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Actor John Leguizamo has taken out a full-page ad in the New York Times to urge industry insiders voting for Emmy Awards nominees to vote for “non-white artists” because there isn’t enough “inclusion” in the entertainment industry. “America is better when it is inclusive,” the Spawn star wrote. “It is more profitable. It is more creative! Let’s not give up. I’m still woke! Are you?” “Please let this be the year we finally embrace change,” Leguizamo’s ad began. “The year we truly find Equity, and see artists of color represented across not just one category, but ALL categories.”

The University of Waterloo in Ontario, Canada, has launched a segregated pool activity called “Black Folx Swim,” which expressly excludes participation by non-black swimmers. “The aim is to get more Black Folx into a space where they haven’t always been welcomed, while providing them the opportunity to learn swimming skills,” the school’s website states. Swimming lessons are taught exclusively by “experienced black swimmers/instructors,” the site adds, noting that the segregated pool time “is dedicated to building a better relationship with water for the Black community.”

A clothing store in downtown Savannah, Georgia, raised some eyebrows recently when it waived a $20 appointment fee for black customers and other people of color while keeping the fee intact for white customers, WJCL-TV reported. "Most of the feedback has been that our decision to waive this refundable deposit is racist because it favors people of color, black people, and indigenous people," Blunk added the station. However, the store said that white customers who don't have $20 for an appointment can select the "don't agree" on the booking form so the booking manager can reach out and come up...

President Barack Obama's state dinner Wednesday evening for Mexican President Felipe Calderon and his wife, Margarita Zavala, will be attended by a who's who of powerful and politically connected Hispanic-Americans. Topping the list are Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.), Democratic Reps. Xavier Becerra (Calif.), Silvestre Reyes (Texas), and Nydia Velázquez (N.Y.), and Los Angeles mayor Antonio Villaraigosa. Actors Eva Longoria-Parker and George Lopez will attend, as will New York Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez. Goya Foods president Robert Unanue will also attend, according to the White House. Other notable guests will include Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy, actress Whoopi Goldberg, Newark Mayor Cory Booker and American Express CEO Ken...

A recent influx of black residents in Metro Councilwoman Martha Jane Tassin’s district could complicate her re-election bid this fall. When Tassin — a white Republican — was re-elected in 2004, black voters outnumbered white voters by about 500. Today, voter registration records show that there are some 3,530 more black voters than white voters in District 6. Some black leaders such as Councilman Ulysses “Bones” Addison are already targeting Tassin, claiming her district should be represented by an African-American. “It’s nothing personal against Mrs. Tassin, she’s a fine lady. But that seat should be held by a person of...

UNI TRIES TO OUST PROFESSOR Macquarie University vice-chancellor Di Yerbury has denounced the racist views of its controversial Sydney law professor as repugnant. But Professor Yerbury denied that asking Associate Professor Andrew Fraser to bring forward his retirement was penalising him for expressing his views. Macquarie University said today it had invited the Canadian-born law professor to speed up his retirement, which was due to take effect from July 2006. Prof Fraser, who has taught at the university for 29 years, was last week cautioned over a letter in his local suburban newspaper in which he claimed Australia was becoming...