Philadelphia, Pa. – More than 200 supporters of former Black Panther Mumia Abu-Jamal protested outside a federal appeals court Thursday as lawyers challenged his 1982 conviction for the killing of a police officer.
Abu-Jamal has built a global following from prison through his politically – charged writings and recorded speeches.
Actors, writers, death-penalty opponents and activists have rallied behind his claim of innocence over the years.

BROWNWOOD, Texas -- Shaquanda Cotton, whose yearlong stay in a juvenile prison for pushing a hall monitor made her a symbol of alleged racial bias in the troubled Texas Youth Commission, was released Saturday, a state lawmaker said.
The 15-year-old was freed from the Ron Jackson Correctional Complex and picked up by her mother, said Rep. Harold Dutton, chairman of the House juvenile justice committee who lobbied state officials for Cotton's release.
Dutton said Cotton and her family headed back to Paris, her East Texas hometown near the Oklahoma border where civil rights activists have held two protests in as many weeks calling for her release.
"She had a whole cavalry" when picked up, said Dutton, a Houston Democrat.
Attempts to reach the Cotton family by phone weren't successful.
Cotton was sentenced on a felony count of shoving the teacher's aide, who is classified as a public servant, before the morning bell at Paris High School in 2005. She had no prior criminal convictions or arrests, and the hall monitor received no "documentable injury." Prosecutors in Cotton's case expressed surprise at Dutton's news, saying they were told Friday morning by the commission that the girl had not met the agency's standards for release.

WASHINGTON—Hurricane Katrina convulsed the United States with its massive destruction. Now Democrats believe it could wreak havoc again in a tide of voter resentment that could sweep Republicans from power.
On the verge of Katrina's one-year anniversary, Democrats from New Orleans to New Haven, Connecticut, to New York are launching a coordinated political assault on the Bush administration's response to the devastation that struck the Gulf Coast.

African Americans run a greater risk of developing — and dying from — colon cancer than…

Chris Bristol

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla.—Chris Bristol is making history in NASCAR racing.

Bristol joined the program this year after spending the last two seasons racing in the NASCAR Dodge Weekly Series as part of the Joe Gibbs/Reggie White Driver Development Program. He made history in April 2005 when he won the Late Model feature race at the Hickory, N.C. Motor Speedway. The win was the first for an African American driver in the track's 55-year history.

Cookie LommelLOS ANGELES—How can understanding the Passover Celebration of Liberation in the…

Sen. John Kerry

WASHINGTON— Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., this week voiced his concerns that two actions taken by the Bush administration amount to turning its back on the veterans; community during a time of war.

Without consultation or notification, the administration has closed its office at the Small Business Administration (SBA) solely dedicated to helping veteran-owned small businesses gain access to federal contracts.

WASHINGTON—Tom DeLay, once one of the most powerful and feared conservatives in the U.S. Congress, said Tuesday he is resigning from the House of Representatives in the wake of two criminal investigations that dimmed his prospects for re-election.

Pictured: Tom DeLay 

NASHVILLE, Tenn.—A new groundbreaking book on the role of African American soldiers during…

WASHINGTON—Barack Obama has shown a Midas touch in so many different ways that it's easy to forget he's just another new senator.

In the past year, the freshman from Illinois has become a best-selling author, a millionaire, a Grammy Award winner and an importantfund-raiserfor Democrats.