From Mashable:

Want to know what more than 1 million gallons of oil leaking into the Gulf of Mexico looks like? Now you can.

WKRG, a local TV station in Mobile/Pensacola, Florida, is live streaming the environmental disaster on Ustream (ustream), with a live feed supplied by BP (embedded below). At the time of writing, almost 1000 viewers have tuned in to see the ongoing crisis.

Click here to read more.

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Cleaning Oil-Soaked Wetlands May Be Impossible, Scientists Say

Scientists: Size Of Oil Spill Vastly Underestimated

NEW ORLEANS — The gooey oil washing into the maze of marshes along the U.S. Gulf Coast could prove impossible to remove, leaving a toxic stew lethal to fish and wildlife, government officials and independent scientists said.

Officials are considering some drastic and risky solutions: They could set the wetlands on fire or flood areas in hopes of floating out the oil.

They warn an aggressive cleanup could ruin the marshes and do more harm than good. The only viable option for many impacted areas is to do nothing and let nature break down the spill.

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More than 50 miles (80 kilometers) of Louisiana’s delicate shoreline already have been soiled by the massive slick unleashed after the Deepwater Horizon rig burned and sank last month. Officials fear oil eventually could invade wetlands and beaches from Texas to Florida. Louisiana is expected to be hit hardest.

RELATED: Scientists: Size Of Oil Spill Vastly Underestimated

On Saturday, a major pelican rookery was awash in oil off Louisiana’s coast. Hundreds of birds nest on the island, and an Associated Press photographer saw some birds and their eggs stained with the ooze. Nests were perched in mangroves directly above patches of crude.

Plaquemines Parish workers put booms around the island, but puddles of oil were inside the barrier.

“Oil in the marshes is the worst-case scenario,” said Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen, the head of the federal effort to contain and clean up the spill.

Also Saturday, BP told federal regulators it plans to continue using a contentious chemical dispersant, despite orders from the Environmental Protection Agency to look for less toxic alternatives. BP said in a letter to the EPA that Corexit 9500 “remains the best option for subsea application.”

The EPA didn’t immediately comment on BP’s decision.

RELATED: Oil Spill Criticism Now Directed At Obama Administration

Oil that has rolled into shoreline wetlands coats the stalks and leaves of plants such as roseau cane — the fabric that holds together an ecosystem that is essential to the region’s fishing industry and a much-needed buffer against Gulf hurricanes. Soon, oil will smother those plants and choke off their supply of air and nutrients.

In some eddies and protected inlets, the ochre-colored crude has pooled beneath the water’s surface, forming clumps several inches deep.

With the seafloor leak still gushing at least hundreds of thousands of gallons (liters) a day, the damage is only getting worse. Millions of gallons (liters) already have leaked so far.

Coast Guard officials said the spill’s impact now stretches across a 150-mile (240-kilometer) swath, from Dauphin Island, Alabama to Grand Isle, Louisiana.

Over time, experts say weather and natural microbes will break down most of the oil. However, the crude will surely poison plants and wildlife in the months — even years — it will take for the syrupy muck to dissipate.

Back in 1989, crews fighting the Exxon Valdez tanker spill — which unleashed almost 11 million gallons (over 41 million liters) of oil into Alaska’s Prince William Sound — used pressure hoses and rakes to clean the shores. The Gulf Coast is just too fragile for that: those tactics could blast apart the peat-like soils that hold the marshes together.

Hundreds of miles (kilometers) of bayous and man-made canals crisscross the coast’s exterior, offering numerous entry points for the crude. Access is difficult and time-intensive, even in the best of circumstances.

“Just the compaction of humanity bringing equipment in, walking on them, will kill them,” said David White, a wetlands ecologist from Loyola University in New Orleans.

Marshes offer a vital line of defense against Gulf storms, blunting their fury before they hit populated areas. Louisiana and the federal government have spent hundreds of millions of dollars rebuilding barriers that were wiped out by hurricanes, notably Katrina in 2005.

They also act as nursery grounds for shrimp, crabs, oysters — the backbone of the region’s fishing industry. Hundreds of thousands of migratory birds nest in the wetlands’ inner reaches, a complex network of bayous, bays and man-made canals.

To keep oil from pushing deep into Louisiana’s marshes, Gov. Bobby Jindal and officials from several coastal parishes want permission to erect a $350 million network of sand berms linking the state’s barrier islands and headlands.

That plan is awaiting approval from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

After surveying oil-stricken areas Saturday, Plaquemines Parish President Billy Nungesser said the berms were the marshes’ last hope.

“It’s getting in between all the cane and it’s working through from one bayou to the next,” he said.

Smaller spills have been occurring in the marshes for decades. In the past, cleanup crews would sometimes slice out oiled vegetation and take it to a landfill, said Andy Nyman with Louisiana State University.

But with the plants gone, water from the gulf would roll in and wash away the roots, turning wetlands to open water.

Adm. Allen said that where conditions are right, crews could set fire to oil-coated plants.

Nyman and other experts, though, warn it’s tricky. If the marsh is too wet, the oil won’t burn. Too dry, the roots burn and the marsh can be ruined.

BP PLC — which leased the sunken rig and is responsible for the cleanup — said Saturday that cleanup crews have started more direct cleanup methods along Pass a Loutre in Plaquemines Parish. Shallow water skimmers were attempting to remove the oil from the top of the marsh.

Streams of water could later be used in a bid to wash oil from between cane stalks.

In other cases, the company will rely on “bioremediation” — letting oil-eating microbes do the work.

“Nature has a way of helping the situation,” said BP spokesman John Curry.

But Nyman said the dispersants could slow the microbes from breaking down the oil.

White, the Loyola scientist, predicted at least short-term ruin for some of the wetlands he’s been studying for three decades. Under a worst-case scenario, he said the damage could exceed the 217 square miles (562 square kilometers) of wetlands lost during the 2005 hurricane season.

“When I say that my stomach turns,” he said.

Speakers and performers included Common, Martina McBride and Naomi Judd. Over 100 people were in attendance in her newly refurbished backyard garden. I was honored to be among the attendees.

The party was sponsored by Harpo Radio and Lowe’s, the North Carolina-based home improvement chain. Angelou’s next project is a cookbook, “Great Food All Day Long” scheduled to be released later this year.

A student at Harvard Law School recently sent an email suggesting that Black Americans are genetically predisposed to inferior intelligence, and it’s been made public. The email first found its way into the hands of the Harvard’s Black Law Students Association, and was eventually forwarded to similar student groups at law schools across the country. Here’s what it said:

“I absolutely do not rule out the possibility that African Americans are, on average, genetically predisposed to be less intelligent. I could also obviously be convinced that by controlling for the right variables, we would see that they are, in fact, as intelligent as white people under the same circumstances. The fact is, some things are genetic. African Americans tend to have darker skin. Irish people are more likely to have red hair. (Now on to the more controversial:) Women tend to perform less well in math due at least in part to prenatal levels of testosterone, which also account for variations in mathematics performance within genders. This suggests to me that some part of intelligence is genetic, just like identical twins raised apart tend to have very similar IQs and just like I think my babies will be geniuses and beautiful individuals whether I raise them or give them to an orphanage in Nigeria. I don’t think it is that controversial of an opinion to say I think it is at least possible that African Americans are less intelligent on a genetic level, and I didn’t mean to shy away from that opinion at dinner.

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I also don’t think that there are no cultural differences or that cultural differences are not likely the most important sources of disparate test scores (statistically, the measurable ones like income do account for some raw differences). I would just like some scientific data to disprove the genetic position, and it is often hard given difficult to quantify cultural aspects. One example (courtesy of Randall Kennedy) is that some people, based on crime statistics, might think African Americans are genetically more likely to be violent, since income and other statistics cannot close the racial gap. In the slavery era, however, the stereotype was of a docile, childlike, African American, and they were, in fact, responsible for very little violence (which was why the handful of rebellions seriously shook white people up). Obviously group wide rates of violence could not fluctuate so dramatically in ten generations if the cause was genetic, and so although there are no quantifiable data currently available to “explain” away the racial discrepancy in violent crimes, it must be some nongenetic cultural shift. Of course, there are pro-genetic counterarguments, but if we assume we can control for all variables in the given time periods, the form of the argument is compelling.

In conclusion, I think it is bad science to disagree with a conclusion in your heart, and then try (unsuccessfully, so far at least) to find data that will confirm what you want to be true. Everyone wants someone to take 100 white infants and 100 African American ones and raise them in Disney utopia and prove once and for all that we are all equal on every dimension, or at least the really important ones like intelligence. I am merely not 100% convinced that this is the case.

Please don’t pull a Larry Summers on me,
[Name redacted]”

When sending out the email, a member of the Harvard BLSA stated: “The author of the email will be clerking on the 9th Circuit next year, is a member of the Harvard Law Review, [Federalist Society], and is a graduate of Princeton. I am saddened that a current HLS student holds such antagonistic and archaic views about our people and that the potential impact of her ignorance is only strengthened by her prestigious affiliations and credentials.”

The campus controversy has since been covered in the national media, including the Huffington Post, Jezebel, and Above the Law. What do you think, NewsOne readers: Should the author of the original email lose her job over this? Sound off in the comments!

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OPINION: Do Intelligent Black People Have A Harder Time?

Athletic Blacks vs Smart Whites: Why Sports Stereotypes Are Wrong

BALTIMORE 4/20/10 – Civil rights and social justice icon Dr. Dorothy I. Height will be honored at Coppin State University (CSU) April 25, 2010 in a salute campus officials are calling the university’s “seminal event of the year.” Dorothy Height, who passed away this morning at age 98, was the longtime president for the National Council of Negro Women and a prominent figure of the civil rights movement. Cicely Tyson, a luminary and longtime friend of Dr. Height, will help CSU, the community, and several honorary chairs including the Honorable John Lewis and Congressman Elijah Cummings pay tribute to Dr. Height for her lifelong dedication and unending fight for social change.

The “Hats On For Dorothy I. Height Recognition Program” will be held in Coppin’s new Physical Education Complex (PEC) on the corner of Warwick and Gwynns Falls Avenues from 3:00 p.m.-6:00 p.m.

Prior to her death, Dr. Height was insistent that the event go on.

“It is with mixed emotions of sadness, joy, hope, and prosperity that I announce the passing of noted civil rights icon, Dr. Dorothy Irene Height,” said Coppin State President Reginald S. Avery. “Throughout her life, Dr. Height was instrumental in advancing civil rights, equality, and justice for all people. She has left important footprints for all of us to follow as we continue in our journey towards the advancement of civil rights. She will always remain as an important role model for all of us.”

Even as Dr. Height worked tirelessly – nationally and internationally – and made the world a better place, Dr. Avery noted, “Dr. Height has remained a true friend and supporter of Coppin State University.”

Coppin has established two major tributes in Dr. Heights’ honor in the School of Professional Studies’ Department of Social Work – The Dorothy I. Height Endowed Chair and Lectureship in Social Work and Social Justice and The Dorothy I. Height Center for the Advancement of Social Justice.

Honorary Chairs for the “Hats On for Dorothy I. Height” event include Anthony Brown, Maryland Lieutenant Governor; Mr. Eric Chinje, Manager of External Affairs for the Africa Region, The World Bank; Maryland Congressman, Elijah E. Cummings; Judge Katherine O’Malley, First Lady of Maryland; Maya Angelou, poet and author; Benjamin T. Jealous, Chief Executive Officer for the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and many others. Bishop Desmond Tutu will give a video tribute to Dr. Height at the “Hats On” event.

“The Dorothy I. Height Chair and Lectureship will further the ideals and efforts of the legendary leader,” noted Dr. Beverly J. O’Bryant, Dean of the School of Professional Studies.

Persons named as chairs will be esteemed and nationally and/or internationally renowned educators, researchers, and scholars who have demonstrated their commitment to promoting social change and social justice.

According to Dr. Shirley Newton-Guest, Chair of the Department of Social Work, the center honoring Dr. Height is a valued asset to the university’s social work and overall
program.

“While keeping alive the legacy and legend of Dr. Height, the center will also help to expand the university’s social research capability, extend its community outreach tradition and promote new and on-going efforts to address the practices and the effects of social and environmental injustice locally and globally,” she said.

Dr. O’Bryant also noted that the recently chartered Coppin State University collegiate section of the National Council of Negro Women, Inc. will participate in the celebration.

Dr. Height, employed in many capacities by both government and social service associations, is known primarily for her leadership roles with the YWCA, Delta Sigma Theta and the National Council of Negro Women (NCNW). While working as a caseworker for the New York Welfare Department, she was the first African American named to the Personnel Division following the Harlem Riots of 1935 and became one of the young leaders of the United Christian Youth Movement of North America of the New Deal Era. She also worked to prevent lynching, desegregate the armed forces, reform the criminal justice system and fight for access to public accommodations. Among many of her honors, Dr. Height was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal by President George W. Bush in 2004.

Mrs. Tyson will give a live tribute to Dr. Height on the day of the event. She was the first African American actress to co-star in a television drama series, “East Side/West Side” in 1962 and holds extensive acting credits.

Tickets for the “Hats On for Dorothy I. Height” event are $110 in honor of CSU’s 110-year anniversary. A special senior citizen discount has been made available. To purchase tickets or for more information visit www.coppin.edu/DH or call (410) 951-1257.

On January 18, 1958, hockey player Willie O’Ree of the Boston Bruins takes to the ice for a game against the Montreal Canadiens, becoming the first black to play in the National Hockey League (NHL).

Born in 1935 in Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada, O’Ree was the son of a civil engineer, in one of Fredericton’s only two black families. He began skating at the age of three, and joined a nearby hockey league when he was only five. During five years playing with his older brother on teams in Fredericton, O’Ree became known as one of the best players in New Brunswick. After one season with the Quebec Frontenacs of the Quebec Junior Hockey League, he joined the Kitchener Canucks of the Ontario Hockey Association Junior “A” Hockey League, setting a career-high mark of 30 goals during the 1955-56 season. That year, a puck struck O’Ree in the right eye during a game, robbing him of 95 percent of the vision in that eye.

O’Ree managed to conceal the injury and continue his hockey career, joining the Quebec Aces of the prestigious Quebec Hockey League in 1956. During his second season with Quebec, the Boston Bruins of the NHL called up the 22-year-old O’Ree to replace an injured player. On January 18, 1958, the Bruins were playing the two-time Stanley Cup champion Montreal Canadiens at Quebec’s Montreal Forum. O’Ree took to the ice as a forward with the Bruins’ third line, as the Bruins pulled off an upset 3-0 victory. He didn’t score, or record a penalty, and the historic event took place amid little fanfare.

Click here to read more…

VIA:  ICDC.Com

THE FBI’S COVERT ACTION PROGRAM TO DESTROY THE BLACK PANTHER PARTY

INTRODUCTION

In August 1967, the FBI initiated a covert action program — COINTELPRO — to disrupt and “neutralize” organizations which the Bureau characterized as “Black Nationalist Hate Groups.” 1 The FBI memorandum expanding the program described its goals as:

1. Prevent a coalition of militant black nationalist groups….

2. Prevent the rise of a messiah who could unify and electrify the militant nationalist movement … Martin Luther King, Stokely Carmichael and Elijah Muhammad all aspire to this position….

3. Prevent violence on the part of black nationalist groups….

4. Prevent militant black nationalist groups and leaders from gaining respectability by discrediting them….

5. . . . prevent the long-range growth of militant black nationalist organizations, especially among youth. 2

The targets of this nationwide program to disrupt “militant black nationalist organizations” included groups such as the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), the Revolutionary Action Movement (RAM), and the Nation of Islam (NOI). It was expressly directed against such leaders as Martin Luther King, Jr., Stokley Carmichael, H. Rap Brown, Maxwell Stanford, and Elijah Muhammad.

The Black Panther Party (BPP) was not among the original “Black Nationalist” targets. In September 1968, however, FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover described the Panthers as:

“the greatest threat to the internal security of the country.

“Schooled in the Marxist-Leninist ideology and the teaching of Chinese Communist leader Mao Tse-tung, its members have perpetrated numerous assaults on police officers and have engaged in violent confrontations with police throughout the country. Leaders and representatives of the Black Panther Party travel extensively all over the, United States preaching their gospel of hate and violence not only to ghetto residents, but to students in colleges, universities and high schools is well.” 3

By July 1969, the Black Panthers had become the primary focus of the program, and was ultimately the target of 233 of the total authorized “Black Nationalist” COINTELPRO actions. 4

Although the claimed purpose of the Bureau’s COINTELPRO tactics was to prevent violence, some of the FBI’s tactics against the BPP were clearly intended to foster violence, and many others could reasonably have been expected to cause violence. For example, the FBI’s efforts to “intensify the degree of animosity” between the BPP and the Blackstone Rangers, a Chicago street gang, included sending an anonymous letter to the gang’s leader falsely informing him that the the Chicago Panthers had “a hit out” on him. 5 The stated intent of the letter was to induce the Ranger leader to “take reprisals against” the Panther leadership. 6

To read more click here…

Check out this video of the 1968 Senate hearing on the Black Panther Party:

VIA:  JackieRobinson.Com

Jack Roosevelt Robinson was born in Cairo, Georgia in 1919 to a family of sharecroppers. His mother, Mallie Robinson, single-handedly raised Jackie and her four other children. They were the only black family on their block, and the prejudice they encountered only strengthened their bond. From this humble beginning would grow the first baseball player to break Major League Baseball’s color barrier that segregated the sport for more than 50 years.

Growing up in a large, single-parent family, Jackie excelled early at all sports and learned to make his own way in life. At UCLA, Jackie became the first athlete to win varsity letters in four sports: baseball, basketball, football and track. In 1941, he was named to the All-American football team. Due to financial difficulties, he was forced to leave college, and eventually decided to enlist in the U.S. Army. After two years in the army, he had progressed to second lieutenant. Jackie’s army career was cut short when he was court-martialed in relation to his objections with incidents of racial discrimination. In the end, Jackie left the Army with an honorable discharge.

In 1945, Jackie played one season in the Negro Baseball League, traveling all over the Midwest with the Kansas City Monarchs. But greater challenges and achievements were in store for him. In 1947, Brooklyn Dodgers president Branch Rickey approached Jackie about joining the Brooklyn Dodgers. The Major Leagues had not had an African-American player since 1889, when baseball became segregated. When Jackie first donned a Brooklyn Dodger uniform, he pioneered the integration of professional athletics in America. By breaking the color barrier in baseball, the nation’s preeminent sport, he courageously challenged the deeply rooted custom of racial segregation in both the North and the South.

Click here to read more on Jackie Robinson…

Check out these highlights from Jackie Robinson’s Career:

Via hiphopwired.com

The NYPD officers responsible for the barrage of 50-bullets that killed unarmed Sean Bell in 2006 will not face civil rights charges. The justice department made the ruling Tuesday citing insufficient evidence.

The justice department has since released a statement saying that the three officers responsible for the murder of Bell did not violate his civil rights and that they did not find enough evidence to prove that the officers had willfully acted to deny him the rights given by the constitution.

Bell was murdered in 2006 after leaving a New York Club following his bachelor party. Three police officers fired 50 shots into his vehicle killing beel the day of his wedding. All three officers were acquitted of assault, manslaughter and reckless endangerment. The family has filed a wrongfuldeath lawsuit and is seeking help from President Obama.

Via hiphopwired.com