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From SeeingBlack.com The 411 Isaac Hayes, an Icon of TV and Film, Dies at Home
Actor and Comedian Bernie Mac Dead at 50 Bernie Mac, the Emmy and Golden Globe nominated actor and comedian who worked his way to Hollywood success from an impoverished upbringing on Chicago's South Side, died Saturday at age 50. "Actor/comedian Bernie Mac passed away this morning from complications due to pneumonia in a Chicago area hospital," his publicist, Danica Smith, said in a statement from Los Angeles. She said no other details were available and asked that his family's privacy be respected. The comedian suffered from sarcoidosis, an inflammatory lung disease that produces tiny lumps of cells in the body's organs, but had said the condition went into remission in 2005. He recently was hospitalized and treated for pneumonia, which his publicist said was not related to the disease.--BlackAmericaWeb.com Black Pa. Man Killed in Police Tasering
Jena Six Judge Removed from Case In legal news, the judge overseeing the criminal cases of some of the Jena Six defendants has been removed from the case. The impartiality of Judge J.P. Mauffray had been questioned, after he described the teenage defendants as “a violent bunch” and “trouble makers.” Court Rules US Owes Native Americans $455M for Land Drilling A federal judge has ruled the US government owes a group of Native Americans more than $400 million for unpaid royalties on drilling for oil and gas. The $455 million judgment is a fraction of the $47 billion the Natives are seeking. The case marks largest-ever class-action lawsuit against the US government. The suit seeks to force the government to account for all royalties due individual Native Americans since 1887 on seized lands. Plaintiffs say they are considering an appeal. Black Activists to Obama: “What About the Black Community?”
Diop Olugbala: “In the face of the numerous attacks that are made against the African community or the Black community by the same U.S. government that you aspire to lead—and we’re talking about attacks like the subprime mortgage that you spoke of that wasn’t just a general ambiguous kind of phenomenon, but a phenomenon that targeted the African community and Latino community; attacks like the killing of Sean Bell by the New York Police Department and Javon Dawson right here in St. Petersburg by the St. Pete police; and the Jena Six and Hurricane Katrina, and the list goes on—in the face of all these attacks that are clearly being made on the African community, why is it that you have not had the ability to not one time speak to the interests and even speak on behalf of the oppressed and exploited African community or Black community in this country?” Barack Obama responded by saying he has spoken out about every issue raised. Barack Obama: “I’ve been talking about predatory lending for the last two years in the United States Senate and worked to pass legislation to prevent it when I was in the state legislature. And I have repeatedly said that many of the predatory loans that were made in the mortgage system did target African American and Latino communities. I’ve said that repeatedly. Number two, Jena Six—I was the first candidate to get out there and say this is wrong, that there’s an injustice that’s been done and we need to change it. That’s number two. When Sean Bell got shot, I put out a statement immediately saying this is a problem.” Wal-Mart Suggests Obama Victory Would Lead to Unionization The Wall Street Journal reports that Wal-Mart has been warning its managers that an Obama victory in the fall would lead to unionization at Wal-Mart stores. In recent weeks, thousands of Wal-Mart store managers and department heads have been summoned to mandatory meetings discussing the downsides of unionization. The Journal reports the Wal-Mart human resources managers who run the meetings don’t specifically tell attendees how to vote in November’s election but make it clear that voting for Obama would be tantamount to inviting unions in. Muslim Outreach Adviser Resigns from Obama Campaign In campaign news, Senator Barack Obama has accepted the resignation of his Muslim outreach coordinator after an inquiry about his links to several Islamic groups. Chicago lawyer Mazen Asbahi wasn’t accused of any wrongdoing. He stepped down, nonetheless, after inquires by the Wall Street Journal about a brief stint on an Islamic charity fund’s board that also included a fundamentalist imam. McCain Staffers Accused of Racial Profiling On the campaign trail, Senator John McCain’s staffers are being accused of racial profiling after ordering an African American reporter to leave the media area outside McCain’s bus. Stephen Price of the Tallahassee Democrat was removed during a McCain stop in Florida. A McCain spokesperson says Price was told to leave because the area was reserved for national reporters. But Price says several journalists from other local papers were allowed to remain. McCain Suggests Adopting Iraq Tactics to Tackle Urban Crime Senator John McCain has suggested adopting tactics used in Iraq to combat urban crime here at home. McCain made the comment while he spoke before the National Urban League. Sen. John McCain: “And some of those tactics, very frankly—you mention the war in Iraq—are somewhat like that we use in the military. You go into neighborhoods, you clamp down, you provide a secure environment for the people that live there, and you make sure that the known criminals are kept under control. And you provide them with a stable environment, and then they cooperate with law enforcement.” Report: Oil Companies Avoid Paying Billions in Royalties Public Citizen reports a bureaucratic oversight has allowed twenty-four oil companies to avoid more than $1.3 billion in royalties for the privilege of extracting oil and natural gas from US territory in the Gulf of Mexico. Public Citizen estimates the oil companies will eventually stand so save $60 billion in royalty revenue over the life of the leases Unemployment Rate Jumps to 5.7%; GM Loses $15 Billion In economic news, the nation’s official unemployment rate has risen to a four-year high of 5.7 percent after 51,000 workers lost their jobs in July. So far this year, the US economy has lost over 460,000 jobs. The unemployment rate for teenagers is now just over 20 percent. Meanwhile, General Motors has reported it lost over $15 billion during the second quarter. And another bank has been forced to close. First Priority Bank of Florida is the eighth bank to fail this year. Rep. Green Calls on Pentagon to Explain Promotion of Threat-Wielding Recruiter Here in the United States, a Houston lawmaker is calling on the Pentagon to explain why a military recruiter was given a promotion despite being found to have illegally threatened a teenage boy with jail time if he decided to go to college instead of joining the military. The recruiter, Sgt. Thomas Kelt, was eventually promoted to head a different recruiting station. Democratic Congress member Gene Green sent the letter questioning Kelt’s new job after his Wednesday appearance on Democracy Now! During that broadcast, military recruiting command spokesperson Douglas Smith defended Kelt’s promotion. Douglas Smith: “All I can tell you is that an administrative action was taken against Sergeant Kelt, and that administration—that administrative action was a negative action. However, the finding was that he had an otherwise stellar career as a soldier and as a recruiter, and he was given additional responsibilities as a recruiting station commander, which he continues to do so today. Just because someone has done something wrong doesn’t mean that they get the death penalty.” Amy Goodman: “Well, there’s a difference between the death penalty and a promotion. He was actually promoted after this and came to be the commander of another recruiting station.” Douglas Smith: “Yes.” Amy Goodman: “What was the negative penalty, if he was promoted?” Douglas Smith: “I’m not allowed to tell you. I’m sorry. That’s covered under Army regulations and Department of Defense regulations, so I cannot discuss administrative actions taken against a recruiter.” Green has sent a letter to Defense Secretary Robert Gates demanding answers and is calling for a congressional probe. 3 LA Hospitals Accused of Medicare Fraud In Los Angeles, three major hospitals are being accused of using homeless people to defraud millions of dollars from government programs. On Wednesday, FBI agents raided the hospitals and arrested two suspects, including the CEO of City of Angels Hospital. Prosecutors contended the hospitals submitted phony Medicare bills for hundreds of homeless patients recruited from downtown LA’s Skid Row. Hospitals Increasingly Deport Sick Immigrants The New York Times reports US hospitals are increasingly deporting seriously injured or ill immigrants who cannot find nursing homes willing to accept them without insurance. The hospitals often conduct the deportations on their own, without assistance from US immigration authorities. Some immigrant rights advocates describe the procedure as a kind of international patient dumping. Dr. Steven Larson of the University of Pennsylvania said, “Repatriation is pretty much a death sentence in some of these cases. I’ve seen patients bundled onto the plane and out of the country, and once that person is out of sight, he’s out of mind.” At least one private company, MexCare, can be hired to handle deportations for hospitals. More International News Rwanda Accuses France in 1994 Genocide Rwanda has formally accused top French leaders of playing major roles in the 1994 genocide that killed some 800,000 people. A report from an independent Rwandan commission says French officials were instrumental in training and harboring the Hutus and then helped to cover up their crimes. The report names several senior French leaders, including former prime minister Dominique de Villepin and the late former president Francois Mitterrand. Rwandan Justice Minister Tharcisse Karugarama said Rwanda will try to press charges. Tharcisse Karugarama: “This should be clear that this report is not just going to lie down, put into some store somewhere. It’s a report that’s going to be used. It’s a report that is going to help in bringing to justice, or in making attempts, very serious attempts, to bring to justice, people that were involved in committing genocide in this country.” France has long denied the allegations and says the report has “no guarantee of independence or impartiality.” Family of Detained Pakistani Accuses US of Rape, Abuse Controversy is surrounding the case of a US-educated Pakistani woman arrested last month in Afghanistan. Aafia Siddiqui appeared in a New York court Tuesday, just two weeks after US troops shot and seized her. The FBI accuses Siddiqui of trying to open fire on several agents who had come to question her. The FBI also says she had documents on making chemical bombs and a list of potential targets in the United States. But Afghan police give a radically different account. They say Siddiqui was shot following a misunderstanding that saw her initially asking the US for help. Meanwhile, Siddiqui’s family is accusing the US of raping and assaulting her during her imprisonment at Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan. On Tuesday, Aafia Siddiqui’s sister, Fauzia, spoke out at a news conference in Pakistan. Fauzia Siddiqui: “This is a story of much greater significance than just my sister or one woman. Her rape and torture is a crime beyond anything she was ever accused of.” Aafia Siddiqui is a neuroscientist with degrees from MIT and Brandeis University. She faces decades in prison on multiple counts of attempting to kill US personnel. Bin Laden Driver Given Lenient Sentence In a strong rebuke of military prosecutors, Osama bin Laden’s former driver, Salim Hamdan, has been given a lenient sentence at his war crimes trial. On Thursday, Hamdan was sentenced to five-and-a-half years in prison, including the five he has already spent at Guantanamo Bay. The ruling would make him eligible for release in just five months. Military prosecutors had sought a thirty-year sentence. The move came one day after Hamdan was convicted on two charges of material support for terrorism but acquitted of the most serious charges. Hamdan is the first Guantanamo prisoner to be tried in a case that also marks the first war crimes tribunal since World War II. It’s unclear whether the Pentagon will actually release Hamdan when his term expires. The Bush administration says it retains the right to hold anyone indefinitely if they’re deemed to pose a threat. At the sentencing hearing, military judge Captain Keith Allred said he hopes Hamdan will be allowed to return to his family in Yemen. Hamdan replied “Inshallah,” Arabic for “God willing.” Captain Allred replied back, “Inshallah.” US Revokes Visas for 3 Gaza Fulbright Winners Meanwhile, the Bush administration has revoked student visas for three Gaza residents who had won Fulbright scholarships to study in the United States. The awards were first withdrawn and then reinstated after the US intervened in Israel’s decision to bar the students from leaving. But the US now says it agrees with Israel’s initial decision and that the students will remain in Gaza. Read and search hundreds of news stories on SeeingBlack.com's 411 Channel. Click here to view all our blogs and discussion groups, where you can comment on any news stories or post your own news. © Copyright by SeeingBlack.com |
