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From MLK to today, the March on Washington highlights the evolution of activism by Black churches

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:55 GMT

The March on Washington of 1963 is remembered most for the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech — and thus as a crowning moment for the long-term civil rights activism of what is sometimes referred to as the “Black Church.”At the march, King indeed represented numerous other Black clergy who were his colleagues in the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. But the march was the product of sustained activism by a broader coalition. Black and white labor leaders, as well as white clergy, played pivotal roles over many months ahead of the event.Moreover, the Black Church was not monolithic then — nor is it now. Many Black pastors and their congregations steered clear of civil disobedience and other nonviolent confrontational tactics in the civil rights era, just as some now steer clear of the Black Lives Matter movement and shun progressive Black pastors’ engagement on behalf of abortion rights and LGBTQ+ rights.“The issues are multiracial. It’s too simplistic...

Stock market today: Asian stocks follow Wall Street higher ahead of Federal Reserve conference

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:55 GMT

BEIJING (AP) — Asian stocks followed Wall Street higher on Tuesday as traders waited for signs of interest rate plans from this week’s Federal Reserve conference.Tokyo, Hong Kong and Seoul rose. Shanghai declined. Oil prices edged lower.Wall Street’s benchmark S&P 500 index rose Monday for its first gain in five days as tech stocks rallied.Traders hope officials at the Fed’s summer Jackson Hole, Wyoming, conference say they are finished raising interest rates that are at a two-decade high. But forecasters warn they might say inflation isn’t under control yet.Fed Chair Jerome Powell “may even mention that further rate hikes cannot be entirely ruled out,” said Clifford Bennett of ACY Securities in a report.The Nikkei 225 in Tokyo rose 0.8% to 31,802.54 and the Hang Seng in Hong Kong advanced 0.2% to 17,653.43. The Shanghai Composite Index lost 0.1% to 3,090.13.The Kospi in Seoul added 0.2% to 2,515.07 while Sydney’s S&P-ASX 200 was less than 0.1% ...

Judge to consider whether Texas can keep oversize buoy barrier on US-Mexico river border

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:55 GMT

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — A federal judge on Tuesday will consider whether Texas can keep a floating barrier on the U.S.-Mexico border as both the Biden administration and Mexico push to remove Republican Gov. Greg Abbott’s latest hardline measure to deter migrants from crossing. The scheduled hearing in Austin comes days after Texas, which installed the water barrier on the Rio Grande in July near the border city of Eagle Pass, repositioned the wrecking ball-sized buoys closer to U.S. soil. Texas is being sued by the Justice Department, which argues the barrier could impact relations with Mexico and pose humanitarian and environmental risks. During a trip Monday to Eagle Pass, Abbott said the barrier was moved “out of an abundance of caution” following what he described as allegations that they had drifted to Mexico’s side of the river. “I don’t know whether they were true or not,” Abbott said. It is not clear when U.S. District Judge David Ezra might rule on the barri...

As Tropical Storm Hilary shrinks, desert and mountain towns dig themselves out of the mud

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:55 GMT

CATHEDRAL CITY, Calif. (AP) — Crews worked to dig roads, buildings and care home residents out of the mud across a wide swath of Southwestern U.S. desert Monday, as the first tropical storm to hit Southern California in 84 years headed north, prompting flood watches and warnings in half a dozen states.The National Hurricane Center in Miami said Tropical Storm Hilary had lost much of its force as it headed to the Rocky Mountains, but warned that “continued life-threatening and locally catastrophic flooding” was expected in parts of the region. Forecasters said the threat for flooding in states farther north on Monday was highest across much of southeastern Oregon into the west-central mountains of Idaho, with potential thunderstorms and localized torrential rains on Tuesday.As Hilary moved east into the neighboring state of Nevada, flooding was reported, power was out and a boil-water order was issued for about 400 households in the Mount Charleston area, where the only road in and o...

Pakistan’s military says Indian troops killed one villager when they opened fire at Kashmir border

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:55 GMT

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistan’s military accused India’s troops of opening fire on Monday at their disputed border in the Himalayan region of Kashmir and killing one villager who was working in a field on the Pakistani-administered side.The Pakistani military statement accused Indian troops of “unprovoked firing” in violation of a cease-fire agreement. The Indian army disputed that in a statement on Monday night, saying it opened fire when two militants tried to sneak into Indian-controlled Kashmir across the so-called the Line of Control. It said the two suspects were wounded and later died on the side of Pakistan-held Kashmir.The cease-fire between Pakistan and India has largely been holding since 2021 when the two sides agreed to adhere to a 2003 accord that previously had been ignored, with civilian and troop deaths on both sides.Pakistan and India have a history of bitter relations. Since gaining independence from British rule in 1947, the two sides have fought tw...

Fair minimum wages: Action for decent living conditions in the EU 

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:55 GMT

Parliament approved new rules to ensure minimum wages provide for a decent standard of living in the EU. Parliament has been calling for EU measures to secure a decent income for all workers for a number of years. In-work poverty in the EU has increased over the past decade and economic downturns, like the one experienced globally during the Covid 19 crisis, show adequate minimum wages have an important role in protecting low-wage workers, as they are more vulnerable.In September 2022, MEPs adopted new rules to improve the adequacy of minimum wages. They expect this will lead EU countries to achieve real wage growth and avoid competition on labour costs in the single market, as well as help reduce the gender pay gap, as nearly 60% of minimum wage earners in the EU are women.Find out more about EU measures to safeguard workers’ rights.What does the new EU legislation on minimum wages entail?EU countries will have to make sure their national statutory minimum wage allows for a decent ...

Heavy flooding leaves Lancaster residents stranded inside homes

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:55 GMT

In the aftermath of Tropical Storm Hilary that brought heavy downpours, Lancaster residents have been stuck inside their homes for two days, unable to leave because of the water levels and debris build up on their street. Frustrated neighbors say poor drainage is to blame and any small amount of precipitation leads to flooding and takes a long time to drain. “Where can I go?” said Janis Carroll, a resident in the area. “Whenever we have rain for any type of endurance, it’s a flood. It doesn’t make sense. You can’t drive in it. Your car will get stuck out there. See, it looks like river.”A truck submerged in water after tropical storm Hilary makes landfall (Source: KTLA)Officials with the city of Lancaster told KTLA that it has crews working around the clock to drain neighborhoods. However, residents demand to know when city officials will offer a permanent solution to this ongoing problem.“And we kept telling the city, please come and fix the drain that’s right here on the left...

9th bus of migrant families and children arrive in L.A. after Hilary

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:55 GMT

After the 8th bus carrying migrants arrived in Los Angeles on Thursday, Texas Governor Greg Abbott sent yet another bus of migrant families and children that arrived in Los Angeles today. The bus departed from Brownsville, Texas on Sunday and arrived at Union Station today around 6:45 p.m. During the time the bus was in route, Southern California was gearing up for its first tropical storm in over 84 years, Tropical Storm Hilary.  8th bus carrying migrants from Texas arrives in Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass condemned Governor Abbott’s actions as a “despicable act beyond politics,” accusing him of endangering the lives of families and children by transporting them through extreme weather conditions.  “It is evil to endanger the lives of vulnerable migrants by sending a bus with families and toddlers on board to a city that at the time was under an unprecedented tropical storm warning,” Mayor Bass said. “As I stood with state and local leaders warning Angelenos to stay safe and brace...

Suspect in custody after shooting, killing woman in Pasadena

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:55 GMT

After an hours-long standoff, authorities have arrested a man suspected of shooting and killing a woman Monday in Pasadena. Around 10:02 a.m. Monday, Pasadena police responded to the 200 block of South Raymond Avenue on reports of several shots fired and found 34-year-old Jamila Elysse Moss, a resident of Pasadena "unresponsive with fatal injuries," a news release from the Pasadena Police Department stated. The suspected gunman, now identified as 32-year-old L.A. resident Guary Lonnie Shuford III, was eventually tracked down to an apartment complex near the intersection of Del Mar Boulevard and Raymond Avenue.Authorities were unable to contact the suspect at first, which led to a sweep of the building. They eventually located the apartment where the suspect was believed to be located and negotiations began.The relationship between the suspect and the victim are unclear at this time, police said.The Pasadena Police Department is being assisted by the Glendale Police Department and a ...

Highway 87 to be closed for pavement repair project

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:55 GMT

SAN JOSE – The California Department of Transportation is planning full closures of northbound and southbound State Route 87 in the coming two months for a pavement repair project, according to the agency.The closures will take place on different weekends between State Route 85 and Interstate 280, Caltrans said in a news release Monday.Northbound lanes will be closed after 9 p.m. on Sept. 22 and reopen no later than 5 a.m. the following Monday, according to Caltrans. Similarly, southbound lanes will be closed after 9 p.m. on Oct. 20 and reopen no later than 5 a.m. the following Monday.Caltrans said the purpose of the project is to “improve ride quality, enhance safety and extend the service life of the pavement.”Traffic will be detoured during each closure.“During these lane closures, motorists should expect delays, so please allow yourself more time for your commute,” Caltrans spokesperson Victor Gauthier said in a video message.Check back for updates.