The News: The union that represents National Basketball Association players has demanded that Los Angeles Clippers’ owner Donald Sterling receive the “maximum” penalty for racist comments recently attributed to him, starting with a suspension for the remainder of the playoffs. “The players are not going to sit on the sidelines and allow decisions to be…

The News: Leaders in higher education and civil rights are regrouping after the Supreme Court’s decision upholding Michigan’s ban on the use of race in college admissions at public universities. The ruling cleared the way for more states, through legislation or voter initiatives, to prohibit affirmative action. California in 1996 was the first to approve…

The News: More than 2,100 people have signed an online petition objecting to first lady Michelle Obama’s scheduled commencement speech at a Kansas high school graduation. The criticism, as The Root reported, comes from parents and students worried that the first lady’s visit will limit the number of tickets for the May 17 ceremony. Parents…

The News: An extensive New York Times report says that despite the existence of key witnesses, physical evidence and video, police conducted “virtually no investigation at all” of the rape allegation against Florida State University’s star quarterback Jameis Winston last year. The Times report said university officials may have violated federal law by failing to immediately investigate the rape accusation, which…

The News: It is a rare moment when Michael Eric Dyson isn’t talking, but for more than a year he kept mum while being ridiculed by onetime comrade Cornel West. At a recent forum in New York, Dyson unleashed a counterattack that could ignite a war of words between two of the country’s leading black intellectuals.…

The News: For the third time in four years, the Paycheck Fairness Act, which would aim to narrow the wage gap between men and women, failed to pass in the Senate on Wednesday. As expected, the Democratic bill fell short of receiving the 60 votes needed to avoid a filibuster by Republicans. The legislation would…

The News: House Republicans passed a bill that actually improves the Affordable Care Act. Departing from their usual approach to President Barack Obama’s health care law, lawmakers bypassed floor debate and approved a change that expands coverage choices for employees of small businesses.  The change eliminates caps on deductibles for small-group policies. Business organizations lobbied…