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The Rev. James Lawson Jr., civil rights leader who preached nonviolent protest, dies at 95

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Rev. James Lawson Jr., an apostle of nonviolent protest who schooled activists to withstand brutal reactions from white authorities as the Civil Rights Movement gained traction, has died, his family said Monday. He was 95. His family said Lawson died on Sunday after a short illness in Los Angeles, where he spent decades working as a pastor, labor movement organizer and university professor. Lawson was a close adviser to the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., […]

June 12, 2024

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Project 2025 promises to shut down Dept. of Education, ban abortion, roll back civil rights and more

If you’re an American planning to vote in this year’s election, Project 2025 is a must-read document. The so-called “playbook” is a presidential transition plan that lays out what should happen in the first 180 days of a conservative presidency in nearly 1,000 pages of detail. It’s more than a fantasy wish list or set of media talking points — the project is backed by the influential Heritage Foundation, along with more than 100 conservative organizations, partners, and scholars, and […]

June 12, 2024

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Civil rights leader Daisy Bates and singer Johnny Cash to replace Arkansas statues at the US Capitol

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — When Arkansas lawmakers decided five years ago to replace the statues representing the state at the U.S. Capitol, there was little objection to getting rid of the existing sculptures. The statues that had stood there for more than 100 years were obscure figures in the state’s history. “I remember giving tours to constituents from Arkansas, to young people, and I would point out the two representatives in Statuary Hall in our United States Capitol from […]

May 6, 2024

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Mississippi maintains tough path to restore voting rights

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Kenneth Almons says he began a sentence in a Mississippi prison just two weeks after graduating from high school, and one of his felony convictions — for armed robbery — stripped away voting rights that he still has not regained decades later. Now 51, Almons told lawmakers Wednesday that he has worked hard and remained law-abiding since his release at age 23, and he wants to be able to vote. “It would mean I am no […]

April 21, 2024

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The Supreme Court just ruled that rights don’t really matter

Editor’s note: The following article is an op-ed, and the views expressed are the author’s own. Read more opinions on theGrio. Officially, no one killed Alton Sterling. On July 5, 2016, Baton Rouge, La., police officer Blane Salamoni pumped six shots into the back and chest of 37-year-old Sterling as Officer Howie Lake II held him down. Because Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry concluded that the officers “acted as reasonable officers…and were justified in their use of force,” neither officer […]

April 19, 2024

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Rev. Al Sharpton’s annual civil rights conference features address from Biden

NEW YORK (AP) — President Joe Biden is expected to give a live virtual keynote address to the Rev. Al Sharpton’s racial justice conference in New York on Friday, organizers said. Biden, who is ramping up his Democratic reelection pitch to Black voters ahead of a rematch with Republican former President Donald Trump this fall, will tout his accomplishments and highlight policies enacted to address entrenched racial inequity when he addresses the annual National Action Network Convention, the White House […]

April 13, 2024

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Nebraska bill gives voting rights back to people convicted of felonies once released from prison

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska lawmakers passed a bill Thursday to restore the voting rights of those convicted of felonies upon the completion of their sentences, including prison and parole time. The bill, introduced for years by Omaha state Sen. Justin Wayne, passed by a wide margin in the last year of Wayne’s second term. He is barred by term limits from running this year for a third term. Currently, a person who has been convicted of a felony must […]

April 12, 2024

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States move to shore up voting rights protections after courts erode federal safeguards

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — An appeals court ruling that weakened a key part of the Voting Rights Act is spurring lawmakers in several states to enact state-level protections to plug gaps that the ruling opened in the landmark federal law aimed at prohibiting racial discrimination in voting. Democratic-led states have been taking matters into their own hands because national legislation to expand voting rights remains stalled in a divided Congress. Meanwhile, Republican lawmakers in many states have tried to erode safeguards in the name of protecting […]

April 1, 2024

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Ex-NOLA Mayor Ray Nagin wants rights restored after prison stint

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Former New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin, who was convicted on federal bribery, money laundering and other corruption charges in 2014, has completed his 10-year sentence and is asking a federal judge to restore his rights to carry a gun and vote. But prosecutors said Thursday that the New Orleans-based judge has no authority to restore Nagin’s federal firearms rights, and that it’s up to the state of Texas, where he now lives, to decide on his voting privileges. […]

March 31, 2024