It was 83 years ago yesterday when Martin Luther King, Jr. was born into a nation where simply his skin color alone was enough to designate him a second class citizen and prevent him and his family from enjoying such basic human dignities as living, eating, or travelling where they want, or voting for elected representatives without encumbrance or limitation. It can be difficult sometimes for modern Americans who weren't born or didn't live during the civil rights era to comprehend the gross inequalities and devastating economic and social racism that was encoded into our very laws throughout America just 50 years ago. more ›

According to KXAN, Austin police officers might be wearing body cameras that film their actions as they deploy to crime scenes, vehicle stops, and more. The body camera offers a more intimate view of the action than a dashboard camera. Currently nine varieties of body camera are being tested by the department, and one company offers examples of how the cameras are used. Starting Friday, nine officers will be wearing one of the models for a 30-60 day testing period. Austin NAACP president Nelson Linder and Jim Harrington from Texas Civil Rights Project have both voiced their support of the cameras. Harrington noted, "It is light years better than where we have been and it is a credit to APD for doing this." Chief Art Acevedo isn't sure when APD would begin using the cameras on all officers, but notes that he'd like to watch the technology develop and the price drop in coming months. more ›

A biographical look at singer/performer/activist Harry Belafonte, Sing Your Song is the latest film from director and documentarian Susanne Rostock. Throughout his life, Belafonte has overcome racial injustice, worked alongside Martin Luther King, Jr. in the struggle for civil rights, and unabashedly fought for the rights of others. more ›

• More happy economy news! Layoffs for the holidays, yay!
• Any drunk frat boys on Sixth Street missing their parent's credit cards?
• KBR accused of using mortuary trucks that "still had traces of body fluids and putrefied remains in them" to ship ice to the troops.

On April 4, 1968, America's greatest civil rights leader was shot dead in Memphis, Tennessee. The following evening, one man bridged the gap between societal injustice and misery, just by being one of the world's most inspiring performer. more ›

Austin city leaders announced late Friday afternoon that the U.S. Department of Justice is starting an investigation into the Austin Police Department and its use of force, specifically when dealing with minorities. "We are obliged to determine whether APD is systemically violating the Constitution of the United States," read the letter sent to the city from the Justice Department. In 2004, the Austin American-Statesman analyzed police data from 1998 to 2003, revealing that Austin police... more ›

Sen. Rodney Ellis (D-Houston) will soon present Senate Bill 368 in the Texas Legislature, a bill that would create a statewide smoking ban if passed. The bill is essentially the product of diligent efforts by the anti-smoking interest group Smoke-Free Texas, a health-minded group seeking to prohibit smoking in all “public places” throughout the entire state. S.B. 368, if passed, would circumvent all other municipal smoking bans, such as the one here in Austin. It... more ›

The annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day, taking place this year on Saturday, January 13th, was created to honor the memory of the civil rights hero and encourage the public to carry on his legacy of volunteerism through community service projects. Locally, what began as a grassroots effort by State Rep. Dawnna Dukes (D-Austin) to clean up East MLK Jr. Boulevard in 2000 has blossomed into the citywide MLK Day of Service. The 2007 clean... more ›

Pending a vote by the Austin City Council tomorrow, Congress Avenue Bridge is to be renamed in honor of Ann Richards, Texas' 45th Governor who passed away in September. [Excerpted from our previous post] From humble beginnings in Waco, Texas, Richards went on to attend Baylor University on a debate scholarship, later marrying high school sweetheart David Richards and settling in Austin. She began her political career by campaigning for such respected Texas Democrats... more ›

This weekend, Jovita’s will play host to a night of Texas blues and rock, featuring Jimmy LaFave, Troy Campbell and Seth Walker. The event will benefit the Texas Civil Rights Project (TCRP). “We are honored to build a fundraiser around such a great evening of music and such terrific musicians. Folks can support civil rights and have fun doing it,” said Jim Harrington, TCRP Director. In its 16th year, TCRP is among the nation’s most... more ›

From humble beginnings in Waco, Texas, Richards went on to attend Baylor University on a debate scholarship, later marrying high school sweetheart David Richards and settling in Austin. Her political career began by campaigning for such respected Texas Democrats as former Congressman Henry Gonzalez, famous for demanding Reagan's impeachment, and former Senator Ralph Yarborough, co-writer of the Endangered Species Act and vaunted civil rights advocate. It was in 1988, though, that Richards attained national fame with her quip against then-Presidential candidate George H.W. Bush, "Poor George, he can't help it...He was born with a silver foot in his mouth." more ›

Some sociologists are taking on a mission to make sure strippers are taken seriously. North Carolina has created a commission to investigate potential wrongful convictions. A non-ponographic sculpture is causing quite an uproar in Colorado. And we thought Texas was prude... Why go out in public anymore? You get in trouble if you're drinking, you get in trouble if you're not drinking... This rediculously elaborate wedding gown could have bought you [insert fantasy here]... more ›

For the past 40 years, the federal Fair Housing Act has made it illegal for newspapers to run discriminatory housing advertisements. Ads like this have become more common in the online world, with the numerous amount of housing and advertising sites available on the internet. The Chicago Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law has a case filed against Craigslist stating that they should be required to screen these posts. A hearing is currently... more ›

TUESDAY [11] [film] The Freshman at Paramount Theatre (9pm) (link) [volunteer] Caritas of Austin Volunteer Open House at 611 Neches Street (9am, 6pm) (link) [film] Safety Last at Paramount Theatre (7pm) (link) [film] AFS Essential: Woman is the Future of Man at Alamo Downtown (7pm) (link) [film] The Grace Lee Project at Alamo Downtown (9:45pm) (link) [film/civil rights] "A Blinding Flash of the Obvious" at Arthouse (RSVP, 5:30pm) (link) [tao] Wudang Taoist priests and monks... more ›

MONDAY [10] [music] Rancid, Street Dogs, Complete Control at Emo's (link) [music/party] End of an Ear and XL Recordings presents a special midnight sale and listening party for Thom Yorke’s The Eraser, with loads of giveaways! Plus, hear new albums from Peaches, Sufjan Stevens and others at Emo's Lounge (Free, 10pm-1am) (link) [music] Girls' Tribute to Clifford Antone with Marcia Ball, Angela Strehil, Lou Ann Barton, Toni Price, Carolyn Wonderland, and Eve Monsee at Antone's... more ›

LOCAL: The NAACP of Austin and the Texas Civil Rights project have sued the state and Travis County over electronic voting machines. They claim that E-Slate voting machines violate the state election code because they don't provide a paper record of the vote transaction. STATE: A federal judge has ruled that former U.S. Rep. Tom DeLay must remain on the ballot for the 22nd Congressional District race. It seems DeLay's little scheme to temporarily... more ›

• An anti-tax group called Citizens Lowering Our Unfair Taxes ("CLOUT") has filed suit against state lawmakers alleging illegal spending of our tax dollars over the last 28 years. According to CLOUT, lawmakers use inflated budget numbers to overspend and this leads to Texans being overtaxed.
• Democratic goober nominee Chris Bell has reported that his campaign received a donation of $100,000 from Houston oilman A. Earl Swift. According to the Texas Ethics Commission for the April 17 through May 15 period, Bell reported a total of $333,000. Carole Cougar Mellencamp reported $308,000, while Perry reported $375,000. Kinky Friedman? Roughly $149,000. In other Kinky news: Meet Kinky Friedman tonight at BookPeople at 7:00 p.m.
• The City of Austin Water Utility is part of a new water conservation program called WaterSense. Austin Water Utility, along with other national water suppliers and product manufacturers, is a member of a coalition that provided input and support for the program. High efficiency toilets hooray!
• Residents of Southwest Travis and Northern Hays County affected by water outages no longer need to boil their drinking water. LCRA lifted the boil-water notice Friday morning after test results from samples taken Thursday showed no contamination of the water. If your water is still cloudy Friday morning, LCRA officials say that's likely air in the water, and the cloudiness should disappear in a few minutes.
• An Austin civil rights group has filed suit against Secretary of State Roger Williams and Travis County Clerk Dana DeBeauvoir claiming that the Travis County's electronic voting system violates state law because it doesn't produce paper ballots. Two of the corporations that provide nearly all of the voting machines in the United States—ES&S and Diebold—are controlled by Republicans with strong ties to the Bush administration.

It's just been announced that President Clinton is coming back to Austin. He's scheduled to deliver the convocation address at UT's LBJ School of Public Affairs on May 20. UT President William Powers had this much to say: "The LBJ School was formed as an expression of President Johnson's faith in government to serve democracy by building a more just society. It is fitting that this year's convocation speaker at the LBJ School is a... more ›

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On April 4, 1968, less than twenty-four hours after Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was assasinated, James Brown was scheduled to perform a concert at the Boston Garden. He arrived at the airport and was told that the mayor had serious concerns about Brown playing during a time of intense anxiety and anger over the murder of one of the greatest civil rights leaders in American history. The Godfather would not hear of it.... more ›

: : FRIDAY : : [art] Coy Poage and William K. Stidham Art Exhibit benefiting the National Ovarian Cancer Coalition of Austin, 7pm-10pm @ Barocca Studios - $15 donation [music] Mae Shi @ Elysium [film] New Films! @ Your Local Theaters [music] Andy Rourke of The Smiths @ The Parish [music] Loxsly, 8pm @ Red Fez [music] AM Syndicate with Casiotone for the Painfully Alone, Cue and Dear Nora, 8pm @ Beerland [books] Douglas... more ›

On Saturday, former US Congressman James Jarrell "Jake" Pickle died at the age of 91. His was a legacy of extraordinary accomplishments. Born and raised in West Texas, Pickle went on to attend UT Austin, where was a champion swimmer and senior-year student body president. After a stint in the US Navy during WWII, Pickle went on to serve in the House of Representatives for over three decades. When the Civil Rights Act of... more ›

In The News Today: Feds Investigate Rocha Shooting: The FBI and the DOJ’s civil rights division are getting involved in the case of Daniel Rocha. Looks like the relations between Austin authorities and Austin minorities just got worse, if that's possible. Downing Street Memo: On May 1st, the UK Times published a memo that made President Bush just look, well, bad. There will be a forum today on Capital Hill regarding the memo and... more ›

These days, we don't quite know what to make of Governor Rick Perry. more ›