A federal appeals court says it will hold a hearing in November on Arizona's challenge to a ruling that put the most controversial parts of the state's immigration law on hold. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco issued a two-page order Friday denying Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer's request for an earlier hearing date.
Black farmers won a discrimination lawsuit against the Department of Agriculture. But they are still waiting to be paid. President Obama announced the 1.25 BILLION dollar settlement in February, but although it has passed the House, it is now stuck in the Senate. Guest host Rebecca Roberts speaks with John Boyd, the President of the National Black Farmers Association, and Willie Adams, a farmer from Georgia, about the bill and why it is being held up.
Thursday, the U.S House of Representatives passed legislation to reduce the sentencing disparity between federal crack and powder cocaine sentences. President Obama is expected to sign this into law. To get a sense of the impact of this legislation, and in particular what it means for those in communities of color, guest host Rebecca Roberts speaks with Michael Nachmanoff, Federal Public Defender for Eastern Virginia and Co-Chair of the Federal Public Defender Legislative Committee.
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Tell Me More guest host Rebecca Roberts and Lee Hill, the program's multimedia producer, comb through listener feedback and offer important news updates to recent conversations heard on the program. Hear reaction to a recent debate over marijuana legalization and its anticipated effect on black communities in California. Also hear what New York City has agreed to pay the family of Sean Bell, the unarmed 23-year-old who was shot and killed in 2006 after police fired 50 bullets into his car.
In this installment of Tell Me More's weekly Barbershop segment, guest host Rebecca Roberts talks with freelance journalist Jimi Izrael, civil rights attorney Arsalan Iftikhar, columnist Gustavo Arellano and writer Matthew Continetti. They discuss former USDA official Shirley Sherrod's vow to bring a lawsuit against conservative blogger Andrew Breitbart, the anniversary of the famous White House "Beer Summit" between President Obama, Harvard Professor Henry Louis Gates and Cambridge police officer James Crawley. Other topics include the Arizona immigration law, which partially went into effect yesterday and President Obama's appearance on ABC's "The View."
Latino communities are being especially hard-hit by foreclosure rescue scams that target those who've fallen behind in their mortgage payments, and whose homes are in danger of foreclosure. Massachusetts is one of a handful of states that are fighting back with anti-fraud laws.
Michele Norris talks to Lester Spence, assistant professor of political science and Africana studies at Johns Hopkins University, about President Obama's relationship to the African-American community.
In remarks to the Urban League and in a taped TV appearance, President Obama said Thursday that the Shirley Sherrod firing last week showed how racial tension remains a problem for the nation.
Officers began making multiple arrests Thursday at a courthouse rally in Phoenix protesting Arizona's new immigration law. Arizona is preparing to ask an appeals court to lift a judge's ruling that put most of the state's immigration law on hold.
After the conservative blogger Andrew Breitbart posted an edited video of remarks she made about race, Shirley Sherrod lost her Agriculture Department job. She's been offered a new position. Now, she doesn't want an apology from Breitbart, but says she'll "definitely sue" him.
The law will still take effect Thursday, but without many of the provisions that angered opponents -- including sections that required officers to check a person's immigration status while enforcing other laws.
The national unemployment rate is about 9.5 percent, but among African-Americans the figure is nearly 16 percent. So, many African-Americans have turned to the underground economy to make a living.
At Pointe a la Hache, La., and other towns, the men sit around on old milk crates, hoping for a piece of the oil cleanup action that seems to have bypassed their little stretch of bayou. Host Michel Martin explores what lessons can be learned from the Shirley Sherrod story -- by the President, by Fox News Channel and by all journalists -- about race, politics and the power of the truth.