One year after Hurricane Katrina made landfall on the Gulf Coast, waste, cronyism, and abuse have outpaced recovery and reconstruction, according to a recent report titled "Big, Easy Money" published by CorpWatch.

An incident that took place last week in Red River Parish, Louisiana, serves as a grim reminder that racism remains a virulent virus that can grow and multiply in a political Petri dish laid out by the ultra-right.

A group of wealthy out-of-state businessmen have financed a ballot initiative to turn back the clock on civil rights in Michigan. They spent hundreds of thousands of dollars to force the people of Michigan to vote on their divisive views this November 7th and misleadingly called their campaign the Michigan Civil Rights Initiative.

Seizing any weapon with which to attack the growing movement for immigrant workers’ rights, the Republican Party and the right wing have found a new gripe: the recording of a Spanish-language version of the national anthem.

What's Behind the English-only Movement?

What's Behind the English-Only Campaign?

In this print edition...

• Who’s Got Your Tongue? What's Behind the English-Only Campaign, by Emile Schepers
• Russia, China and the New Cold War, by Gerald Horne
• Capitalism's End Times: A Review of Kevin Phillips' AMERICAN THEOCRACY, by Anthony Monteiro
• The Legacy of the Cultural Front: an Interview with Alan Wald
• Current Letters (updated 7-25-06)
• Current Poetry (updated 7-25-06)

George Bush spoke last week to the NAACP for the first time in his administration and both he and mass media tried to say this was significant, although neither the NAACP leadership nor most African Americans appeared to be particularly impressed.

In a 4-2 ruling yesterday (July 6), the New York Court of Appeals ruled to uphold that state's ban on gay marriage. The decision was quickly met with sharp criticism by civil rights organizations and public advocacy groups.

As many as 200 people, mostly African American men, were allegedly tortured while in the custody of the Chicago Police Department during the 1970s and ’80s. The goal, victims charge, was to force them to falsely confess to crimes they did not commit.

Nabor Marcelino, a Nahuatl, and Heriberto Ramirez, a Purepecha, work in Santa Paula, in a crew of limoneros, or lemon pickers.  Ervino Mateo, another Purepecha, shows his hands, gloves and clippers.

The Persian Gay and Lesbian Organization (PGLO), in conjunction with several other international human rights organizations that specifically address issues facing lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgendered (LGBT) people, is sponsoring major international protests to commemorate the execution of two Iranian teens this July 19th.

"I'm shocked, I'm surprised, and I'm also very saddened, to relive some of these issues over again, using some of the same language that was used in the 1950s and 1960s," US Rep. John Lewis told Atlanta Progressive News in a phone interview.

The month of June has been designated as Pride Month in celebration of the struggles and achievements of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in the United States.

Most people don't know that the Voting Rights Act has to be periodically renewed, which itself is fairly outrageous, since it brings with it the possibility that the rights that so many people paid so much to gain could be simply cancelled by a right-wing Congress

Months after the event, an event that I concede is the quintessence of triviality, I am still pissed. I’m pissed that the Academy Awards snubbed Brokeback Mountain in favor of the “surprise” choice of Crash, a film described by Los Angeles Times critic Kenneth Turan as a “feel-good movie about racism.”

At Gay Pride rallies across the country, hundreds of P.A.W. members have joined in solidarity with workers in a variety of campaigns, such as the justice at Wal-Mart and Delphi Corp

Opponents of affirmative action deceived voters into signing a petition that put an initiative onto Michigan’s November 7th ballot, concludes a recently released report by the Michigan Civil Rights Commission.

This ballot initiative exposes all Michigan residents to the dangers of a society divided by racial hostility or sexual discrimination.

Michigan voters can’t trust Dick DeVos. He says one thing – about jobs, Michigan schools, and ethics – but his record says another.

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the primary federal agency for enforcing anti-discrimination laws in the workplace, is facing a $4.2 million budget cut, another blow to workers from the Bush administration.

Albany County District Attorney David Soares is considered a hero by many for his bold stances and refreshing approaches to delivering justice.