USC Players' Web Page Called Racist

When University of Southern California (USC) assistant football coach Todd McNair, a black former NFL player, called a group of white football players "White Nation," he did so affectionately during practice. McNair first used the term after watching some white members of the kickoff team make a spectacular play. However, when the term ended up on an Internet site, stripped of its insider context, it struck outsiders as shockingly racist. The joke wasn't funny to outsiders after one of the teammates launched a link on the popular Internet meeting site Facebook and called his group "White Nation." According to USC's campus newspaper, he added that the "group is not for the faint of heart. All members are athletes of Caucasion [sic] descent ... We are just doing our duty of protecting the Arian [sic] brotherhood." Inside joke or not, once on the Internet, "White Nation" was left vulnerable to other people's interpretations, good or bad. Soon, a graphic post appeared on the Facebook page of a handcuffed black baby with a caption, calling for arresting "black babies before they become criminals." Who posted the graphic is unclear.

Calif. Ski Resort Attracts a Diverse Array

Ramon Baguio looks every inch the hotshot skier. And yet, in a sport where the participants are typically as white as the powder they carve, Baguio has always stood out. Baguio, who is Filipino, is an anomaly in a business run largely by white men. However, at Mountain High Resort near Wrightwood, Calif., Baguio fits right in. In a business that has unsuccessfully searched for ways to lure people of color to combat stagnant growth, tiny Mountain High has earned an outsized reputation as the Ellis Island of ski areas. Roughly half its customers are non-white, compared with about 11 percent nationwide.

Ga. Lawmakers Want Apology for Slavery

Georgia's black Democratic legislators proposed a resolution that would apologize for the state's role in slavery and segregation. Georgia's proposed resolution comes on the heels of a similar measure that passed unanimously in Virginia in February that expressed regret over slavery. Meanwhile, legislators in Missouri are considering a similar resolution, and Democratic Rep. Steve Cohen introduced a resolution in Congress asking the federal government to apologize for slavery and Jim Crow-era discrimination. Georgia's measure will be unveiled in a few days and it is expected to not only ask for apologies from the state's executive and legislative branches but also from the state's judges. However, the proposal is unlikely to find a warm reception in Georgia's legislature.

Disney Fairy Tale in New Orleans to Feature Black Princess

Disney will soon introduce the world to Maddy in "The Frog Princess," who will be the company's first animated black princess. Disney has already started production on the animated musical fairy tale, which will be set in New Orleans. Disney's animation arm, Pixar, is returning to traditional hand-drawn style animation for "The Frog Princess" instead of using computer animation, which has become industry standard.

New Spanish-Language Network Launched

Demonstrating the breadth of the Latino-consumer market, another Spanish-language network has launched. V-me (pronounced "veh-meh," from the Spanish "veme," for "see me") is a 24-hour digital broadcast network carried on basic digital cable and satellite systems. The network will be partners with public TV stations, which will receive V-me at no cost and is currently available in New York, Miami, Los Angeles, Houston, Chicago, San Francisco and San Antonio, among other cities, representing more than 60 percent of all Latino households. It reaches 28 million homes, the network said. V-me's programming is both original productions and acquisitions as well as public television shows adapted for American Latinos. V-me's content is organized into four categories: lifestyle, factual, movie/special events, and kids (with V-me devoting 36 hours per week for programming devoted to preschoolers).

Nations Vow to Improve Status of Women

The world's women leaders celebrated International Women's Day Thursday by demanding that more be done to increase the power and status of women in government while rallies throughout the world gave voice to ending violence against women. In Santiago, Chile, President Michelle Bachelet passed legislation during her first year in office that has given women new opportunities and protections, including the right to breastfeed at work and stiffer penalties for men who fail to pay alimony. German Chancellor Angela Merkel, the first woman in decades to chair a European Union summit, said Europe cannot remain content with the position of women in society. In Bangladesh, male celebrities, athletes and students vowed to fight the disfiguring and often deadly practice of attacking women with acid as a means of punishment.

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