Black Voices is reporting that ex-BART cop Johannes Meherle will be released today. Meherle was sentenced to two years in prison for shooting and killing Oscar Grant, an unarmed man lying facedown on a BART-train platform at the time of the shooting. The shooting and light sentence drew major protests throughout the country. Mehserle, who…

It looks like those pesky emails that former GOP vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin has fought years to suppress are coming to light. MSNBC is reporting that at roughly 9 a.m. in Juneau (1 p.m. ET), the governor’s office in Juneau will release to reporters 250 pounds of printed emails sent between the former governor (and her…

Julianne Hing of ColorLines is reporting that Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick joined a growing chorus of governors rejecting the federal government’s immigration-enforcement agenda by announcing that he would not enter his state into Secure Communities. The program, which is supposed to target immigrants who commit serious crimes for deportation, has been controversial because it has…

Patrice Gaines has lived an interesting life. The author, former Washington Post reporter and motivational speaker is a convicted felon, having served time in prison for a crime related to a heroin addiction when she was 21. Gaines speaks of the difficulty in getting a second chance in society, especially in the job market. Check…

The New York Times is reporting that Michael B. Hancock has been elected mayor of Denver. Hancock, who was raised by a single mother, grew up in abject poverty with nine siblings. Despite his tough life, Hancock didn’t hide from it; instead, he championed it in his message for the city, likening his life experience…

CNN Money is reporting that three top mortgage servicers are finally being penalized by the Obama administration for poor performance. Tami Luhby writes, “Federal officials say these banks are doing such a bad job at foreclosure prevention that the government will stop paying them for modifying delinquent loans.” On Thursday the Treasury Department announced that…

In a blog post on Work in Progress, the official blog of the U.S. Department of Labor, Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis tackles unemployment and its impact on “vulnerable demographic populations.” She discusses the unacceptably high rate of unemployment among blacks in general, which is at 16 percent, and black teens, which is at 40.7…

Those of you missing the work of the late novelist E. Lynn Harris have another way to connect with him. Tracey Edmonds of Edmonds Entertainment, and Proteus Spann of Proteus E2 Productions, have structured a multipicture deal to develop the extensive library of novels by New York Times best-selling author E. Lynn Harris into feature…

The Nation’s Dave Zirin is taking MLB Commissioner Bud Selig to task for his refusal to move the All-Star game from Arizona because of Arizona’s harsh anti-immigration laws. Major League Baseball is filled with immigrants, some of whom are boycotting the All-Star game and have called for it to be moved. In a segment on…

Leon “DJ Solarize” Botha, the South African painter and tourntablist who declared “I am hip-hop” through his visual art, has died at the age of 26. Botha, who was diagnosed with progeria at age 4, suffered a stroke related to the disease in 2010, and his health continued to decline over the last year. Progeria…