Oprah Winfrey to Deliver Howard University's Commencement Address

Media titan Oprah Winfrey is set to deliver Howard University's 139th commencement address. Winfrey also will receive an honorary doctor of humanities for her lifetime achievements and contributions to the global community, reports Howard University. Read more.

Hospital Acted Illegally in Pillow-Angel Hysterectomy

In the controversial pillow-angel story, Seattle-based Children's Hospital & Regional Medical Center has done an about-face and admitted it acted outside the law when doctors performed a controversial hysterectomy on a 6-year-old girl with severe disabilities, even though her parents and doctors had concluded the operation was in everyone's best interest. (See also: Would You Do This to Your Daughter? Parents Stunt Growth) The change in stance followed an investigation by Washington Protection and Advocacy System, a disability-rights organization. Hospital officials are expected to outline an agreement with the group to make sure court orders are obtained in similar situations in the future. The girl, known only as Ashley, has the intelligence of a newborn, and her parents wanted to keep her from growing and developing to make it easier to care for her. Read more.

Blogs Challenge Black Leadership

Many black blogs are working together to challenge conventional black leadership. With ColorOfChange.org's James Rucker as a catalyst, several black blogs have opposed the Congressional Black Caucus Institute's decision to partner with FOX News to air a Democratic presidential debate. Afro-Netizen and Jack & Jill Politics, for example, separately criticized Jesse Jackson for speaking out against the FOX/CBC debate and then retracting. Black blogs offer not only an opportunity to break from old orthodoxy but to do so in a way that allows for more engagement through comments from readers. Younger people are creating their own innovative models on sites such as Uppity Negro. Read more.  

California Schools' Changed by Race-Blind Admissions

The numbers of blacks and Latinos at the University of California schools have rebounded at the undergraduate level, although they haven't kept pace with high-school graduation rates, more than 10 years after Proposition 209 outlawed racial preferences. But more blacks and Latinos are also going to lesser-known branches of the 10-campus system and fewer to the flagships of Berkeley and UCLA. Meanwhile, the race-blind-admissions movement spreads. Florida, Texas and Michigan rewrote their admissions rules, and Ward Connerly, the UC regent who started the anti-affirmative-action movement, is taking his campaign for race-blind admissions to as many as five more states next year, including Colorado, Missouri, Oklahoma and Arizona. Read more. (Also read DiversityInc's affirmative-action coverage in the April 2007 issue of DiversityInc magazine.)

'Multiracial' Losing Favor

Fewer people are claiming to be multiracial, a new survey says. About 1.9 percent of the people checked off more than one race in a 2005 Census Bureau survey of 3 million households, a decline from two surveys in 2000 when 2.1 percent checked more than one race. Jungmiwha Bullock, president of the Association of MultiEthnic Americans, is not surprised. Some believe that identifying more than one race negates racial identity, she says. Read more. (See also: Being Biracial, A Personal Account in the May issue of DiversityInc magazine)

Lower Taxes for Women?

While many factors affect a woman's decision to work or stay at home, multiple studies have shown that part of the explanation is that women are often more sensitive to changes in tax rates than men. If women believe they'll be able to keep more of the wages earned outside the home, they're more likely to take a job or retain the one they have rather than leave the work force for family or other reasons. So lower income-tax rates for women is the good kind of discrimination, says Harvard University economist Alberto Alesina. Read more.

Immigrant Supporters Targeted by Violence

Following the May Day immigrant rallies, plots to attack immigrants with grenades and semi-automatic weapons were uncovered, according to local and federal authorities throughout the nation. Immigrant advocates say a series of incidents and reports indicate a very dangerous trend fueled by the anti-immigrant climate. Read more.

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