Stateside

Dr. Benjamin L. Hooks was among the greatest Americans of the 20th Century. He was a giant of hope and humanity who, as Executive Director and CEO of the NAACP, expanded the circle of opportunity in our nation for millions by greatly accelerating the desegregation of our largest corporations.

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Daryl F. Gates, the blunt former Los Angeles police chief who waged war on violent gangs and skirmished with city leaders until his handling of the police beating of a black man and ensuing riots forced him to retire, died last Friday of cancer. He was 83.

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Newsrooms cut black journalists and supervisors at a higher rate than ever before in 2009 while the minority communities they cover grow larger. As more African American journalists lose their jobs, diversity in newsrooms has taken a back seat…

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J. Bruce Llewellyn, a Black businessman who made a name for himself in banking, broadcasting, bottling and groceries, died April 7 at the age of 82. In addition to his many business ventures, Llewellyn in 1963 joined with David Dinkins…

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The Justice Department accused the Walthall County School District in rural Mississippi of annually permitting more than 300 students, most of them white, to transfer to a school outside of their residential area, shifting its racial makeup.

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Two men and three teenage boys were charged last Saturday with gang-raping a seven-year-old girl who was sold by her 15-year-old stepsister during a party at a crime-ridden apartment building in the state’s capital, police said.

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While acknowledging he made some “incredibly poor decisions” in his personal life, Tiger Woods still thinks he can win the Masters — even coming back from a five-month layoff. “Nothing’s changed,” Woods said…

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A Michigan man authorities accuse of being a “heavy gunner” for a Midwest Christian militia denies involvement in any plot to overthrow the government, his attorney says, and she plans to present evidence to prove he’s different from his fellow defendants.

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The number of extremist groups in the United States exploded in 2009 as militias and other groups steeped in wild, anti-government conspiracy theories exploited populist anger across the country and infiltrated the mainstream, according to a report issued recently by the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC).

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Alabama Congressman Artur Davis, who is attempting to become that state’s first black governor, was the lone Congressional Black Caucus member who voted against health care reform last Sunday night championed by President Barack Obama, sparking local and national criticism.

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