Vancouver branch President Earl Ford presents The Skanner Publisher Bernie Foster, left, with the 2006 NAACP Diversity Leadership Award.

The Vancouver branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People recently honored citizens who have made an outstanding contribution to their community.

Construction is under way at the corner of Northeast Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and Fremont Street on a commercial/retail development. Planned by the Portland Development Commission, the project is at the site of the old King Market and is envisioned to be a "gateway" for inner Northeast Portland.

Although construction has already begun on the redevelopment of the old King Market site at the corner of Northeast Fremont Street and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, neighbors will conduct a ceremonial "ground breaking" next week.

This year's high school sophomores will find out how they did on the Washington Assessment of Student Learning before they leave for summer break, but everyone else will have to wait until September to find out how much progress the class of 2008 is making toward meeting the state's new graduation requirement.

John Edwards

Former U.S. Senator and vice presidential candidate John Edwards will deliver the keynote address at The National Organization of Black Elected Legislative Women's annual legislative conference breakfast.

The breakfast is scheduled for June 29 at the Lloyd Center DoubleTree Hotel, 1000 N.E. Multnomah St. The conference runs from June 29 through July 2 at the same location.

The three-day event is open to the public and features speakers and workshops surrounding the topics of emergency preparedness, health, education, transportation, energy and economic development.

A new Web site, called the"Gas Price Reporter," will enable Oregonians to report evidence that suggests unlawful conduct in gasoline pricing.

The Web site also provides information on how gas prices are set and regulated, links to conservation strategies and information about tax credits for projects that reduce energy use in transportation. It invites Oregonians to help detect unlawful conspiracies in gasoline pricing.

Mayor Tom Potter will be the keynote speaker at the annual Neil Kelly Day Awards Luncheon beginning at 11:30 a.m. Friday, May 12, in the Doubletree Hotel at Lloyd Center.

For the ninth year, the Albina Rotary Foundation and the Northeast Business Alliance have teamed up to raise funds for the 2006 Neil Kelly Memorial Scholarship program.

Local tap dancers will have a chance to strut their stuff during a "tap jam" and "tap show" on Sunday, May 28 in the Wonder Ballroom. The event is in honor of National Tap Dance Day, which celebrates Bill "Bojangles" Robinson's birthday.

Learn a traditional tap dance, jam with other tappers and watch Portland-area tap dancers strut their stuff in honor of Bill "Bojangles" Robinson's birthday.

National Tap Dance Day will be celebrated locally on Sunday, May 28, in the Wonder Ballroom, 128 N.E. Russell St. Tap classes run from 4 to 6 p.m.; a tap "jam" begins at 6 p.m.; and a tap show starts at 7 p.m.

A class skit intended to parody White ignorance of the civil rights movement has generated more concern than laughs at Cornish College of the Arts, and students are asking administrators to do more to curb racial insensitivity at the school.

Students said the in-class performance by three White students in clown makeup and costumes resorted to stereotypes and mocked civil rights icons like Martin Luther King and Malcolm X. A Black faculty member walked out of the March 31 performance and students said they were shocked and upset by the skit.

It goes without saying that the Portland Police Bureau is viewed with a certain amount of suspicion by many residents. This is particularly true in North and Northeast Portland, where, in recent years, the fatal shootings of James Jahar Perez and Kendra James by officers — and those officers' exoneration — have fueled the perception that the police are largely unaccountable for their actions.

But the bureau is meeting this criticism head-on. Under the tenure of Chief Derrick Foxworth, the bureau's protocols on the use of force by officers underwent a review by an independent organization, and the bureau's Citizen Review Committee intensely examined officers' conduct and sought to improve the way officers interact with the community.

DaMarcus Beasley

EINDHOVEN, Netherlands— DaMarcus Beasley knows what it's like to be an American soccer player in Europe — especially a Black American soccer player.

"When I got here, people would do the monkey noises and chants and stuff like that," he said. "I just kind of laugh it off."

For him, racism is not some far-off concept.

"I take most of the free kicks and corner kicks," Beasley said, "so I'm in the corner and I can hear it — you know, stuff." As the United States prepares to announce its World Cup roster, the 23-year-old midfielder from Fort Wayne, Ind., is a shoo-in, a spark of speed and energy that helped the Americans reach the quarterfinals four years ago.