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No shushing here: Librarians get defiantly loud on book bans at annual conference in Chicago

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:48:28 GMT

Christopher Borrelli | Chicago TribuneThe American Library Association conference that ended Tuesday at McCormick Place tends to be a predictably tame six days. The annual gathering of librarians, publishers and information professionals has been happening since the 19th century. The Chicago-based ALA greets librarians from rural towns, big cities, colleges, high schools, libraries in other countries. They eat a hot dog and take a boat tour and, for a week, dig into the latest archiving techniques, discuss methods of bolstering diversity and forecast digital trends.That was before the book banners.“We need to fight now!” shouted a librarian from Tennessee during a panel.“The crazies are tough but we’re tougher!” yelled a librarian from California.You have never heard a quiet profession clap so hard.The book banners had always been there, of course.According to Deborah Caldwell-Stone, director of the ALA’s Office of Intellectual Freedom, when the group started tracking book challenge...

VTA pressures downtown San Jose merchants to exit sites: court papers

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:48:28 GMT

SAN JOSE — Some downtown San Jose business people claim a transit agency seeks to shove them out of their locations with insufficient compensation ahead of BART station construction, court papers show.The dispute centers on a three-story retail and residential building in downtown San Jose property, according to documents that are part of a lawsuit filed by the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority, or VTA, which seeks to seize the property through an eminent domain proceeding.The property owner claims that VTA failed to properly appraise the property’s value — the VTA estimator thought the building was two stories high when in fact it is three stories — and is attempting to force out the site’s tenants before they have secured new locations to operate, court documents assert.29 through 31 E. Santa Clara St. in downtown San Jose, aerial view, is showing the property within the outline. Boundaries are approximate. (Google Maps)The building in ...

Christine King Farris, last living sibling of Martin Luther King Jr., dies at 95

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:48:28 GMT

Associated PressATLANTA — Christine King Farris, the last living sibling of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., has died.Her niece, the Rev. Bernice King, tweeted that her “beloved aunt” died Thursday. She was 95.I love you and will miss you, Aunt Christine. pic.twitter.com/NXHsqaTVET— Be A King (@BerniceKing) June 29, 2023For decades after her brother’s assassination in 1968, Farris worked along with his widow, Coretta Scott King, to preserve and promote his legacy. But unlike her high-profile sister-in-law, Farris’ activism — and grief — was often behind the scenes.“She may not have always been on the line of the march, but that was true with a lot of the heroes of the Civil Rights Movement,” said Marcellus Barksdale, a history professor at Morehouse College, of Farris in a 2009 interview with The Associated Press. “Because of the luminescence of Dr. King and Coretta Scott King, Christine kind of got dimmed by that, but she was no less ...

Police: Man throws firework into crowd at SoCal Pride event

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:48:28 GMT

By Josh Haskell | CNNHERMOSA BEACH, California (KABC) — Hermosa Beach police are looking for a man who threw a lit firework into a crowd at a silent disco event marking Pride Month, injuring multiple people.The incident happened around 9:45 p.m. on June 17.Video shows the man standing off to the side of the event, lighting up a firework and tossing it into the crowd, then quickly getting onto a motorized beach cruiser and pedaling off. He appears to be accompanied by two additional people on their own bike.“We are investigating this as a possible hate crime,” said Hermosa Beach PD Capt. Landon Phillips. “We cannot rule that out. This was advertised as a Pride event. It appears the subject stopped there specifically, waited for a few minutes and then threw the explosive into the crowd.”The silent-disco festival was being held at Vista, at the Hermosa Beach pier as part of a series of activities to mark Pride Month supporting the LGBTQ community.Adam Molv...

Guns, explosives found inside Point Richmond home where police fatally shot man

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:48:28 GMT

RICHMOND — The Point Richmond home where police shot and killed a man Wednesday contained at least one explosive device, along with numerous guns, police said.Police evacuated the home as well as the residents of two neighboring homes after calling in a bomb squad late Wednesday, Richmond police Sgt. Donald Patchin said. Detectives continued to comb through the two-story residence Thursday.They were expected to be there at least deep into the afternoon, Patchin said.RELATED: Richmond police fatally shoot person while serving search warrantAt least one officer shot the man after police responded to the 1200 block of Sanderling Island about 9 a.m., Patchin said. The man died at the home despite treatment from officers, he said. Police confirmed his gender Thursday.According to Patchin, the man was armed with a gun and approached officers with it after they entered the home.Authorities have not identified the man, citing the investigation. They also did not identify the police wh...

Woman sued by family of husband she is accused of killing

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:48:28 GMT

By Cheri Mossburg | CNNKouri Richins, the Utah widow accused of killing her husband with a fentanyl overdose and then writing a children’s book about grief, is being sued by her late husband’s estate, new court filings show.The lawsuit was filed on behalf of Eric Richins’ living trust and estate on Tuesday, accusing Kouri of theft, wrongful death, misappropriation and fraud, among other crimes, and asks for over $13 million in damages, spelled out in 18 different claims.Kouri is facing murder and drug charges, accused of poisoning Eric with an overdose of fentanyl given to him in a drink the night he died. She has not yet entered a plea in the case and remains in custody.Earlier this month, Kouri sued Eric’s estate to obtain proceeds from his business and their family home, according to court filings.Richins “misappropriates Eric’s likeness and identity” in the children’s book on grief she authored in the wake of her husband’s death, the lawsuit against Kouri says, and has shared no...

Google to remove Canadian news from search over law requiring payments to local publishers

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:48:28 GMT

By Randy Thanthong-Knight | BloombergAlphabet Inc. said it will remove links to Canadian news from its Google search engine after the country passed a law requiring digital platforms to pay local publishers for news content.The Online News Act “creates uncertainty for our products and exposes us to uncapped financial liability simply for facilitating Canadians’ access to news from Canadian publishers,” Kent Walker, the California-based company’s president of global affairs, said in a statement.Walker said the links will be removed when the law takes effect later this year.Related ArticlesTechnology | Former Google executive enters 2024 US Senate race to succeed California’s Feinstein Technology | Google eliminates jobs at Waze after merging ad services Technology | Housing highrise may sprout next to Google village in San Jose Technology | Should laptops expire? Campaign aims to make electronics last longer to save money and...

Police: Tourist who defaced Colosseum has been identified

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:48:28 GMT

By Julia Buckely | CNNHe caused shockwaves around the world when he was filmed apparently carving his name into a wall of Rome’s 2,000-year-old Colosseum – and grinning when he realized he was caught on camera.Now, he’s likely to be in shock himself.The visitor who this week allegedly scratched “Ivan+Hayley 23” on a brick wall of one of the world’s most precious buildings, has been identified, according to Italy’s culture minister.REALTED: California tourist’s video of man defacing the Colosseum in Rome makes international newsAnd after a spate of Americans trashing Italian heritage sites last year, some readers will be relieved to know that this time, the suspect isn’t from the US – he’s from the UK.Culture Minister Gennaro Sangiuliano tweeted Thursday that the Carabinieri, a military police force, had “identified the person presumed to be responsible for the uncivilized and absurd act committed at the Colosseum.”“An act that offended everyone across the globe who appreciate the va...

University of California responds to SCOTUS ruling on race in college admissions

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:48:28 GMT

(KRON) -- The University of California President issued a statement Thursday in response to the Supreme Court’s ruling regarding the use of race in college admissions.UC President Michael V. Drake said, "We are disappointed in the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to bar the use of race in college admissions, a valuable practice that has helped higher education institutions increase diversity and address historical wrongs over the past several decades."The Supreme Court's ruling will not directly impact public universities in California. The consideration of race in admissions has been banned in California for 27 years by Proposition 209. After voters passed the proposition in 1996, the University of California and California State University adjusted their admissions practices to comply with the law.Nearly 100 private colleges and universities in California, including Stanford University and Santa Clara University, have been free to consider race for making admissions decisions. O...

Suspicious package found on steps of Supreme Court

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:48:28 GMT

A suspicious package was found on the steps of the Supreme Court Thursday, causing several road closures around the building. U.S. Capitol Police announced in a tweet that it is assisting the Supreme Court Police with the package and helping to keep the area clear “out of an abundance of caution.” It said in an alert that it is conducting an investigation into the package on the Unit Block of First Street Southeast Washington, D.C., on the court’s steps, and staff and other personnel should avoid the area until further notice. Capitol Police said road closures are in effect on Maryland Avenue between Constitution Avenue and First Street Northeast, on First Street between Constitution Avenue Northeast and Independence Avenue Southeast and on East Capitol Street between First and Second streets. The police said in the tweet that it cannot provide further information about another agency’s case but would provide updates about its own involvement. The Hill has reache...