Ex-Detroit Mayoral Aide Gets 120-Day Jail Sentence
The former top aide and ex-lover of disgraced ex-Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick followed her old boss to jail Tuesday, the last step in a criminal case that shook up Detroit politics for a year after romantic text messages between the pair made headlines. Christine Beatty, once an influential figure at Detroit City Hall, waved goodbye to loved ones as she was ushered from a courtroom to begin a 120-day jail stay for obstruction of justice. She will serve her term in Wayne County jail, where Kilpatrick has been serving an identical sentence since late October. Beatty and Kilpatrick, both 38, were charged with lying about their affair under oath during a 2007 civil trial on claims that two police officers were punished for investigating alleged wrongdoing in the mayor’s inner circle. (Continue Reading…)

Blacks Lead Both Houses in Colorado, a First for Nation
Terrance Carroll and Peter C. Groff can be forgiven if they’re secretly annoyed with the president-elect for stealing their thunder. The two Coloradans are about to make history as the first blacks to preside over both houses of a state legislature in the same session. When the 2009 Colorado legislative session convenes Wednesday, Mr. Carroll will be sworn in as House speaker and Mr. Groff will resume his role as Senate president. It’s a historic first in American politics, albeit one that’s been largely overshadowed by the election of the first black man to the presidency. Mr. Groff, who served as Barack Obama’s state campaign co-chairman, hinted that he may be getting a little tired of the president-elect’s limelight-hogging ways. (Continue Reading…)

Hughes Brothers’ Pimp Drama Under Fire by City of Oakland
The Hughes Brothers’ latest project Gentlemen of Leisure has come under fire by city officials who worry about the effect the new HBO drama will have on the world’s view of Oakland. According to The San Francisco Chronicle, the controversy is putting the new show’s shooting location in jeopardy, as members of the Oakland City Council and others debate whether or not to approve a film permit for the production. (Continue Reading…)

sang-froid \sang-FRWAH\, noun;

BBC in Racism Row After Brown-Faced Doll Becomes White
On the face of it, a small furry doll from a magical secret world seems an unlikely subject for a row about racism. Yet the BBC has found itself under fire about the colour of Upsy Daisy, central character in the children’s programme In The Night Garden. Parents have complained that while she has dark skin on screen, an Upsy Daisy doll on sale in toy shops at upwards of £28.95 is much whiter. The BBC has denied any sinister motive, but yesterday it revealed that the doll was to be withdrawn in favour of a new version more faithful to Upsy Daisy’s on-screen hue. Produced by the team behind Teletubbies, In The Night Garden has become Britain’s most popular children’s TV franchise, earning £18million in the last year. Although Upsy Daisy has brown skin and what appear to be dreadlocks, according to the show’s creators ’she is not intended to represent a specific race or culture’. (Continue Reading…)

Hip-Hop Chess Federation Lands Community Grant
While many of the country’s educational programs are seeing funding cuts, in light of the recession, the Hip-Hop Chess Federation (HHCF) has received a community grant. According to ThugLifeArmy, the unique project, focused on outreach of underserved communities, was chosen by the Mitchell Kapor Foundation for funding. “This community grant will allow us to take our first steps toward making this a coast-to-coast teaching/learning community,” said the HHCF’s Founder Adisa Banjoko. “If we are going to promote unity and non-violence in our schools and communities, we need to bring educators together to build a playbook of classroom strategies.” (Continue Reading…)

Lenders overcharged Latinos, blacks
Two mortgage brokerage companies must compensate 445 black and Hispanic borrowers who were systematically charged higher fees than white clients. HCI Mortgage and Consumer One Mortgage must pay $665,000 in restitution, according to a settlement between the companies and the state Attorney General. The state sued the mortgage firms after an investigation of GreenPoint Mortgage Funding, a unit of Capital One Financial, uncovered the discriminatory practices. HCI, Consumer One and U.S. Capital Funding all did “substantial business” with GreenPoint, state Attorney General Andrew Cuomo said. In March 2007, Capital One agreed to pay $1 million in compensation. The suit against U.S. Capital Funding has not been resolved. (Continue Reading…)

lascivious \luh-SIV-ee-uhs\, adjective:

Taraji P. Henson: Tinseltown’s Burgeoning Comet
In the frigid elements of Toronto, Canada, around the filming of the movie Four Brothers, Taraji P. Henson and Andre 3000 were hanging out and decided to go to the movies. They were in foreign territory and directionally clueless. Andre 3000, perhaps at the height of his career at the time, decided he would be the one to gather some directions. “Excuse me young sir, do you know how to get to the movies from here?” he asked natives, totally thrown off by his politeness and subtle comportment. Having received the directions he needed, he set off with Henson, long before anybody knew who he was. That, and other similar moments with the Class of 3000 creator, stuck with her like Velcro. (Continue Reading…)

Right-Wing Author Ann Coulter Attacks Michelle Obama’s Style
Right-wing flame thrower Ann Coulter blasts incoming First Lady Michelle Obama as a freakish Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis imitator in a book to be published next week. In her latest screed, titled “Guilty: Liberal ‘Victims’ and their Assault on America,” Coulter accuses the liberal left of playing the victim when in fact, she argues, they are the victimizers. As usual, Coulter throws plenty of bombs herself. Lashing out at the President-elect’s wife, Coulter wrote, “Her obvious imitation of Jackie O’s style - the flipped-under hair, the sleeveless A-line dresses, the short strands of fake pearls - would have been laughable if done by anyone other than a media-designated saint.” (Continue Reading…)

Katt Williams Rips Harvey on New Year’s Eve
Comedian Katt Williams took his animosity toward Steve Harvey to the stage on New Year’s Eve and, as promised, spent part of his act ridiculing the veteran comedian who had performed just before him.”Please give it up for Steve Harvey one time. He’s an excellent comedian. One of the finest we’ve ever had,” Williams said to begin his set. “But he don’t want no parts of this in any way shape, form or fashion. This is some other s***. (Continue Reading…)

nonpareil \non-puh-REL\, adjective:

Lil Kim Reveals Disappointment with ‘Notorious’
With the theatrical premiere of the Notorious B.I.G.’s biopic, simply titled “Notorious,” coming out this month, Lil Kim is speaking out about her disapproval of the movie’s portrayal of her relationship with the late rapper. In Hip Hop Weekly’s two-year anniversary issue, the pint-sized female rapper reportedly sounds off about B.I.G.’s mother Voletta, and his wife Faith, saying she’s “been quiet for too long.” “I’ve had enough and I’m about to expose them both … I’ve been quiet for a long time,” Lil Kim told the magazine. It was rumored that Kim was unhappy with the casting of her role — producers picked Naturi Naughton of 3LW fame to play her. And, about her lack of involvement in the project, due to her professional and personal relationship with Biggie. In return, Kim is determined to “expose” both women in Biggie’s life. Although it is unclear what kind of dirt she revealed. “I’m very disappointed in Faith,” she said. “There’s nothing Faith or Ms. Wallace could do to stop me from reppin’ B.I.G. all day. I’m gonna always do that … It’s time for Ms. Wallace to be exposed.” (Continue Reading…)

One in a Million: Second Pair of Black and White Twins
Dean Durrant, 33, and Alison Spooner, 27, of Fleet, Hampshire, have had another set of twin girls with different coloured skin. Miya has her father’s black skin and Leah is white like her mother. The couple’s first set of twins arrived in 2001, with blue-eyed, red-haired Lauren taking after her mother while Hayleigh has black skin and hair like her father. Twins’ mum Alison Spooner. Ms Spooner told Sky News: “I honestly didn’t think it would happen again. “I thought we would have two the same - and I didn’t think we’d have twins again for a start. That was a shock,” she said. (Continue Reading…)

As One Door Opens for Blacks, A Major One May Close for Good
Unless some divine intervention happens, this New Year may bring the last gasp for one church–affiliated college. I’m talking about Morris Brown College. Like other private, historically-black colleges and universities, the Atlanta school, which was founded by the African Methodist Episcopal church in 1881, has been grappling to survive changing times; times that were first ushered in by college desegregation and the budget challenges that came with the shrinking pool of black students. But the thing that brought Morris Brown to death’s door wasn’t – at least not until recently – a lack of students. Nor was it a lack of heart on the part of alumni and others who believe that black colleges are both places of education and empowerment. They are institutions where black students emerge not only prepared to compete in society, but with the understanding that they have a duty to lead, rather than just blend in, with it. (Continue Reading…)

faineant \fay-nay-AWN\, adjective:

Hudson Tipped to Perform for Inauguration
It is thought that the 27-year-old will sing the US national anthem, The Star Spangled Banner, at the ceremony on January 20. It would be the Oscar winner’s first public performance since he mother, sister and nephew were murdered in October. A source close to the Dreamgirls star claimed that Hudson is already in talks with inauguration organisers about the show and described her as a “huge Obama supporter”. The source told the New York Post’s gossip column, Page Six: “Organizers want Jennifer to sing The Star-Spangled Banner at the Inauguration on January 20. “They are talking to Jennifer about it. It would be the first time she performed since the murders. She is from Chicago and a huge Obama supporter.” (Continue Reading…)

Obama Alone Can’t Halt the Surge in Black Murders
Northeastern University criminologist Alan Fox virtually pleaded with President-elect Barack Obama to do something about big city black homicides. Fox had good reason to implore Obama to take action. He just released a study this week that showed that young black males who are murdered or who murder other blacks has jumped forty percent since 2000. The magnitude of the jump and the crisis that it poses is even more astounding since during the same period crime and murder rates overall nationally have plunged. (Continue Reading…)

The Year in Politics: Blacks Revel in the History Made in ‘08
From coast to coast, joyous African-Americans watched history unfold in 2008 with the unprecedented election of Barack Obama, who became the nation’s first black president by offering voters his vision of hope for a better life. On Jan. 20, the presidential inauguration in Washington, D.C., will culminate with a week of festivities, including the swearing-in ceremony, inaugural address, inaugural parade and a night of inaugural balls and galas honoring Obama. The official theme for Obama’s inauguration is “Renewing America’s Promise,” which aides said underscores Obama’s commitment to restoring opportunity for Americans. “My father almost lost his life trying to secure the right to vote for black people. This year, we saw a return on his investment,” Elsie L. Scott, president and chief executive officer for the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, told BlackAmericaWeb.com. “I just hate my parents did not live to see November 4, 2008.” (Continue Reading…)

billingsgate \BIL-ingz-gayt; -git\, noun:

Janet Jackson: ‘Beyonce Has a Lot of Growing Up To Do’
Janet Jackson is rumored to be fuming over Beyonce’s controversial ‘like the Jacksons comment’ a few weeks ago. Beyonce told reporters: “I grew up upper-class. Private school. My dad had a Jaguar. We’re African-American, and we work together as a family, so people assume we’re like the Jacksons.” While the first part of Beyonce’s statement was accepted, the “I Am …Sasha Fierce” singer’s final statement “.. I didn’t have parents using me to get out of a bad situation” raised eyebrows and backlash. According to sources close to Jackson, Janet is furious over the comment and is ready to set Beyonce straight. “Janet wanted to know why Beyonce had to mention her family,” the insider said. “They’re not friends and barely know each other. She feels Beyonce went out of her way to tell the world she’s from the upper class and the Jacksons were like a bunch of dirty gutter rats.” (Continue Reading…)

Naturi Naughton as Lil’ Kim in ‘Notorious’
Naturi Cora Maria Naughton was born on May 20, 1984 in East Orange, New Jersey where she started singing in the choir at New Hope Baptist Church at just 5 years of age. She turned pro by 14, when she became a member of the girl band 3LW. The group soon signed with Sony/Epic Records and went on a nationwide tour while their debut album, entitled “3LW,” went platinum, selling 1.3 million copies. Away from the entertainment business, Naturi always remained an honor student, attending Seton Hall University where she majored in Political Science until her career became too demanding. (Continue Reading…)

Senate Appointment Creates Rift Among Black Leaders
Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s appointment of Roland Burris to the U.S. Senate creates a split among Illinois’ top black officials. The appointment pits the state’s top elected official, Secretary of State Jesse White, against its one-time highest black office holder, former Attorney General Roland Burris. Further complicating the matter, the appointment involves the former seat of Barack Obama, the first African-American to be elected president. Both Obama and White were careful to praise Burris in opposing his selection by Blagojevich, who’s accused of earlier trying to sell the seat for personal gain. (Continue Reading…)

nonage \NON-ij; NOH-nij\, noun:

MTV Rolls Out ‘Daddy’s Girls’ in January
Vanessa And Angela Simmons Head For L.A. In Daddy’s Girls MTV’s Run’s House has been on the air for five seasons and now, two members of the Simmon’s family are breaking away from the pack. MTV’s upcoming reality series, Daddy’s Girls will follow Rev Run’s daughters Vanessa and Angela as they leave home in New York to move out to Los Angeles. Viewers will get to see how the two girls manage on their own. Well, not entirely on their own. Their friend Alicia and cousin Jessica will be coming along for the ride. (Continue Reading…)

Cholera Kills 1,518 in Zimbabwe’s Biggest Outbreak
Cholera has killed 1,518 people in Zimbabwe’s biggest outbreak of the disease, the World Health Organization said. The fatality rate from the 26,497 cases reported by Dec. 25 was 5.7 percent, higher than the 1 percent that is normal in large outbreaks, the Geneva-based organization said in a statement on its Web site. Cases are now being reported from all 10 of Zimbabwe’s provinces, WHO said. (Continue Reading…)

Web Site Uses MLK Name to Attack Him
Type the name “Martin Luther King” into the popular Google Internet search engine, and find a surprise: among the expected university and newspaper links, one site — the third highest ranked link — stands out. It attacks the personal life of the slain civil rights leader and, by extension, the movement of nonviolence he championed. It rehashes allegations of plagiarism and adultery and accuses King of fraud, claiming he was not a “legitimate reverend” or “bonafide Ph.D.” It also invites visitors to learn about civil rights by reading the work of former Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke. (Continue Reading…)

aplomb \uh-PLOM\, noun::

Beyonce Leads Singles Chart for 3rd Week
Beyonce logged a third week at No. 1 on Billboard’s Hot 100 singles chart with “Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It),” a tune from her latest chart-topping album. Rapper T.I.’s “Live Your Life” featuring Rihanna held at No. 2, and Lady GaGa’s “Just Dance” featuring Colby O’Donis at No. 3. Kanye West’s “Heartless” jumped three places to No. 4. Britney Spears’ “Womanizer” rose one to No. 5, Katy Perry’s “Hot N Cold” jumped two to No. 6, and Taylor Swift’s “Love Story” climbed four to No. 7. (Continue Reading…)

Katt Williams vs. Steve Harvey: Beef Hyped on Jamie Foxx’s Radio Show
A new standup comic beef has emerged between Katt Williams and Steve Harvey – mostly on Williams’ part – that is expected to be settled during a head-to-head battle on New Year’s Eve in Detroit. Instigating from the sideline is fellow comic Jamie Foxx, who joined co-hosts of his Sirius XM FoxxHole radio show on Dec. 19 to comment on the absurdity of Williams calling out Harvey in advance of their Dec. 31 show. First, Foxx plays a clip of Williams dissing Harvey. “I wanna apologize for what’s gonna happen,” Williams said of the joint comedy gig. “But the second that you get on stage, I need you to understand that that’s your final time as the ‘King of Comedy.’ Water seeks its own level, you can’t stop it playboy. It is what it is, so I hope you’re ready. I hope you got a team of writers. You gonna need about six or seven of ‘em….” (Continue Reading…)

GOP Chairman ‘Shocked’ that Obama Parody Sent Out
The chairman of the Republican National Committee said Saturday he was “shocked and appalled” that one of his potential successors had sent committee members a CD this Christmas featuring a 2007 parody song called “Barack the Magic Negro.” In spite of RNC Chairman Robert M. “Mike” Duncan’s sharply negative reaction, former Tennessee GOP leader Chip Saltsman said that party leaders should stand up to criticism over distributing a CD with the song. He earlier defended the tune as one of several “lighthearted political parodies” that have aired on Rush Limbaugh’s radio show. Saltsman, who managed former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee’s presidential campaign, is seeking the RNC chairmanship. During the presidential campaign, GOP officials denounced efforts by those in the party who criticized or mocked Democratic nominee Barack Obama along racial lines. Obama was vying to be the nation’s first black president. (Continue Reading…)

logorrhea \law-guh-REE-uh\, noun:

The 10 Best Black Books of 2008
Hope on a Tightrope earns the No. 1 spot at the dawn of the new political era of Barack Obama. Why? Because in spite of the uncritical euphoria surrounding Obama’s historic accomplishment, Dr. West has the guts to call attention to the pressing plight of the least of his brethren even before the President-elect has had a chance to take office. Plus, the iconoclastic author, in urging the incoming administration to address the concerns of the poor and underprivileged, cleverly invokes “the fierce urgency of now,” the same phrase coined by Dr. Martin Luther King and appropriated by Obama as his campaign theme. (Continue Reading…)

Mother of Missing South Carolina Nurse Seeks Help Solving Case
When Susie Fernandez drives, she tries to glimpse every face in passing cars. In stores, she glances at people in aisles and checkout lines. She’s been doing it ever since her daughter, a nurse and devoted mother of a little boy, vanished in September. “You try to have faith,” said Fernandez, who fears her 31-year-old daughter is dead. “Not knowing what happened is just unbearable. It just consumes your life. You just have this pain in your heart that won’t go away.” The sharpest pangs come from two thoughts: Fernandez said she believes she knows who is responsible for her daughter’s disappearance, and she doesn’t feel anybody outside her family is paying attention. (Continue Reading…)

Immigrants Reshape Post-Disaster New Orleans
On Friday nights, day laborers form two lines at a bustling liquor store in the French Quarter: one is to dutifully wire money to their homelands, the other is to buy $2.17 beers that medicate their lives in New Orleans. “Life is hard here, harder than any place I’ve been in the U.S.,” said Jose Campos, 37, who came here from El Salvador, by way of Florida. He rode is bike to Unique Grocery, a cavernous establishment off Bourbon Street that offers the wire service through bulletproof glass and tall-boy beers from icy bins. “It’s a dangerous place, a bad place,” he said. “But when you can find work, it’s all worth it.” (Continue Reading…)

Keyshia Cole is done with sad songs
Heartbreaking, emotional songs like “Love” and “I Remember” helped make Keyshia Cole one of R&B’s most popular stars. But while those songs resonate with millions of fans, the soul sensation says she can’t stand to listen to them anymore. Cole says she’s tired of singing those same old sad love songs. So on her new CD, “A Different Me,” released this month, Cole introduces her “sexier” side. Currently on tour with Lil Wayne and Gym Class Heroes, the 27-year-old diva — who is also a big reality star thanks to her successful BET show “Keyshia Cole: The Way It Is” — say she’s changing up her stage performance and hopes to gain worldwide appeal. (Continue Reading…)

Arab Leaders Gave Condoleezza Rice Over $300,000 in Jewelry
President George W. Bush’s foreign policies may be unpopular in the Middle East, but Arab leaders showered his top diplomat with jewelry worth far more than a quarter of a million dollars last year. While Bush himself didn’t fare nearly as well, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice raked in at least $316,000 in gem-encrusted baubles from the kings of Jordan and Saudi Arabia alone, making her one of top recipients among U.S. officials of gifts from foreign heads of state and government and their aides in 2007. (Continue Reading…)

‘Watermelon Roll’: More Racism from ‘Team Sarah’
There is something very ugly happening out there in the hinterlands these days–a brewing cauldron of racist anger being directed at President-elect Barack Obama as he and his family get ready to move into the White House. It’s a mean-spirited bigotry that is finding its way onto the internet and right-wing blogs across the country. It makes for a troubling portrait of a significant cross-section of the American polity as Obama prepares to take the oath of office as the 44th President of these United States. Nowhere have these tendencies been more out-front and prominent than at TeamSarah.org, a website organized by “a coalition of women dedicated to advancing the values that Sarah Palin represents in the political process.” Men, according to an exclamatory notice, are welcome, too. (Continue Reading…)