One presidential candidate's perspective on race has ignited commentary and discussion about racial identity and its importance in the 2012 race.
When Bloomberg News interviewed Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain, the conservative said he did not like to be labeled as "African-American"—instead, he said he preferred "American."
"I don't like people trying to label me.  African-American is socially acceptable for some people, but I am not some people," Cain said in the interview.

OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) -- Josh Sutinen isn't old enough to vote and only got his driver's license last month, but he's already among the leaders in a growing national backlash against cameras that issue traffic tickets.

SEATTLE (AP) -- Two ex-convicts planned an attack on a Seattle military recruiting station hoping that it would get attention from the media, authorities say, and even imagined the headlines: "Three Muslim Males Walk Into MEPS Building, Seattle, Washington, And Gun Down Everybody."

The public hearing is part of a process unprecedented not just in North Carolina, but nationally. About a half dozen other states have joined North Carolina in apologizing for past eugenics programs, but none of the others have put together a plan to compensate victims of involuntary sterilization.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The number of people who applied for unemployment benefits last week rose by the most in a month, signaling growing weakness in the job market.

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Blame the potato chip. It's the biggest demon behind that pound-a-year weight creep that plagues many of us, a major diet study found. Bigger than soda, candy and ice cream.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Federal health officials say the latest data on silicone breast implants show they are relatively safe, despite frequent complications that lead about one in five women to have the implants removed within ten years.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Federal Reserve acknowledged that the economy is growing more slowly than it expected. But it plans to complete its $600 billion Treasury bond buying program by the end of the month.

JOPLIN, Mo. (AP) -- Families whose children get some of the best autism services available are scrambling for help after a prominent treatment facility was destroyed in the tornado that ravaged the city of Joplin last month.

Experts hope the war's 150th anniversary will include remembrance of these officers, some of whom are included in exhibits at the African American Civil War Museum opening on July 16-18