Week of Dec. 26-January 1 December 26 1848—In one of the most daring escapes from slavery in U.S. history, on this day in 1848, William and Ellen Craft began a 1,000-mile journey from a plantation in Macon, Ga., to freedom in Boston, Mass. The light-complexioned Ellen disguised herself as an infirmed White man and the dark-complexioned William pretended to be the faithful slave. The escape, though harrowing, was successful. But in 1850 when Congress passed the Fugitive Slave Act, the Crafts found themselves being hunted down by both slave catchers from Georgia and U.S. Marshals. Then members of Boston’s powerful abolitionist and Underground Railroad communities stepped in. They helped the Crafts flee to Canada and then to Liverpool, England, where the couple stayed until after the Civil War. WILLIAM?AND?ELLEN?CRAFT
by Dominique Debucquoy-DodleyCNN NEW YORK (CNN) -- The FBI extensively monitored the Occupy Wall Street movement around the United States, using counterterrorism agents and other resources, according to recently released FBI internal documents. OCCUPY PITTSBURGH (Wikipedia Photo)
by David McCraryAP National Writer NEW YORK (AP) — The horrific massacre of 26 children and staff at a Connecticut elementary school, along with other mass shootings, was the top news story of 2012, narrowly edging out the U.S. election, according to The Associated Press' annual poll of U.S. editors and news directors. INTERFAITH VIGIL--President Barack Obama pauses as he delivers a speech during an interfaith vigil for the victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting on Sunday, Dec. 16, at Newtown High School in Newtown, Conn. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
by Angela Delli SantiAssociated Press Writer TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — Newark Mayor Cory Booker, perhaps New Jersey's highest-profile Democrat, has ruled out a bid for governor next year and is eyeing a run for U.S. Senate in 2014. The decision, announced Thursday on Twitter, seems to mean Booker has chosen a possible race against U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg, a Democrat who is now 88, over one with Republican Gov. Chris Christie. FILE—In this Wednesday, Oct. 10, 2012 file photograph, Newark Mayor Cory A. Booker addresses a gathering in Willingboro Township, N.J. On Thursday, Dec. 20, 2012, Booker ruled out a bid for New Jersey governor and is eyeing a run for U.S. Senate in 2014. Booker's announcement on Twitter Thursday ended months of speculation over whether the Democratic Party's biggest draw would seek to challenge Gov. Chris Christie in next year's governor's race. (AP Photo/Mel Evans,file)
by Hannah DreierAssociated Press Writer LAS VEGAS (AP) — The 20-year-old Rhode Islander who brought the Miss Universe crown back to the U.S. for the first time in 15 years is hoping that her quick rise through the beauty pageant ranks and an onstage stumble will show women that anything is possible. MISS UNIVERSE--Miss USA, Olivia Culpo, left, is crowned Miss Universe during the Miss Universe competition, Dec. 19, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Julie Jacobson)
by Ted Anthony AP National Writer PITTSBURGH (AP) — Pick a public elementary school somewhere in the continental United States and draw a half-mile circle around it. The odds are reasonable that you'll encounter some combination of the following: BACK TO SCHOOL--A returning student smiles as his bus school bus pulls into Hawley School, Dec. 18, in Newtown, Conn. Classes resumed Tuesday for Newtown schools except those at Sandy Hook. Buses ferrying students to schools were festooned with large green and white ribbons on the front grills, the colors of Sandy Hook. At Newtown High School, students in sweatshirts and jackets, many wearing headphones, betrayed mixed emotions. Adam (AP Photo/Jason DeCrow) A baseball field. A statue erected for war veterans. A municipal building. A community center. A polling place — probably the school itself. A library. A park. A basketball court crawling with kids playing pickup games.
NEW YORK (AP) — President Barack Obama has been named Time magazine's "Person of the Year" for 2012. "We are in the midst of historic cultural and demographic changes, and Obama is both the symbol and in some ways the architect of this new America," Time Editor Rick Stengel told NBC's "Today" show, where he announced the selection on Wednesday. PERSON OF THE YEAR--In this image released Dec. 19, in New York by Time Inc., President Barack Obama is Time Magazine's Person of the Year. (AP Photo/Time Magazine) The short list for the honor included Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani teenager who was shot in the head for advocating for girls' education, as well as Egyptian president Mohamed Morsi, Apple CEO Tim Cook and Italian physicist Fabiola Giannati.
