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Here is explosive video of the CEO of the Black Chamber of Commerce in a fiery exchange with California Sen. Barbara Boxer. Black Chamber of Commerce, President and CEO Harry Alford accused Senator Boxer (D-CA) of playing race politics during an EPW Committee hearing on green jobs. He accused her of using "condescending" racial remarks because she tried to counter his testimony by using quotes from several "black" organizations and individuals such as the NAACP. Alford was upset because he wanted his testimony to stand on the merits of the evidence and not be countered by Boxer thinking his testimony...

Steele follows this statement with some good points on what the GOP has done, this was at the young Republicans convention...

NEW YORK, July 14 -- Republican National Committee Chairman Michael S. Steele continued Tuesday with the campaign he has come to call the "Freedom Tour," which is his attempt to revive the relationship between black voters and the GOP. This stop: a sales call at the 100th convention of the NAACP. "We have a connection, and it is important and appropriate to recognize that," Steele said in a speech, harkening back to his roots in his local NAACP chapter in Prince George's County. "We have a historic link." The NAACP visit was personal and professional for the first black man...

The NAACP has an idea. A big idea. It was announced this week at the civil-rights organization's 100th-birthday celebration. It is going to help the NAACP serve its members and black America. Or so they say. It's called the "Rapid Report System." Essentially, it is an effort to use technology and the Internet to seek out and collect reports of police misconduct. Put simply, the NAACP is asking people to use their cell phones to video record their interactions with the police. If you see a cop, whip out the camera. And send the video to the NAACP. "Nationwide, more...

AND JUSTICE FOR ALLAG MAKES EQUAL RIGHTS PRIORITY By AUSTIN FENNER and LEONARD GREENE Last updated: 10:08 am July 14, 2009 Attorney General Eric Holder yesterday assured the NAACP that the Justice Department was back in business, but said the law can't go as far as personal responsibility. In a speech before the nation's oldest and largest civil-rights group, Holder said the federal government would pick up a mantle he claimed was largely ignored during the Bush years. "I can proudly report the civil-rights division is back and it's open for business," Holder said at the New York Hilton, to...

Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele says the GOP and the NAACP have missed opportunities to engage with each other. Steele addressed the NAACP convention on Tuesday. The organization is celebrating its 100th anniversary this week in New York City. Steele is the first African-American head of the RNC. He says he's committed to building a relationship between the two groups. President Barack Obama is scheduled to speak to the convention on Thursday.

Here is video from the NAACP Convention this weekend where they issued a warning to Republican Sen. Jeff Sessions that he should "tone down his rhetoric" about Supreme Court Nominee Sonia Sotomayor, whose confirmation hearings begin today. Sessions is a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and will have opportunity to question Sotomayor. The NAACP essentially told Sessions "we are watching you," and are seeking to cow him into silence. It won't work. Jeff Sessions is a man of tremendous character and integrity. He won't be intimidated by the radical NAACP, an organization with a proud history, but one that...

The Harrisburg Chapter of the NAACP is calling on Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell to suspend some civil liberties and impose martial law in the city to halt the wave of recent lawlessness. Chapter President Stanley Lawson also called on Rendell to bring in the state National Guard for at least 30 days and to impose a curfew. In June, there have been at least 12 shootings, many of them in the daytime, including a man killed Wednesday at a busy city intersection during the lunch hour. "The Guard is for floods and natural disasters. I don't know any more of...

SAVANNAH, Ga. — The NAACP has held a rally in Savannah aimed at sparing the life of death-row inmate Troy Davis, who was convicted of killing a police officer 20 years ago. NAACP President Ben Jealous led a small, but vocal group Saturday in 38th Street Park as part of the organization's "I Am Troy" Campaign.

Civil rights groups on Thursday put city and business leaders here on a 30-day notice that unless they meet a list of demands – including a ban on the display of the Confederate flag at taxpayer-funded events – they will be subjected to protests and boycotts.

Should the U.S. keep a closer watch on white supremacists? Yes No Poll is in reference to an article about flying the Confederate Flag at taxpayer-funded events.

Controversy surrounding the first-degree murder charge and release of pharmacist Jerome Ersland... is evoking a strong response today from the Oklahoma and Oklahoma City NAACP. At a press conference this afternoon... The Oklahoma state branch president saying they stand behind the first-degree murder charge.

A flag fight is brewing in southern Florida. Members of the Miami-Dade branch of the NAACP want the Confederate flag banned from the Homestead-Miami Motor Speedway, and they will meet Thursday to decide whether to boycott a NASCAR race slated there for November. Debra Toomer, the branch's chairwoman of press and publicity, said a planning session has been scheduled to decide on a course of action regarding the display of the flag at the Nov. 20-22 event, as well as its presence at city-sponsored events like last year's Veterans Day parade. "The concern is there," Toomer said of Confederate flags....

Officials of a South Florida branch of the NAACP say the organization could stage protests during NASCAR races in an effort to have the Confederate flag banned from events. The Miami-Dade branch's leaders said they would first ask for help from NASCAR officials in banning the flag, but are prepared to begin contacting sponsors. Also under consideration are a boycott and a march during the season-ending race weekend at Homestead-Miami Motor Speedway, according to the South Florida Times. The Times article, quoting NAACP officials, said correspondence was being prepared to Brian France, NASCAR's chairman and CEO. France has spoken out...

HOMESTEAD—The Miami-Dade branch of the NAACP has set its sights on NASCAR, Homestead’s major national attraction, in its fight against the Confederate Flag. The civil rights organization will first reach out to officials with the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, seeking to enlist their help in efforts to ban the controversial symbol from city-sponsored events. If that does not work, however, NAACP officials say they will consider a boycott and protest march at the NASCAR events slated for Nov. 20-22 at the Homestead-Miami Motor Speedway. NAACP officials on Wednesday said they are drafting a letter to NASCAR Chairman...

DETROIT – The NAACP has fought for a century to bring equal and civil rights to blacks, but the Rev. Jesse Jackson believes the organization's current battle is to help the troubled U.S. economy and struggling domestic auto industry. "We must now save the entire industry from itself," Jackson said as part of the keynote address Sunday night at the Detroit NAACP's 54th Fight for Freedom Fund Dinner at Cobo Center. "We cannot have joy while Chrysler is in bankruptcy and GM is in line. There is a sense of joy because it's high noon in our politics, but it's...

DETROIT — The Rev. Jesse Jackson says helping Detroit's ailing auto industry is part of the NAACP's new role. The civil rights activist said Sunday that blacks are disproportionately suffering in the current economic downturn and car companies' failures. The reverend is scheduled to deliver the keynote address later Sunday at the 54th Detroit NAACP Fight for Freedom Fund dinner at Detroit's Cobo Center.

Jefferson City, MO (LifeNews.com) -- Former Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee compared abortion to slavery during a speaking engagement at a recent pro-life event. However, his comments are drawing criticism from a leader of the NAACP, the nation's largest civil rights group.During a Monday speech for the Missouri-based Vitae Caring Foundation, which creates and sponsors pro-life television advertisements across the country, Huckabee made the remarks.Huckabee said that, when the United States abolished slavery, it got rid of the concept that one person had the powerful life and death decision over another. he said such a decision was wrong when...

In a press conference earlier this week, civil rights leaders threatened to storm the streets of Phoenix if the Maricopa County Sheriff refuses to resign. Arpaio’s response could very well mean the circus is coming to town...

Kansas-It all started as a school project for a class of 7th graders at Andover Middle School. The topic: the effects of racism and oppression in 1930s America. Students had recently read Mildred Taylor's 1976 novel, "Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry." The book deals with issues faced by African Americans in the first half of the 20th century. But one student's work is catching the attention of more than just his teachers and classmates. Wichita's NAACP is now looking into a complaint filed by another student's mother, who took offense to one project in particular. The complaint stems from...

The next shoe is dropping in an effort to end what is described as decades of persistent and systemic bias at the agencies that create, buy and place television commercials and other forms of media advertising. The N.A.A.C.P. is calling on the nation’s 25 biggest advertisers — on TV and in other media — to require that their agencies use racially diverse teams of employees in creative and account-management posts. The first letter in the initiative is to be sent to Procter & Gamble, the No. 1 advertiser in the United States with ad spending last year, according to the...

SAN FRANCISCO - -- The NAACP filed lawsuits Friday against two banks, alleging they discriminated against African Americans by using racist practices in mortgage lending. The class actions against Wells Fargo, based in San Francisco, and Illinois-based HSBC claim that black home owners were more than 30 percent likely to be issued a higher interest rate than white borrowers with the same qualifications. They say the banks used institutionalized, systematic racism against African Americans. "These banks have a pattern of charging black people more, even though they have good credit, good assets and good incomes," NAACP President and CEO Benjamin...

Former Vice President Al Gore, center, greets Danny Glover at the 40th NAACP Image Awards on Thursday, Feb. 12, 2009,in Los Angeles. Looking on at left is Dr. Wangari Maathai. Former Vice President Al Gore, left, and daughter Kristin Gore are seen at the 40th NAACP Image Awards on Thursday, Feb. 12, 2009,in Los Angeles Former Vice President Al Gore speaks, as Dr. Wangari Maathai watches, after they were presented with the Chairman's award at the 40th Annual NAACP Image Awards at the Shrine auditorium in Los Angeles February 12, 2009. Former Vice President Al Gore, left, and Will Smith...

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- An email ripe with racist slurs -- crudely presented as a mock debate between President Obama and Sen. John McCain -- sent by a member of Staten Island's Community Education Council to dozens of recipients, including other members of the public schools' parent advisory board, is stirring outrage among African American leaders, who anonymously received a copy of the offensive communiqué and plan to take action. The mock photo strip, sent Jan. 4 by Salvatore Ballarino, the borough president's appointee to the volunteer board, features cartoon-like speech balloons drawn out of McCain's mouth referencing lynching African...

True story: Way back in those ancient days known as the 1990s, I was a columnist for The Baltimore Sun. I had just done a piece about Dennis Rodman, the incomparable and, in some ways, indescribable forward for the Chicago Bulls. As indescribable as some of Rodman’s on and off-court antics were, I decided to take a shot at describing them. “Monkey shines” is the term I came up with. I’d no sooner sent the column to a line editor than a black female editor pulled me aside. Calmly and nicely, she expressed her doubts about whether I should use...

The NAACP has called for a boycott of the New York Post. In other words, they’ve endorsed censorship. In a truly bizarre distortion of reality, the organization called the Post’s infamous chimpanzee cartoon “an invitation to assassinate” President Obama. Benjamin Todd Jealous, the aptly-named president of the NAACP, called for...

NEW YORK (CNN) -- Leaders of the NAACP on Saturday called for the firing of the New York Post cartoonist whose drawing lampooning the federal stimulus bill has drawn charges that it's racist and encourages violence toward President Obama. Speaking at the civil rights group's annual meeting in New York, NAACP President Benjamin Todd Jealous said that if Sean Delonas is not fired, the group will call for protests of the paper and Fox television affiliates, which are owned by Post parent company News Corp.

Letters to the Editor: 2.24.09 Their time is gone I read the article in the Feb. 19 edition about Geraldo Rivera applauding LULAC’s mission. Believe me, I’m not an idealist, but I am a thinker. What would happen if LULAC and the NAACP went away? I believe we would all be fine. It seems to me that organizations that represent people solely on the basis of race tend to be more racist than the causes that they fight so adamantly against. Why can’t we have a single Chamber of Commerce that represents Hispanic and black interests as well as their...

Will The Real Monkey Stand Up! Rev. Peterson Blasts Sharpton Over NY Post Cartoon Controversy Rev. Al Sharpton and NAACP President Benjamin Jealous—outraged over a New York Post cartoon which they claim is “racist” and that the NAACP chief says is an invitation to assassinate President Barack Obama, are calling for a boycott of The Post. Sharpton also wants the FCC to investigate the parent company News Corp. and look into its hiring practices. The Post cartoon showed the bullet-riddled body of a chimp, shot by two cops with one of the officers stating: "They'll have to find someone else...

Barack Hussein Obama will propose a massive business tax on greenhouse gases in his FY 2010 federal budget to be presented this week.The massive tax increase and power grab was buried at the end on article on Obama's forthcoming budget proposal in The New York Times:On energy policy, Mr. Obama’s budget will show new revenues by 2012 from his proposal to require companies to buy permits from the government for greenhouse gas emissions above a certain cap. The Congressional Budget Office estimates that the permits would raise up to $300 billion a year by 2020. Since companies would pass their...

Leaders of the NAACP on Saturday called for the firing of the New York Post cartoonist whose drawing lampooning the federal stimulus bill has drawn charges that it's racist and encourages violence toward President Obama. Speaking at the civil rights group's annual meeting in New York, NAACP President Benjamin Todd Jealous said that if Sean Delonas is not fired, the group will call for protests of the paper and Fox television affiliates, which are owned by Post parent company News Corp. "There is consensus that if the Post does not ... get rid of the journalists who are responsible for...

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- The head of the Colorado Springs NAACP is crying foul after a picture of President Barack Obama was removed from a sign at the Peterson Air Force Base commissary. The picture accompanied a sign near the entrance saying the government-run military grocery store would be closed on Presidents Day. The Defense Commissary Agency, which oversees the store, says employees took it down after customers complained that the holiday is about presidents George Washington and Abraham Lincoln, not Obama. Rosemary Harris, president of the Colorado Springs branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People,...

President Barack Obama's picture was removed this week from a Presidents Day sign at the Peterson Air Force Base commissary after customers complained that the image did not fit the holiday commemorating the birthdays of past presidents George Washington and Abraham Lincoln. The head of the local NAACP and a commissary employee say it was blatant racism.

On the 100th anniversary of the creation of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), Governor Charlie Crist today called on Adora Obi Nweze of Miami to serve as Special Advisor to the Governor on Minority Affairs. Nweze will serve as a representative for the state’s minorities by advising Governor Crist on strategies that will ensure Florida’s government is accessible to these populations. She will continue as president of the Florida State Conference of the NAACP. The Governor's appointment of Nweze is believed to be the first state partnership with the NAACP through an official appointment in...

Montgomery, Ala. (WSFA) -- They're part of a long standing tradition that will soon become a part of Presidential history. The head of the Alabama NAACP, however, wants Mobile's Azalea Trail Maids to stay home on Inauguration Day, claiming the group reminds him of slavery. "These are not just regular costumes. These are the costumes that remind someone of the plantation in Gone with the Wind," Edward Vaughn said in a phone interview. Vaughn went on to say the group would be the laughing stock of the Inauguration. County leaders say nothing could be further from the truth. "We want...

Here is a local news report from Alabama about the Alabama NAACP's objection to the "Azalea Trail Maids" marching in Barack Obama's Inaugural Parade because their Southern Belle dresses are reminders of slavery. . . . (watch video)

Mobile's Azalea Trail Maids might be representing Alabama at the inauguration parade for president-elect Barack Obama but another president is trying to rain on their parade. Alabama's NAACP President Edward Vaughn says the dresses represent slave times and the girls will be the laughing stock of the big event. All 50 maids hope to attend the event in the nation's capitol.... complete with their pastel-colored hoop dresses and bonnets! Vaughn spoke to News 5 about the issue. "I just think that we needed something that could show Alabama's great progress rather than something that shows a shameful past. Alabama should...

Dodd, NAACP meet on housingTuesday, January 6, 2009 6:01 AM EST By Elizabeth Benton, Register Staff HARTFORD — Sen. Christopher J. Dodd, D-Conn., met with state NAACP members Monday on the housing crisis, where he assured those in attendance he would seek greater “bottom-up” assistance. Citing statistics showing African-Americans were targeted for subprime loans and were significantly more likely to enter into subprime loans, NAACP state conference President Scot X. Esdaile asked that lenders not be permitted to receive federal bailout funds until ending discriminatory lending practices. “My major concern is the ‘bottom-up.’ Main Street instead of Wall Street,” he...

(11-20) 22:17 PST San Francisco -- Tension is growing in the African American community over Proposition 8, with the leader of the San Francisco branch of the NAACP saying he expects some black ministers to boycott the group's annual fundraiser tonight because he supports same-sex marriage.

Raleigh, N.C. — There was a call for change Wednesday evening night at North Carolina State University. Student leaders came together to talk about passing the "Free Expression Tunnel Hate Crime Act" after classmates admitted to painting racist remarks about President-elect Barack Obama on the night of Nov. 4. Two of the messages in N.C. State's "Free Expression Tunnel" said: "Let's shoot that (N-word) in the head" and "Hang Obama by a noose." A bill urges the university to immediately expel those who promote such violent and racist actions on campus and to prosecute the offending students to the fullest...

Identity politics in the Democratic Party are already presenting challenges to President-elect Barack Obama, who is under pressure to appoint Hispanics and African-Americans to key posts in his administration. Both groups were crucial to Obama’s victory last week over Republican John McCain. Ninety-six percent of African-American voters cast ballots for Obama, while 67 percent of Hispanic voters. Both are now counting on Obama to appoint Hispanic and African-American politicians to his Cabinet as a way of rewarding their support. New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, a Hispanic who ran for the Democratic presidential nomination but later endorsed Obama, should be secretary...

OCALA, Fla. -- The owners of an Ocala business are accused of taking a racist swipe at president-elect Barack Obama. The NAACP of Florida calls the message on the company's marquee "horrific" and "insensitive."

A federal judge Monday denied a request for Virginia officials take steps to reduce waits at polling places attended by minority voters, while the campaign of Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain filed a last-minute lawsuit hoping to garner more military votes from overseas. In a hearing in U.S. District Court in Richmond on a lawsuit filed last week by the Virginia State Conference NAACP and others, Judge Richard Williams denied the request that included extending voting hours and reallocating voting machines in Norfolk, Richmond and Virginia Beach. The suit alleged minority voters will be disenfranchised by the state's inadequate...

Virginia Democrats are sniping at one another ahead of next week's presidential election, laying the ground for a nasty internal spat if Sen. Barack Obama fails to become the first Democratic presidential candidate to prevail in the state since 1964. The Virginia State Conference NAACP and Gov. Tim Kaine have locked horns over charges that black voters -- who are expected to vote overwhelmingly for Mr. Obama -- will be disenfranchised by a shortage of polling places and materials in areas where they predominate. Heavy voter turnout is expected Tuesday. The NAACP and others filed a complaint Monday in U.S....

A national voter-protection organization has scheduled a press conference for 10 a.m. today to discuss its lawsuit against Gov. Timothy M. Kaine and other top Virginia election officials on behalf of the Virginia State Conference NAACP. The organization is accusing Virginia of an unconstitutional allocation of polling-place resources in Richmond and several other urban areas. Judith Browne-Dianis, co-director of the Washington-based Advancement Project, cited a survey by the organization that determined that minority precincts have too few voting machines and election officials. "Virginians are going to turn out in large numbers, and election officials must act quickly to make sure...

The Detroit Branch NAACP will "Value the Voter" with direct action on Election Day. The direct action will consist of staging Challengers at the polls. They will use monitors including the Nation of Islam to patrol for instances of voter intimidation and suppression. Attorneys will be onsite at the Detroit Branch and at six different ...

I just saw on Fox News that the NAACP is asking the courts to allocate more voting machines for the State of Virginia and add an additional 2 hours to the time the polls are open. The reason: 436,000 new voters have been registered in VA since the last election. That scares the crap outa me. Anyone care to guess what percentage of those 436,000 are Black voters? Are they transplants from D.C. ? In '04, Bush beat Kerry in VA by 200,000 votes. If this 436,000 are voters registered by the Dems (the NAACP and ACORN), I think I...

"MSNBC has launched a news project with a variety of left-wing special interest groups to boost their Election Day coverage and help viewers experiencing problems at the polls. One of the groups involved in MSNBC's "Election Protection" project is the Association of Community Organizers for Reform Now. ACORN has been involved in rampant voter registration fraud across the nation this election cycle and is actively supporting Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama for president." Other groups include: LaRaza, U.S. Pirg, NAACP, the Human Rights Campaign, the National Gay and Lesbian Law Association, Sierra Club and the Service Employees International Union Link:...

Press Release: Barack Obama Tuesday, November 8, 2005 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE On Election Day, Obama Introduces Legislation to Prevent Election Fraud WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Barack Obama (D-IL) Tuesday introduced legislation to protect Americans from using tactics that intimidate voters and prevent them from exercising their rights on Election Day. Obama's legislation, the Deceptive Practices and Voter Intimidation Prevention Act of 2005, would make it illegal for anyone to knowingly attempt to prevent others from exercising his or her right to vote by providing deceptive information and would require the Attorney General to fully investigate these allegations. The legislation would...

The NAACP will have lawyers targeting 750 precincts around the nation on Election Day to help address complaints about possible voter disenfranchisement, the organization's new president said Saturday. Benjamin Jealous, who took the helm of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People on Sept. 15, said volunteer lawyers have already been addressing complaints about voter registration problems. On Election Day, lawyers will be sent to the 750 precincts where there has been a history of voter discrimination, Jealous said at the state NAACP convention. Jealous also said he hopes that Democratic nominee Barack Obama's growing popularity will aid...