Tuesday, July 29, 2008

Civil Rights Roundup: 07/29/08

Your daily dose of civil rights and related news

Sen. John Kerry (D-MA) gave a major speech on inter-faith relations: "Somehow, we have to find a way to agree that faith may be worth dying for, but it cannot be worth killing for."

In related news, police are speculating that hate may have motivated an unemployed man to open fire in a Unitarian Church, killing five. The local press reports that the man professed a hatred of "liberals", and had books by Bill O'Reilly, Michael Savage, and Sean Hannity on his desk.

The drumbeat continues for the military to revisit don't ask don't tell.

Civil rights groups, such as, well, mine, are not happy with McCain's affirmative action flip.

The Kansas City Star says that closure in the Emmett Till case might help bring closure to the wounds of the civil rights era as a whole.

The city of Chula Vista, California (near San Diego) has settled a lawsuit filed by a teenager who was mistaken for thief and beaten into unconsciousness by a police officer.

The Illinois governor has vetoed funding that would help fight wrongful convictions and implement important death penalty reforms.

An American Indian prison employee in New York is suing Albany County, alleging systematic discrimination over a three year period.

The first Black justice on the Louisiana Supreme Court has died.

Time is running short for Virginia residents with criminal convictions to get their voting rights restored.

Though Obama is polling well in the Latino and Asian communities, it's still probably true that there are some danger zones.

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