According to an article appearing January 21st in the Shreveport Times, no Louisiana police departments or sheriff’s office report information about traffic stops to the state even though they are required by law to do that since the 2001 law allows them to escape the requirement if they have anti-racial profiling policies.  Bath, Alison. “State Law Requiring Reporting of Traffic Stop Data Has No Teeth.” Shreveport Times, January 21, 2008.  The information, if reported, would be helpful in determining if officers were stopping drivers based solely on the driver’s race.  Louisiana is one of 27 states that have not outlawed racial profiling.

A former chief prosecutor in the Dallas County District Attorney’s office filed a federal discrimination lawsuit against the District Attorney, claiming he was fired because he is white.  See, Grabell, Michael, “Ex-Prosecutor Sues DA, Claims Discrimination, “The Dallas Morning News, www.dallasnews.com, November 6, 2007.  The plaintiffs who oversaw the organized crime unit, was one of ten high level prosecutors who were fired during a shake-up that, according to the article, resulted in more diversity in the office.  Id. Counsel for the plaintiff was quoted in the article as follows:

 All of these individuals were all replaced by African-Americans with less experience than they had.

 Id. The DA contends that the firing occurred because of philosophical differences. Id.

The New York Post reported that Donald Trump had been sued in an age discrimination lawsuit brought by a New Hampshire man who claims he was brushed aside as a potential contestant on “The Apprentice” TV show after interviewing for a slot in 2005 because, at 49, he was considered too old.  See, Field, Chris, “Donald Is Sued for Ages of Sin,” New York Post, www.nypost.com, January 8, 2007.  The lawsuit which sought class action status, was filed in a Massachusetts federal court.

A July 19, 2007 Houston Chronicle article reports that the Former Chairman of the Roger Williams University Board requested his name be removed from Rhode Island’s only law school amid outrage over his use of the N-word while discussing the difficulty of finding minorities to serve on the University’s board.  See, Associated Press, “Donor Wants His Name Off School,” Houston Chronicle, July 19, 2007, p. A8.

According to an article in the San Francisco Chronicle:

Since a Noose hanging in a schoolyard triggered a civil rights firestorm this summer in Jena, La., there’s been a resurgence of nooses across the United States.

See, Fulbright, Leslie. “Resurgence of Nooses Reminds African Americans of Past Horrors.” San Francisco Chronicle, October 29, 2007, p. A-1.  After the incident in Louisiana, nooses were found elsewhere in a post office, in a hospital, on a professor’s door, in a Coast Guard cadet’s bag, in a fire station and on a bronze sculpture of a deceased rapper, Tupac Shakur. Id. The fear and anger the noose incites among African Americans are real. Id. The article states, in part, as follows:

Between 1882 and 1968 there were a documented 4,743 lynchings in the United States, and most victims were usually beaten and hanged, often in public places.  White families would watch and take photos.  No one was ever convicted of murder in connection with any of the deaths.

 Id. In 2005, the most recent statistics available from the FBI, there were 3,919 racial hate crimes reported nationwide, and, of these reported, more than 67% - 2,630 – were against black people.  Id. A VC Davis professor stated as follows:

 There is a reason for selecting the noose, and perhaps the reason is that if you get caught you can say it was a prank.

 Id. However, lynching is a history taken very seriously by blacks and can be illegal under federal law. Id.