The Freedom Riders leave for Atlanta for Birmingham.

Jazz musician Sidney Bechet is born.

Motown singer Mary Wells is born.

Boxer Joe Louis is born.

By Smith Ghosh
Louisville, KY, pursues its socio-economic integration plan amidst parent opposition… A Boston coalition forms to oppose the Superintendent’s neighborhood schools plan… Detroit schools embrace various reforms… Civil rights advocates testify on the achievement gap in high schools… D.C.’s voucher program picks up surprising allies… Spellings, Booker and Klein weigh in on education policy developments

By Linda Jones
While anyone who is in the public eye and high positions of power should wear styles that are well-groomed and attractive, African-American women have an extra burden of deciding whether it would be wise to embrace hairstyles that are more in keeping with their ethnic roots.

By Imani Perry
God Says No is a sensitive, heart-wrenching, and insightful novel about a protagonist, Gary Gray, who experiences the conflicting pressures of his sexual orientation, his responsibilities as a son, father, and husband, and his religious beliefs.

By Smita Ghosh
Graduation from high school and college may lead to better overall health. A May 6 report from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Commission to Build a Healthier America found a strong and troubling correlation between educational attainment and health.

By Stacey Patton
All 36 of these schoolchildren, mostly black and a few Latinos, were killed in the streets of Chicago during the past nine months.  They were shot, stabbed, beaten with bats, kicked to death, burned and run over by cars.

By The Editors
Tributes to Mom are a Mother’s Day tradition. But we wanted to look at the other side of the coin. We sent out a call for mothers to write about the challenges, joys, heartbeats and lessons of life’s greatest journey.