September 09, 2010

On Tuesday, September 14, the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights will host a diverse group of scholars, policy makers, public intellectuals, civil rights practitioners and members of the general public to begin a national conversation on defining a new civil rights agenda for the 21st century. The Commission's goal is to spur a fresh dialogue that will lead to a refashioning of the means, goals and methods of civil rights so that they more effectively address the needs of disadvantaged Americans, a disproportionate number of whom are people of color. "Despite the establishment and enforcement of anti-discrimination laws and discrimination's decline, substantial racial and ethnic disparities persist in areas such as socioeconomic status, education, employment and incarceration rates. Aggressive enforcement of civil rights laws hasn't been effective at lessening these disparities," says Gerald A. Reynolds, Chairman of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights. Full release.

New national research reveals that the vast majority-a whopping 98 percent-of female scientists know a female colleague who left the field because she could not overcome the professional barriers she encountered. The study exposes a multitude of obstacles facing female scientists today which contribute to the significant underrepresentation of women in important scientific fields. To explore the issues affecting the advancement of women in science and the public policy changes that might address them, L'Oreal USA, in partnership with DISCOVER magazine, will convene world-renowned experts to brief Congress on the subject. The congressional briefing, For Women in Science: 21st Century Policy & Politics, sponsored by Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson, D-Texas, will be held on Sept. 23, 2010, in Washington, D.C. Full release.

The Center for Medicine in the Public Interest released the results of a national Teen Substance Abuse survey today, indicating that police officers and high school teachers nationwide believe alcohol and marijuana are the most serious problem substances facing teenagers. These survey results come as the Food and Drug Administration has scheduled an Advisory Committee meeting for September 14 to examine whether abuse of cough and cold medications by teens requires stricter controls on the sale of those commonly used products. Police and teachers polled do not believe it is a good idea to force Americans to visit a doctor to get a prescription to purchase commonly sold cough and cold medicines. Full release.

A prominent national Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization today announced a major educational initiative in response to an extremist Gainesville, Fla., church's plan to burn copies of the Quran, Islam's holy text, on September 11. The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) said its "Learn, Don't Burn" initiative will seek to distribute 200,000 copies of the Qurans to replace the 200 books that the Florida church plans to burn. The Qurans will be sponsored and distributed through CAIR's ongoing "Explore the Quran" campaign. At a Capitol Hill news conference, CAIR said its executive director will offer the sermon for the end of Ramadan (Eid ul-Fitr) prayers in Gainesville on Friday and will hold a news conference in that city on Saturday following any Quran burnings. Full release.

Less than two years after throwing the "bums" out of Washington, America seems poised to bring the Republicans back and Denver author Michael Cuddehe asserts that they'll bring their corruption and the failed policies that got us into this financial mess. "Republican policies led directly to the economic calamity that we live with today," says Cuddehe, author of the new book "Chronicle of Catastrophe: A Contemporaneous History of the Bush Years." "Republicans are now posturing as fiscal conservatives. Amazingly, the American people are buying it." Full release.

In observance of World Habitat Day, Habitat for Humanity International will honor former U.S. President Jimmy Carter and former first lady Rosalynn Carter at Habitat for Humanity's "Thanks a Million! A salute to the life and service of our most famous volunteers-Jimmy & Rosalynn Carter" Gala in Washington, D.C., at the Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium-Monday, Oct. 4, 2010. The evening will include a memorable celebration of the Carters' 27 years of service to Habitat and of their lifetime commitment to strengthening democracy and alleviating poverty. Garth Brooks, Trisha Yearwood, Frank Blake of The Home Depot, Andrew N. Liveris of Dow, and Larry Stone of Lowe's Corporation are gala co-chairs. U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan will serve as the guest speaker. Full release.

If you are a Democratic candidate running for office, would you want President Obama to endorse your candidacy? How about if you are a Republican-would you want Sarah Palin or the Tea Party's endorsement? Right now, the answer would be probably not. If a candidate running for office was endorsed by President Obama, 45% of Americans would be less likely to vote for that candidate and 42% say they would be more likely. Over half of U.S. adults (56%) say they would be less likely to vote for a candidate endorsed by Sarah Palin, while three in ten (30%) would be more likely to do so. When it comes to the Tea Party's support, two in five Americans (41%) say they would be less likely to vote for their endorsed candidate, one-third (34%) would be more likely and one-quarter (26%) are not at all sure. Full release.

Almost two in three Americans (65%) say a double-dip recession-defined as a recession followed by a short-lived recovery, followed by another recession-is now likely to happen. Among those who expect a double-dip recession, nearly half (44%) fear it will be worse than the first one, with 21% worried it will be "much more severe." Just 24% think the second recession will be less severe. These findings come from a recently conducted survey of 1,043 Americans by the polling firm StrategyOne, a Daniel J. Edelman company. As they are bracing for a second downturn, Americans are certainly not holding their breath for a full recovery coming anytime soon. Just 5% think there will be a full economic recovery by the end of this year, and only another 21% see recovery taking place by the end of 2011. Half of all Americans polled (50%) see a recovery not coming until sometime after the end of 2011, and about a quarter (23%) doubt our economy will ever fully recover. Full release.

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