TRENTON, N.J. (AP) -- Gov. Chris Christie moved to diversify the state's all-white Supreme Court on Monday with two firsts: the nominations of an openly gay black man and a Korean-born prosecutor to fill two vacancies.

TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) -- Outgoing Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords spent her last hours as Tucson's U.S. representative finishing the meeting she started on the morning she was shot and bidding farewell to constituents who have supported her through her recovery.

NEW YORK (AP) -- The Boy Scouts have labored for decades to curtail sexual abuse of scouts by adult volunteers. But when their name was evoked in a lawsuit linked to the Penn State abuse scandal, the reference was not to problems - it was acknowledgment that the Scouts' current prevention policies are considered state of the art.

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) -- Civil rights leaders bothered by South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley's stance on issues like requiring voters to show their IDs at the polls are reminding the governor that she is a minority, too.

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Scientists are reporting hints that embryonic stem cells can ease blindness in some people.
It's the first results from the use of embryonic stem cells in humans.

 An unpublished study by Duke University researchers that says black students are more likely to switch to less difficult majors has upset some students, who say the research is emblematic of more entrenched racial problems.

On the King holiday, Black Farmers take Action in Tennessee and South Caroline joining the Occupy Memphis movement and filing claims in Durham.

GOP Candidates: A political tip sheet for the rest of us outside the Washington Beltway 

The parents of Robert Champion Jr. want answers. Was his death a hazing or a hate crime because he was gay?

GOP presidential contenders are offending Blacks across the country with racial rhetoric and biased stereotypes. It's nothing new.  Political racebaiting has a long history.