In this Nov. 22, 1963 file photo, women burst into tears outside Parkland Hospital upon hearing that President John F. Kennedy died from a shooting while riding in a motorcade in Dallas. (AP Photo/File) by Jesse WashingtonAP National Writer Not that many years ago, three portraits hung in thousands of African-American homes, a visual tribute to men who had helped Black people navigate the long journey to equality. There was Jesus, who represented unconditional hope, strength and love. There was Martin Luther King Jr., who personified the moral crusade that ended legal segregation. And then there was President John F. Kennedy.
Pictured in Courier file photo is Chief Judge Gary Lancaster who died suddenly April 24, 2013 at his home in Stanton Heights. He was 63. As part of its continuing efforts to promote diversity, the Black Political Empowerment Project has initiated a campaign to have an African-American appointed to the US District Court for Western Pennsylvania. The court has been without a Black judge since Chief Judge Gary Lancaster suffered a fatal heart attack in April. When he was appointed to the court in 2009, Lancaster was the only African-American serving on any U.S. District Court. In a letter dated Oct. 14, Tim Stevens, B-PEP president, began soliciting support from a variety of sources requesting President Obama make a new appointment, among those contacted are U.S. Sens. Bob Casey and Pat Toomey--who will ultimately make recommendations to the president, US Rep. Mike Doyle, D-Pa.; Pittsburgh Mayor Luke Ravenstahl; Democratic mayoral candidate Bill Peduto; and both Allegheny Democratic Party Chair Nancy Mills and Republican Party Chair Jim Roddey.
In this May 1, 2013, file photo, President Barack Obama's nominee for the Federal Housing Finance Authority director Rep. Mel Watt, D-N.C., waves during the announcement of his nomination in the State Dining Room of the White House in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File) by Alan Fram Associated Press WriterWASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Republicans on Thursday blocked President Barack Obama's picks for a powerful federal court and a housing regulatory agency, prompting Democrats to threaten curtailing the GOP's ability to derail nominations. "Something has to change, and I hope we can make the changes necessary through cooperation," Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said after the votes.
In this Wednesday, Aug. 14, 2013, file photo, former Illinois Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr., leaves federal court in Washington. Prison-bound Jackson plans to sell his home in Washington to help pay $750,000 in penalties stemming from his sentence for illegally spending campaign funds on personal items. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File) by Michael TarmAssociated Press Writer CHICAGO (AP) - Former Illinois U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. entered a North Carolina prison Tuesday to begin serving a 2 1/2-year term for illegally spending $750,000 in campaign money on everything from cigars to a gold watch - a day after he tried but failed to get into the federal complex. In an odd twist to Jackson's long-running legal saga, the 48-year-old had sought to enter the Butner Correctional Center Monday but was turned away because of "a snafu," C.K. Hoffler, an Atlanta-based attorney who had accompanied the Chicago Democrat, told reporters Tuesday evening.
In this Oct. 18, 2013, file photo, Aledo High School player Ryan Newsom (17), runs between Western Hills' Shane Little, left, and Jacoby Powell during the first quarter of a high school football game in Aledo, Texas. (AP Photo/The Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Bob Haynes, File) by Beth J. Harpaz Associated Press Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Was a losing team bullied? Is your angry spouse a bully? How about that co-worker who's always criticizing you? Or the politicians who forced a government shutdown? Bullies aren't just for middle schoolers. These days, they're everywhere.
In this July 25, 1960 file photo , Sen. John F. Kennedy, D-Mass., sits with wife, Jacqueline, as she reads to their daughter, Caroline, at Hyannis Port, Mass. (AP Photo) by Hillel ItalieAssociated Press Writer BOSTON (AP) — Four days a week, David O'Donnell leads a 90-minute "Kennedy Tour" around Boston that features stops at government buildings, museums, hotels and meeting halls. Tour-goers from throughout the United States and abroad, who may see John F. Kennedy as inspiration, martyr or Cold War hero, hear stories of his ancestors and early campaigns, the rise of the Irish in state politics, the odd fact that Kennedy was the only president outlived by his grandmother. Yet at some point along the tour, inevitably, questions from the crowd shift from politics to gossip.
President Barack Obama, accompanied by Education Secretary Arne Duncan, right, laughs as he visits a classroom at Pathways in Technology Early College High School (P-TECH) in Brooklyn borough of New York, Friday, Oct. 25, 2013, to highlight the importance of education in providing skills for American workers in a global economy. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak) by Josh LedermanAssociated Press Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Regrouping with Democrats after a bitter budget fight, President Barack Obama on Friday cast the recent spending-and-debt standoff with Congress as "a symptom of a larger challenge" but one offering Democrats the chance to show voters the virtues of their vision for government ahead of the 2014 midterm elections.
President Barack Obama stands with Jeh Johnson, his choice for the next Homeland Security Secretary, in the Rose Garden at the White House in Washington, Friday, Oct. 18, 2013. Johnson was general counsel at the Defense Department during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak) by Avis Thomas-LesterFor New Pittsburgh Courier (NNPA)--President Barack Obama has selected Jeh Johnson, a graduate of Morehouse and Columbia Law School, as secretary of the Department of Homeland Security. If confirmed, Johnson, who retired from government to go into private practice, would come to the position with substantial experience, officials said.
In this Nov. 6, 2012, photo voters leave a polling place on election day in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey, File) by Nancy BenacAssociated Press Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — Hey, fed-up Americans, here's a scary thought after the dispiriting spectacle of the government shutdown: You're the ones who sent these members of Congress to Washington, and they really are a reflection of you.
BACK IN BUSINESS--President Barack Obama speaks in the State Dining Room of the White House in Washington on Oct. 17, 2013. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin) by Andrew TaylorAssociated Press WriterWASHINGTON (AP) — The government unlocked its doors Thursday after 16 days, with President Barack Obama saluting the resolution of Congress' bitter standoff but lambasting Republicans for the partial shutdown that he said had damaged the U.S. economy and America's credibility around the world.
