(Photo: AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

In today’s news, President Obama offered a highly personal speech about the responsibility of men at a commencement address at Morehouse College; a young African-American film director is gaining a following at the Cannes Film Festival; and the NAACP’s protests of changes in North Carolina laws will continue this week.

Obama gets personal about race and manhood at Morehouse. [Washington Post]

Young African-American director creates buzz at Cannes. [France 24]

NAACP protests at North Carolina General Assembly over voting rights will continue. [WSOC-TV]

Train derailments in Connecticut could affect travel all week. [Wall Street Journal]

Despite troubles, Obama’s poll ratings remain steady. [Washington Times]

Ivory Coast massacre suspect held in custody. [BBC]

Liberian President Johnson Sirleaf defends record on good governance. [Reuters]

Former Congressman Allen West joins Fox News. [BET]

Two FBI agents killed in training accident. [ABC]

One winning ticket for $590.5 million Powerball sold in Florida. [Chicago Tribune]

Woman kicked off airplane for singing Whitney Houston song. [Jet]

(Photo: Darren McCollester/Getty Images)

In today’s news, the suspect in the Boston Marathon bombing has been charged and could face the death penalty; Republican leaders seem to be split on immigration reform after the Boston explosions; and President Obama and the first lady will attend a memorial for victims of explosion at a Texas plant.

Boston bombing suspect is charged, could face death penalty. [NYTimes]

Republican leaders split on immigration reform after Boston bombing. [LATimes]

President and first lady to attend memorial for Texas plant victims. [Dallas Business Journal]

Home sales dropped in March. [Washington Post]

More female service members reporting sexual abuse. [Lancaster Eagle Gazette]

Graduation rates have increased among students at Black colleges. [BET]

Ghana confiscates 110 million faulty condoms made in China. [BBC]

London remembers the death of Stephen Lawrence. [BET]

TSA delays plan to allow small knives on planes. [Bay News]

Lawyers argue that Atlanta school leader did not scheme to inflate scores. [AJC.com]

(Photo: Scott Olson/Getty Images)

In today’s top news, Michelle Obama went home  to Chicago to discuss gun violence; Ben Carson has withdrawn as Johns Hopkins Medical school’s commencement speaker; and Anthony Weiner hints that he may run for mayor of New York.

Michelle Obama traveled to her hometown of Chicago to give an emotional speech about gun violence and the need for youth programs. [BET]

South Korea, U.S. remain on edge over North Korea missile crisis. [Reuters]

Ben Carson, the African-American pediatric neurosurgeon, has withdrawn as commencement speaker at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine after negative reaction to derogatory comments he made about marriage equality. [The Washington Post]

Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg launches immigration lobby group. [The Guardian]

Django Unchained opening cancelled in China. [BBC]

After resigning from Congress in an internet sex scandal, Anthony Weiner is hinting that he is interested in running for mayor of New York City. [NYTimes]

Members of the Congressional Black Caucus are displeased by the prospect of President Obama’s budget plans calling for reductions in entitlement programs. [BET]

Duke student wrote Kenya’s President Uhuru Muigai Kenyatta’s victory speech. [NYAmsterdamNews]

Officials in Major League Baseball are looking for ways to increase the participation of African-American fans, whose support has sunk to a record low. [USAToday]

2,000 invited to Margaret Thatcher funeral, but not Argentina’s president. [Yahoo News]

A year after George Zimmerman was arrested for the shooting death of Trayvon Martin, Zimmerman’s mother has written a letter of thanks to supporters of her son. [WESH.com]

The Midwest is being hit hard by storms, with tornadoes creating hazardous conditions in the St. Louis area. [USAToday]

(Photo: Al Bello/Getty Images)

In today’s top news, Rutgers University fired head basketball coach Mike Rice, Nelson Mandela is making progress in seventh day at hospital and former superintendent of Atlanta Public Schools reported to jail and was released on bond in cheating scandal.

Rutgers University fired head basketball coach Mike Rice after ESPN broadcast a video showing him physically and verbally abusing players. [CNN]

Nelson Mandela is making progress as he spends the seventh day at the hospital. [BET]

The former superintendent of Atlanta Public Schools reported to jail on Tuesday for cheating scandal. She was released on bond on Wednesday morning. [CNN]

President Obama will attend this month’s dedication of the George W. Bush presidential library in Dallas. [USA Today]

Rev. Al Sharpton kicks off the National Action Network convention in New York City. [BET]

D.C. Councilmember Marion Barry hospitalized after experiencing a drop in blood sugar. [AP]

President Obama and Michelle Obama were moved after viewing 42, a movie about Jackie Robinson. [AP]

Oregon lawmakers are considering a bill that will regulate the production, processing and sale of marijuana. [USA Today]

North Carolina lawmakers introduced a bill declaring that the state has the power to establish an official religion. [NBCNews]

Four sisters aged between 19 and 24 in north India received burns after two men on motorbike splashed them with acid. [Al Jazeera]

In today’s top news, all of Urban Prep Academy’s senior class is college-bound for the fourth year, Louisville’s Kevin Ware is recovering from surgery after a gruesome leg injury and the White House is expecting 35,000 people at the 135th Easter Egg Roll.

Urban Prep Academy, an all-Black male charter school in Chicago, is sending all of its students to college for the fourth year. [Chicago Sun Times]

Louisville’s Kevin Ware is recovering from surgery after a gruesome leg injury in last night’s game against Duke. [ABCNews]

A crowd of 35,000 is expected to show up to the White House lawn for the 135th Easter Egg Roll. [NBC Washington]

Prosecutors say they will seek the death penalty for James Holmes, who was accused in last year’s movie theater massacre in Colorado. [Washington Post]

Philip Banks III, an African-American, is the new highest-ranking uniformed officer in the NYPD. [The Grio]

The Supreme Court is weighing in on race as they address the affirmative action and voting rights cases. [AP]

Conservatives attack Google for using its homepage to celebrate Cesar Chavez’s birthday and not Easter. [Politico]

Elwin Wilson, a former KKK supporter who apologized for years of violent racism toward Blacks, has died at 76. [AP]

The number of female tourists arriving to India has dropped by 35 percent in the past three months since the fatal Delhi rape. [The Guardian]

An Afghan teenager killed an American soldier by stabbing him in the neck while he played with a group of local children. [USA Today]

(Photo: Allison Joyce/Getty Images)

In today’s top news, a third protest has erupted in Brooklyn over the police killing of Kimani Gray; First Lady Michella Obama will cover Vogue’s April issue; and Chicago Bulls star Derrick Rose has offered to pay for the funeral of Jonylah Watkins, an infant who was shot and killed in Chicago.

A third protest erupted Wednesday night in Brooklyn, New York, where police killed Kimani Gray. [BET]

First Lady Michelle Obama will cover the April issue of Vogue magazine. [BET]

Chicago Bulls superstar Derrick Rose has offered to pay for the funeral of Jonylah Watkins, a 6-month-old that was shot and killed in Chicago. [NBC Chicago]

The White House said Tuesday that all criticism of the level of diversity in President Obama’s second-term cabinet should be held until he completes it. [Black Voices]

Lawyers suing the New York Police Department for its stop-and-frisk policy are calling it the “the trial of the century.” [Black Voices]

Los Angeles Lakers Kobe Bryant will be out “indefinitely” after spraining his left ankle. [AP]

A New York woman plummets to her death from an 8th floor apartment with her baby, who survives. [Huffington Post]

Carnival Cruise Lines will fly their passengers on one of its cruises back to Florida after the ship’s generator failed while docked in the Caribbean. [AP]

Scientists are saying that embalming the body of late Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez will be difficult. [CNN]

Xi Jinping was named China’s president Thursday by the country’s parliament. [Al Jazeera]

(Photo: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

In today’s top news, the Supreme Court will hear arguments in a case challenging the 1965 Voting Rights Act, a Florida task force defends the “Stand Your Ground” law and The Onion is under fire for a vulgar tweet about Oscar nominee Quvenzhané Wallis.

The Supreme Court will hear arguments Wednesday from an Alabama town that is challenging a provision in the 1965 Voting Rights Act.  [AP]

A Florida task force says that the “Stand Your Ground” law should not be overturned. [Miami Herald]

The Onion is under fire for a vulgar tweet about Oscar nominee Quvenzhané Wallis. [The Grio]

Django Unchained takes Best Original Screenplay and Michelle Obama presents the award for Best Picture at the Oscars. [BET]

Louis Farrakhan laid out an action plan to improve economic disparities for African-Americans. [AP]

Kim Kardashian and Kanye West are expecting a baby girl. [BET]

MC Hammer says his weekend arrest in California was the result of racial profiling. [BET]

Scotland’s Roman Catholic archbishop resigned over abuse allegations. [CNN]

Cuban President Raul Castro says he will leave office in 2018. [CNN]

Park Geun-hye has become South Korea’s first female president. [New York Times]

In today’s top news, President Obama championed diversity, civil rights in his inaugural speech, Michelle Obama wore a stunning red Jason Wu gown to the inaugural balls and the president is expected to sign a three-month debt ceiling extension.

President Obama championed diversity, civil rights in his inaugural speech. [BET]

Michelle Obama wore a stunning red Jason Wu gown to the inaugural balls. [CBSNews]

The president is expected to sign a three-month debt ceiling extension. [USATODAY]

The nation’s high school graduation rate is the highest since 1976. [AP]

Teen rapper Chief Keef is being sued for child support. [BET]

Justin Timberlake’s new single “Suit & Tie” breaks Billboard records. [BET]

Jamie Foxx calls Spike Lee’s criticism of Quentin Tarantino “irresponsible.” [BET]

An advocacy group says fake ingredients in food are on the rise. [GMA]

Fruitvale, a film about police brutality victim Oscar Grant, was well received at Sundance Film Festival. [Grio]

Former Liberian leader Charles Taylor is appealing his war-crimes conviction. [BBC]

The U.S. has started transporting French troops and weapons to Mali. [Reuters]

(Photo: Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)

In today’s top news, nationwide jobless claims fall to lowest levels in four years, a smaller crowd is expected in Washington, D.C. for President Obama’s second inauguration ceremony and Newtown residents are asking for a temporary halt of donations after being overwhelmed by gifts.

Nationwide jobless claims fall to lowest levels in four years. [Reuters]

A smaller crowd is expected in Washington, D.C., for President Obama’s second inauguration ceremony. [BET]

Newtown residents are asking for a temporary halt of donations after being overwhelmed by gifts. [CNN]

President Obama and Michelle Obama release yearly Kwanzaa message. [WhiteHouse]

Several Black teachers are suing the Chicago Public School system alleging its turnaround program is discriminatory. [CBSChicago]

The Virginia Historical Society has launched a searchable database of slave names. [Progress-Index]

Janet Jackson is engaged to billionaire Wissam al Mana. [BET]

Brandy is engaged to music mogul Ryan Press. [BET]

Nelson Mandela is doing well after being released from the hospital but has not “fully recovered” yet. [Reuters]

South African President Jacob Zuma defended his comment that caring for pets is “white culture” by saying the statement was an attempt to “decolonize the African mind.” [SAPA]

In today’s top news, Michelle Obama writes an open letter to Newtown, church bells in Newtown chimes 26 times in honor of the Sandy Hook shooting victims, and Fat Joe pleads guilty to tax evasion.

Michelle Obama writes an open letter to Newtown. [BET]

Church bells in Newtown chimes 26 times in honor of the Sandy Hook shooting victims. [NBCNews]

Fat Joe pleads guilty to tax evasion. [BET]

Sarah Palin bashed President Obama’s TIME Person of the Year win. [CNN]

The CDC reports that new infections of HIV among African-American women have declined. [Chicago Sun-Times]

Singer Frank Ocean is facing a $1 million lawsuit from his estranged father. [BET]

Katt Williams was detained in front of a Subway restaurant. [TMZ]

Cuba Gooding Jr., Vanessa Williams and Cicely Tyson will star in the Broadway play “The Trip to Bountiful.” [Grio]

ESPN suspends host Rob Parker for RGIII comments. [Grio]

Archbishop Desmond Tutu likens Uganda’s anti-gay laws to apartheid. [Sapa-AFP]

Humanitarian groups warn that a Mali intervention will harm civilians. [VOA]