NJ Police looking for 16-year-old girl missing for 3 weeks

Authorities are trying to find a 16-year-old Perth Amboy NJ girl who has been missing for three weeks.

Sigrid Beltre was last seen at her home in the city on Dec. 12, Perth Amboy police said in a statement.

She is thought to be with her boyfriend in Camden, but police don’t know his name.

The 5-foot-7, 110-pound teen has black hair and brown eyes. She was wearing a white sweater with a hood, blue jeans and red sneakers. Police didn’t immediately provide a photo of Beltre.

Anyone with information about Beltre’s whereabouts is asked to call police at Perth Amboy police at 732-442-4400 or call 911.

[SOURCE: NJ.COM]

17 African-American women sworn in as judges in Harris County Texas

A new year brought the swearing-in of newly elected officials in Harris County, Texas, and among them were 17 black female judges.

The group of women, who were part of a local democratic campaign called "Black Girl Magic Texas," first made history -- and headlines -- when they won their respective midterm elections in November. Together, they make up what is believed to be the largest group of black female judges to be elected at the same time in Harris County history.

Nineteen African-American women in total will be serving on the county's bench in 2019. The women have more than 200 years worth of experience between them all.

Harris County, which includes Houston, is the largest county in the state. According to the most recent census data, 43% of people in Harris County are Hispanic, and nearly 20% of the county's residents identify as African-American.

[SOURCE: CNN]

Seattle-Area Post Office Renamed to Honor Jimi Hendrix

Renton, Washington is honoring one of its late legends with one of the least rock-n-roll buildings: a post office. The Seattle suburb is naming a post office after Jimi Hendrix.

The post office in Renton is down the street from where Hendrix was raised and only a few blocks from where he was buried. The decision to rename the Renton Highlands Post Office to the James Marshall “Jimi” Hendrix Post Office came after a bill to change the name passed unanimously.

"I am honored to join in paying tribute to rock and roll icon and Seattle native Jimi Hendrix with the renaming of the Renton Highlands Post Office as the James Marshall ‘Jimi Hendrix Post Office Building,” U.S. House of Representatives member Adam Smith said in a statement. “This designation will further celebrate Hendrix’s deep connection to the Puget Sound region and help ensure that his creative legacy will be remembered by our community and inspire future generations.”

The Seattle Times notes that the move to change the name of the post office was supported by the Northwest African American Museum's director LaNesha DeBardelaben.

“His legendary artistic genius chartered new territory within world music,” DeBardelaben said in a statement supporting the name-changing bill. “While his reach was international in scope, his roots trace back to Seattle and we are proud to richly celebrate his legacy as part of his hometown community.”

[SOURCE: YAHOO]

Letitia James sworn in as New York Attorney General

The state of New York has a new attorney general and she is, literally, like no one who has ever held the office before.

Democrat Letitia James was sworn in as New York's 67th Attorney General late Monday in a ceremony at the state capitol in Albany. James, 60, is the state's first black attorney general and the first woman ever elected to that state-wide office.

In a statement, James said it was the highest honor to officially begin her time as New York's attorney general and that she "will never waiver" on upholding the promise to "use the rule of law to protect the rights and advance the interest of all New Yorkers." She's slated to participate in an inauguration ceremony later in the day on Jan. 1, according to her office.

James, who is a long-time New York City politician, replaces Democrat Barbara Underwood, who was appointed to the post when former New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman resigned last year after multiple women came forward to accuse him of physical and verbal abuse.

[SOURCE: NPR]

Four Black NFL Coaches Fired on Black Monday, Only Two Remain

The day after the NFL season is a time where teams will be reevaluating their season and firing their head coaches, but many people are concerned that “Black Monday” has severely impacted some of the black coaches in the league.

There have been eight head coaches from different NFL teams that have been fired so far, but four of those coaches are black.

Here is a list of some of the coaches that have been fired so far, according to Sports Illustrated:

Marvin Lewis: The Cincinnati Bengals coach told his staff that he had been fired.

Vance Joseph: The Denver Broncos let go of their head coach on Monday after going 6-10 this season.

Steven Wilks: The Arizona Cardinals have fired coach Wilks after a rough season of going 3-13.

Todd Bowles: New York Jets owner Woody Johnson will look for another coach after firing Bowles on Monday.

Hue Jackson, the former Cleveland Browns coach was fired in October

Coaches losing their jobs at the conclusion of the regular season is routine and expected, as they fall victim to the merciless pressure from owners and fans to succeed year after year. In addition to the five black coaches fired, three white coaches were let go this season, in Green Bay, Tampa Bay and Miami. But with the N.F.L. under pressure to increase the percentage of minority coaches and executives, the makeup of the latest class of jettisoned coaches was especially startling.

The two black head coaches still in the N.F.L. are Anthony Lynn of the Los Angeles Chargers (12-4), who are headed to a wild-card playoff game Sunday against the Baltimore Ravens, and Mike Tomlin of the Pittsburgh Steelers (9-6-1).

With eight coaching vacancies, it is possible that some of the recently dismissed coaches will be leading candidates for those openings; their experience and certain attributes may be a better fit with other teams. Jackson, for example, was on Lewis’s coaching staff in Cincinnati. And there are other minority candidates, like the Kansas City offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy and Stanford Coach David Shaw, whose names have popped up in coaching discussions.

But the next several weeks will unquestionably heighten the scrutiny on the N.F.L.’s hiring practices and how reliably, or willingly, the Rooney Rule will be employed.

Gulliver would not admit something that many onlookers and people around the N.F.L. have long suspected: that teams have been doing only the bare minimum to comply with, or sidestepping, the Rooney Rule. After all, if the rule was working as intended, and the percentage of minority coaches and executives was growing steadily, why would the rule need to be strengthened?

Under the new regulations enacted a few weeks ago, when teams are looking to fill positions, they must interview at least one minority candidate from a list kept by the league’s Career Development Advisory Panel, or a minority candidate not currently working with a team. Teams also must keep detailed records of who they interview, which is perhaps a response to criticism from minority candidates who say they are routinely called, but not formally interviewed, by teams trying to do the least possible to fulfill their obligations. After it was first established, the Rooney Rule appeared to be having an impact. By 2011, eight N.F.L. teams had coaches of color, the most to that point, or since.

[SOURCE: NYTIMES]