'Thor' fans protest black actor

LOS ANGELES - When Kenneth Branagh cast Idris Elba as Heimdall in the upcoming summer movie "Thor," some fanboys furiously insisted it was wrong for a black man to play a Nordic god often described as "the whitest of the gods."

Fumed one fan in an online foum: "This PC crap has gone too far! Norse deities are not of an African ethnicity! ... It's the principle of the matter. It's about respecting the integrity of the source material, both comics and Norse mythologies."

Wrote another on TheEscapist.com: "At the risk of sounding like a bigot, I think this is nuts! Asgard is home to the Norse Gods!!! Not too many un-fair complexion types roaming the frigid waste lands up there. I wouldn't expect to see many Brad Pitt types walking around in the (first mainstream black superhero) Black Panther's Wakanda Palace!"

Replied another: "It's their right to be honest, I still refuse to watch the whitewashed Prince of Persia. Not that I'm racist, I... hate racists, it's just Hollywood (messing) with the natural order of things. Wouldn't be surprised if this is a planned publicity stunt."

Beyond that artistic defense, though, there is an even more basic reason black actors welcome colorblind casting: There is a ceiling on the amount of business black-themed movies can achieve, so the opportunities for black actors and actresses remain limited unless they can also claim parts in mainstream entertainment.  In the past decade, black actors have been losing ground. In the early 2000s, blacks played 15 percent of roles in film and TV. Today, it has fallen to 13 percent, according to Screen Actors Guild stats.more

Protest of SB 5 in Columbus Ohio and Doors To The State House Locked

Ohio Statehouse locked amid union protest COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) -- Democratic legislative leaders in Ohio said Tuesday that they were prepared to ask a judge to force officials to unlock the doors to the Statehouse as thousands of union protesters gathered for a hearing on a bill that would strip public employees of collective bargaining rights. Ohio Public Safety spokesman Joe Andrews says about 1,000 people have been allowed into the Rotunda and Atrium for a committee hearing on the bill and additional visitors without appointments were turned away in the interest of safety. The heightened security came after a long President's Day weekend during which unions across the state sought to mobilize their supporters against the bill and bring out big crowds. Visitors wanting to attend the hearing after doors were closed were directed to an off-site theater, where the meeting was to be simulcast.




The bill, sponsored by first-term state Sen. Shannon Jones, a Cincinnati-area Republican, would end collective bargaining rights for state workers and restrict teachers, firefighters, police, university employees and local workers in their bargaining abilities. Protect Our Protectors, a newly formed coalition of police and fire unions, urged the Ohio Senate to slow down action on the bill, which has been drawing crowds to the Statehouse for several weeks. Senate Democratic Leader Capri Cafaro sent a letter asking the chamber's Republican leaders to schedule more hearings before a vote that is expected as early as this week. Kasich, Jones and other supporters of the measure say it could help control spending and provide more flexibility for cash-strapped governments to negotiate with employees. Witnesses in favor of the bill have included local government leaders and schools superintendents who said public employee unions have too much power under the current system.

EDL vs UAF Hit The Streets Of Newcastle England[OUR VOICES WERE STRONGER]

Looks Like The EDL Voices Were Stronger!!!  What did you offer those Two Boys at the bottom a Soda Pop to hold the UAF signs?


Shops and pubs in the city closed as up to 3,000 EDL and Unite Against Fascism members took to the streets, chanting and waving banners.

 The two camps came face-to-face near the city train station before their planned marches, with UAF protesters chanting ‘Off our streets, Nazi scum’ in response to the EDL’s chorus of ‘You’re not English anymore’. They were kept apart by hundreds of officers from five forces.

Chief Supt Graham Smith said: ‘It has been a great success. It has passed without incident. Newcastle is a city for peace and the aim of today was to allow peaceful protests which we have demonstrated is possible through careful planning.’

A strong police presence will remain in the centre throughout the bank holiday weekend to prevent trouble.

One of the EDL leaders, Ronnie Burgess, a 31-year-old bodyguard from Liverpool, insisted it was not a racist group.  Wearing a steward number one fluorescent jacket, he said: ‘The message has been lost and we have got a bad press lately. We don’t deny we have racist members, but we police ourselves and we will find them out. We don’t want them.’

Weyman Bennett, joint national secretary of UAF, said he was pleased with the turn-out to oppose the EDL.  He said: ‘They have come to try to divide black and white, Muslim and Christian.
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Small riot breaks out at SB1070 protest

Shot in Phoenix, AZ minutes after Governor Jan Brewer signed SB1070 into law.



SB1070
Here is the AZ Senate fact sheet on SB1070 it not all bad as you can see.
http://www.newsnet14.com/2010/04/25/small-riot-breaks-out-at-sb1070-protest/