Suit Alleges ‘Scheme’ in Criminal Costs Borne by New Orleans’s Poor

A lawsuit filed against New Orleans criminal district court alleges that it runs a “scheme” in which the poor are jailed if they fall behind paying fines. “The extent to which every actor in the local New Orleans legal system depends on this money for their own survival is shocking,” said Alec Karakatsanis, a founder of Equal Justice Under Law, a civil rights group, and one of the lawyers who filed the suit….

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Commemorating 52nd Anniversary of the March on Washington

It is not an overstatement to remind the current generation in our country that Dr. King, and so many, many others, “marched” so that it would not be necessary 52 years later for our children and grandchildren to march to tell our nation TODAY, that “Black Lives Matter.”

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By Us, For Us: The Crucial Role of the Black Press

This exhibit gives a short history of the black press, some of the important journalist involved, and the vital role it has played in advancing the ideals of American democracy and supporting African American identity and culture.

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MO Governor Declares State Of Emergency Ahead Of Grand Jury Decision

protestors raise their hands

Gov. Nixon issued an executive order declaring a 30-day state of emergency in Missouri to protect the citizens and businesses from the potential “violence and damage” he presumes if the grand jury fails to indict Officer Darren Wilson. Wilson shot and killed unarmed teenager Michael Brown in August 2014.

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