"The White House and the Pentagon are increasing tensions with their troop escalations and the continued occupation of Iraq, and the drone planes being sent into Pakistan, which may be killing innocent people," says People's Organization for Progress State Chairman Lawrence Hamm.

VIDEO :: From Brave New Films, messages to President Obama about the troop escalation. more>

VIDEO :: Democracy Now reported on October 23rd that Raquel Rolnik, the UN Special Rapporteur on Adequate Housing will open an investigation into the U.S. housing crisis including issues of public housing, homelessness and foreclosures.

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At the time that the flag-draped coffins would be ceremoniously removed from a military plane, Pres. Barack Obama and senior advisors were scheduled to begin this week's debate on whether or not to send more troops to join the 21,000 the 44th president recently committed to Afghanistan.

VIDEO :: Radio talk show host, Thom Hartmann talks with Frontline correspondent Martin Smith about the war in Afghanistan and examines the question of whether or not this has become Obama's war.

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Interested in Sen. Barack Obama’s candidacy and what role racism may play in the upcoming election, the U.N.’s Special Rapporteur on Contemporary Forms of Racism Doudou Diene said, “It is important to see how the United States is handling its legacy of racism.” more>

It is unknown how long Gov. David Paterson will have his honeymoon period, not only with fellow politicians, but with the voters in the Empire State. And some are already asking: Now what will be the state’s excuse for not fixing the problems in the Black community? more>

According to Ibrahim Hooper, national communications director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), “the [NYPD] report paints with such a broad brush and casts suspicion on every Muslim in the city. Muslims are feeling kind of besieged.” more>

“While the city has to make some much-needed improvements to their strategic approach to cleaning catch basins, the reality is that our local government is fiscally unable to address the totality of the problem, which is shamefully decades old,” Councilman Leroy Comrie (D-27th) stressed. more>

A 13-year-old, self-described Nazi, painted a “four-inch” swastika on a 10-year-old African American’s desk. The 10-year-old’s mother claims her child’s school is doing nothing about it. more>

David Yassky’s campaign to represent Brooklyn’s traditionally Black 11th Congressional District has received funding from major real estate interests: activists wonder how diligent a white representative would be in addressing a largely Black district of renters, with that kind of backing. more>

Legal loopholes for insurers will affect 28,000 homes in the City’s five boroughs. more>

Josephine Tucker, a former Staten Island Urban League executive director, says the lack of support services in the borough is due to the public not seeing “the reality of what is happening in the streets.” more>