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Wednesday, 07 May 2008 11:04 |
 She stood up for her own marriage rights 40 years ago, and then stood up for lesbian and gay Americans when they asked for the same treatment. Mildred Loving has died at the age of 68. She may not have been well-known, but her actions and those of her husband challenged American prejudice.
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Sunday, 20 April 2008 17:52 |
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 Maj. Shawna R. Kimbrell, 555th Fighter Squadron, is the first African-American female fighter pilot in the United States Air Force.
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Friday, 07 March 2008 18:12 |
 A Nobel Prize-winning scientist who provoked a public outcry by claiming black Africans were less intelligent than whites has a DNA profile with up to 16 times more genes of black origin than the average white European.
An analysis of the genome of James Watson showed that 16 per cent of his genes were likely to have come from a black ancestor of African descent. By contrast, most people of European descent would have no more than 1 per cent.
"This level is what you would expect in someone who had a great-grandparent who was African," said Kari Stefansson of deCODE Genetics, whose company carried out the analysis. "It was very surprising to get this result for Jim."
The findings were made available after Dr Watson became only the second person to publish his fully sequenced genome online earlier this year. Dr Watson was forced to resign his post as head of a research laboratory in New York shortly after triggering an international furore by questioning the comparative intelligence of Africans. In an interview during his recent British book tour, the American scientist said he was "inherently gloomy about the prospects for Africa" because "all our social policies are based on the fact that their intelligence is the same as ours whereas all the testing says not really".
The Science Museum in London cancelled a lecture by him, while the Mayor of London, Ken Livingstone, branded his comments "racist propaganda".
Other scientists working in the field of molecular biology quickly distanced themselves from the comments, saying that it was not possible to draw such conclusions from the work that had been done on DNA.
The study of the DNA of Dr Watson who shared the 1962 Nobel Prize for medicine adds another twist to the controversy surrounding the American scientist's comments.
In addition to the 16 per cent of his genes which were identified as likely to have come from a black ancestor of African descent, a further 9 per cent were likely to have come from an ancestor of Asian descent, the test indicated.
By Robert Verkaik |
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Tuesday, 28 August 2007 17:42 |
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 Traditional hip-hop lyrics about guns, women and homophobia are about to face a new competitor in the race for young Americans' hearts and minds.
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Thursday, 02 August 2007 19:38 |
 This month the BBC World Service broadcast a documentary about homophobia in Jamaica and what it is like to come out in such an intolerant country. |
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Saturday, 28 July 2007 11:21 |
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 The murder music singers are denying they have signed the Reggae Compassionate Act (RCA). Their denials are being widely reported in the black press worldwide, and on reggae and dancehall websites. These posts should point out the singer's denial that they have signed the RCA is contradicted by the fact that they HAVE signed and their signatures are posted on the web here.
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Tuesday, 19 June 2007 16:53 |
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Beenie Man, Sizzla & Capleton sign deal - Historic agreement to stop "murder music"
Three of the world's top reggae / dancehall singers have renounced homophobia and condemned violence against lesbians and gay men. |
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Friday, 01 June 2007 19:04 |
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Thursday, 17 May 2007 18:46 |
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On Valentine's Day two years ago, the dismembered body parts of Rashawn Brazell, a 19 year old bisexual man, were found scattered in bags across Brooklyn.
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