess to crimes they did not commit.
The McDonald video, which showed officer Jason Van Dyke continuing to shoot the teen even after he slumped to the ground, provoked widespread outrage. It was not until the day the video was released, which was more than a year after the shooting, that Van Dyke was charged with murder. He has pleaded not guilty. Police reports of the shooting later suggested a possible cover-up by other officers who were at the scene.