Valerie Richardson

Police kill more whites than blacks, but minority deaths generate more outrage: analysis

Nobel Prize-winning novelist Toni Morrison says she wants to see an officer shoot an unarmed white teenager in the back before agreeing that the "conversation about race" is over, but she almost certainly already has received her wish.

April 21, 2015

Fracking boom only creates jobs for women as prostitutes, maids: N.Y. activist

A key figure behind New York's statewide ban on hydraulic fracturing says that losing out on oil and gas jobs is no big deal because the industry only creates work for women as prostitutes and hotel maids.

April 20, 2015

Colorado gun advocates in firefight over raising magazine limits to 30 rounds

There is nothing that infuriates Colorado firearms owners more than the 15-round ammunition magazine limit enacted two years ago by Democrats, but a proposal to raise the limit to 30 rounds has split the state's gun rights movement.

April 20, 2015

Judge rules against Houston pastors’ challenge to transgender ‘bathroom bill’

A pastor-led coalition fell short in its bid to overturn a Houston transgender-rights ordinance after a judge ruled Friday that the group had failed to submit enough signatures to place a repeal measure on the ballot.

April 18, 2015

College sexual assault crackdown sparks effort to protect rights of accused

Dozens of state legislatures are rushing this year to crack down on college sexual assault, but only a few of them are also moving to protect the rights of the accused.

April 16, 2015

$FILE - In this March 25, 2014 file photo, a worker oils a pump during a hydraulic fracturing operation at a gas and oil well pad near Mead, Colo. The University of Colorado's governing Board of Regents could vote Thursday April 16, 2015 on whether to stop investing in coal, oil and gas. The regents are expected to discuss a proposal from a student-led group called Fossil Free CU. (AP Photo/Brennan Linsley, file)$

University of Colorado rejects fossil-fuel divestment calls

The fossil-fuel divestment movement, fresh off its biggest victory to date at Syracuse University, took a step backward Thursday as the University of Colorado Board of Regents rejected calls to sell off its holdings in oil, natural gas and coal.

April 16, 2015

‘Right to rest’ Colorado bill seeks to ban ‘discrimination’ against homeless

Homeless people would have a right to sleep in public places — and sue for damages if it's denied — under a “right to rest” bill under consideration in the Colorado legislature. Also known as the Homeless Bill of Rights, the Colorado legislation would give people “experiencing homelessness” the right to rest and eat or accept food in public spaces where food is not prohibited, as well as occupy a legally parked vehicle, “without discrimination.”

April 15, 2015

Obama bat protection decried as ploy to thwart oil and gas extraction, logging

A tiny brown bat known for its long ears is giving the creeps to those fearful of its potential to make jobs in the East and Midwest disappear.

April 15, 2015

Jerry Brown California drought water conservation rules spark Republican backlash

For California Gov. Jerry Brown to crack down on shower-taking and toilet-flushing to save precious quarts of water as millions of gallons flow into the Pacific Ocean doesn't make a lot of sense to Travis Allen.

April 13, 2015

Yucca Mountain nuclear dump gets another look

Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid hasn't left office yet, but one of his signature achievements — keeping the nation's radioactive nuclear waste from being stored in his home state of Nevada — is already showing signs of decay.

April 9, 2015

Gordon College backlash sparks discrimination accusations against gay advocates

No college has taken more flak after running afoul of the gay rights movement than Gordon College, but it turns out the small Christian institution in Wenham, Massachusetts, also has some supporters.

April 8, 2015

Food fight rages over Colorado panel’s split decision on gay-themed cakes

The battle over gay rights and religious freedom heated up a notch Monday as conservatives pointed to a Colorado panel’s ruling in favor of three bakeries that refused to bake anti-gay cakes as evidence of a double standard.

April 6, 2015

Video puts Muslim bakeries, florists in gay-rights spotlight

Muslim bakers and florists have flown under the media radar during the recent uproar over Christian-owned businesses and gay rights, but a hidden-camera video may have changed that.

April 5, 2015

Memories Pizza crowdfunding drive raises $842,387: ‘I’m so grateful’

A staggering $842,387 was raised in just two days for the owners of Memories Pizza in Walkerton, Indiana, after they came under attack for saying they would refuse for religious reasons to cater a hypothetical gay wedding.

April 4, 2015

Video on Muslim bakers points to double standard on gay weddings

It turns out some Muslim-owned bakeries are no more willing to create wedding cakes for same-sex ceremonies than their Christian counterparts.

April 3, 2015

Arkansas, Indiana religious freedom bill revisions spark more debates

Arkansas and Indiana lawmakers rushed Thursday to reconfigure their much-maligned religious freedom bills, striking compromises that mollified some critics but also touched off a new round of debate between religious conservatives and gay rights advocates.

April 2, 2015