WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Supreme Court on Monday said judges may impose shorter prison terms for crack cocaine crimes, enhancing judicial discretion to reduce the disparity between sentences for crack and cocaine powder.
By a 7-2 vote, the court said that a 15-year sentence given to Derrick Kimbrough, a Black veteran of the 1991 war with Iraq, was acceptable, even though federal sentencing guidelines called for Kimbrough to receive 19 to 22 years. Kimbrough was sentenced by a federal judge in Norfolk, Va. ...

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Word of the year – or of the decade – for the construction industry is disparity.  In fact, Oregon Department of Transportation has just released its seven-year study of contracting disparities.
Their results – African American and Asian American businesses are largely left out of state road construction projects.
The study counted how many ODOT contracts go to small businesses owned at least 51 percent by women or minorities. Among the findings – participation by African American subcontractors is abysmally low; they have only been awarded three contracts during the study period of 2000 to 2007.

Yvette and Henry Williams pick out some canned goods at the Emergency Food Program and are assisted by volunteer Susan Vincent. The Emergency Food Program has just relocated to the Luther Memorial Church, 4800 N.E. 72nd Ave.

If you have ever celebrated Kwanzaa – or have wondered whether it would be right for you and your family, Interstate Firehouse Cultural Center has an exhibit aimed at you. This month the arts and culture center will honor the only American holiday that celebrates African American origins and values with two exhibits, a Kwanzaa marketplace and an evening celebration ....

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Caroline Kennedy: a president's daughter who has raised tens of millions for New York's public schools. Gladys Knight: a seven-time Grammy winner who has raised $3 million to fight diabetes. Gary Sinise: a CSI: New York actor who has sent school supplies to more than 200,000 Iraqui children. And … Portland's own Roslyn Hill.  Each of these high achievers will receive a 2008 Inspire Award, from AARP The Magazine.
The annual awards, formerly known as Impact Awards, pay tribute to "10 extraordinary people age 50 and over who have made the world a better place through their innovative thinking, passion, and perseverance". ....

Naima Ayteh 4, gets help from her Mom, Gena, putting her skates on at the Winterfest Ice Rink on Nov. 24. The Annual Seattle Winterfest runs through Dec. 31 and includes music and dance performances, the winter train and village, classic carousel, ice rink and numerous other holiday events. The ice rink will be open at Fisher Pavilion until Jan. 6.

Everyone needs some assistance at one time or another, and that's why Northwest Harvest is there to help. With the busiest season for hunger underway, which lasts through the month of January, Northwest Harvest, Washington State's only statewide hunger relief agency, is in critical need of donations.
Washington State has the 16th highest median household income and the 20th lowest poverty rate in the nation, according to the 2005 U.S. Census Bureau, but 30 percent of Washington households meet the Economic Policy Institute's definition of low-income.
Nationally, about 1 in 5 Americans participates in one of the USDA's food assistance programs during the year. More than half of those served by Northwest Harvest partner food banks and meal programs are either ....

Nearly a year after six African American high school students in Jena, La. were charged with attempted second-degree murder for a school-yard fight with a White student, college students more than 2,500 miles away are still talking.
In the University of Washington's Ethnic Cultural Theater on last week, students gathered to dialogue about the events surrounding the controversial Jena 6 case.  Organized by the University's Black Student Union and a community organization called "Soul Food," the night featured artistic expressions and group discussions about whether the events in Jena were over-exaggerated or symptoms of systemic injustice.
The night's co-facilitators, Yasmin Ravard-Andresen of Soul Food and BSU member Tajiana Ellis, recounted what happened in Jena, La.  They explained the series of events that ....