By Edward Wyckoff Williams “Being gay is like being left-handed. It’s not really that interesting anymore.” George Will, the conservative political commentator, recently made this profound point while debating the merits of the Congressional repeal of the U.S. military policy “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” (DADT). DADT has until now banned gay men and women from serving openly in our armed forces. Will put it best when he said, “The evolving standards of decency mark a maturing society.” America is … [Read more...]

By Dr. Boyce Watkins Apparently Bill Maher, the ultra-liberal talk show host who both entertains and annoys me, doesn’t understand what it means to be a black man. During a recent episode of his popular show, Real Time with Bill Maher, the host criticized President Barack Obama for not being a “real black president,” (whatever that means) in his response to the gulf region oil spill. Rather than paraphrasing, please allow me to quote Maher’s exact words. “I thought when we elected a black … [Read more...]

From  the publisher... As I was about to write this week’s opinion piece, I was very excited to share with you my thoughts on the week. I attended the BIG Awards on Friday and was motivated immensely by the spirit of commerce that enveloped the room. I conducted a fascinating interview with comedian Paul Mooney. And, the creator of Funk music George Clinton is town for a show which I can’t wait to see it. But just as I sat down and began this column, I received an email that warranted my … [Read more...]

By Linda Chavez Benjamin Hooks, former head of the NAACP and long-time civil rights activist died this week at 85. I will miss him, my sometimes-adversary but always-gentleman debating partner. Hooks took over the leadership of the NAACP in 1977 from Roy Wilkins and was executive director until 1992. I first met Hooks when I was the director of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights during the Reagan years. My agency was much in the news at the time, largely because my fellow commissioners … [Read more...]