Lionel McIntyre, a 59-year-old professor at Columbia University in New York, was arrested and charged with assault and harassment after allegedly punching  a white colleague in the eye during a heated argument about white privilege.

Carrie Davis, the alleged assault victim is also an employee of Columbia University.

From New York Times:

The encounter happened in Toast, a popular, noisy bar and restaurant on Broadway north of campus, where the chatter often runs to current events and politics. Professor McIntyre liked to engage fellow patrons on the subject of race, according to one regular customer, Daniel Morgan, who considers himself a close acquaintance of both Professor McIntyre and Ms.  Davis.

The incident has also become a cultural/political issue.  In response to reporting of the story in the New York Post, a blogger wrote that McIntyre should be charged with a hate crime.

While not condoning the punch, noted columnist and educator Boyce Watkins understands how McIntyre felt.

What do you think?  Should McIntyre be charged with a hate crime?

Wholesaler Pulls Controversial Black Doll from Shelves The wholesale giant Costco Corp. has apologized to those offended by an African-American doll who wore a headband that said “Lil’ Monkey” and was cuddling a stuffed monkey. The apology followed a complaint from a North Carolina customer about the Black “Cuddle with Me, Doll with Plush Monkey,” The Associated Press reports. Costco immediately snatched the doll, which also comes in Caucasian and Hispanic versions, from its shelves. “We are sensitive to any complaint that a product we carry would cause discomfort to any segment of our membership,” Costco CEO Jim Sinegal said in a statement. “As soon as it became clear to us that this toy item was offensive to some of our members, we decided to remove it from our warehouses. We don’t believe there is room for argument in matters of this type, even though it was an honest mistake, made while we were attempting to do the right thing.” Costco only carried the Black doll in its Northeast and Southeast regions, according to AP. The version of the doll that cuddles a panda is still carried by the wholesaler.

Atlanta Mayoral Wannabes in a Race About Race Make no mistake about it; Atlanta’s mayoral race is about race. On one side is the city’s top African-American candidate, Lisa Borders, president of the Atlanta City Council. On the other is frontrunner Mary Norwood, another councilwoman, who happens to be White. A few days ago – at least publicly – this race was about, crime, housing and city services, and who’s best suited lead the city after Shirley Franklin. That was before the local Black Leadership Forum sent a memo urging African-American voters to stand behind the Black candidate. “For the last 25 years Atlanta has represented the breakthrough for Black political empowerment in the South,” read the memo. “In order to defeat a Norwood (White) mayoral candidacy we have to get out now and work in a manner to defeat her without a runoff, and the key is a significant Black turnout.” Now, in this crucible of the Civil Rights Movement, where most of the 440,000 residents are African American, this race is all Black and White. Recent polls put Norwood at about 30 percent, 2 percentage points above Borders. Kasim Reed, a state senator, who is also running, has just a sliver of potential voters with 8 percent. Both of the African-American candidates were quick to distance themselves from the racial dynamic, saying that the next leader of Atlanta should not be chosen based on skin color. Said Borders, “We have had two Atlantas for far too long.” Reed echoed those sentiments, calling the memo racially charged and vitriolic,” adding that it “dishonors the legacies” of former mayors, both Black and White. “This campaign should be waged on the merits of each candidate, not the color of their skin,” Reed said.

Barack Obama’s election was a key moment in history, but we’re kidding ourselves if we think America is now blind to race, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said in a CBS “Sunday Morning” interview. “I think all Americans were quite taken with the fact that we were able, after the long history we’ve been through, that initial birth defect of slavery, that we’ve elected an African American,” Rice said in that interview. “And that’s enormously heartening for people in the country, but also people worldwide who still have trouble with differences.” Rice, who rose segregated Alabama to become the nation’s first Black woman secretary of State, said that the United States still has come a long way. ” I do think we’ve gotten to the place that we don’t see a person and say, ‘That’s a Black person, therefore they must be …’ And that’s an enormous step forward.” She said that Americans aren’t “united by nationality. …We’re not united by religion. You can be African-American or Mexican-American or Korean-American, and still be American. You can be Jewish or Presbyterian or Muslim or nothing at all, and still be American. But there are very few Americans who don’t really believe that it doesn’t matter where you came from, it matters where you’re going. And that’s what unites us, and that’s also what people worldwide find so remarkable.”

Food giant gets slapped with a $200 million racial lawsuit. Kenneth Thompson, a New York attorney and former federal prosecutor, has filed a $200 million racial discrimination lawsuit against Compass Group PLC, a London-based food company that is regarded as the largest in the world of its kind. The class-action suit was filed on behalf of 11 current and former employees working at The Comcast Center in Philadelphia, as well as others who are part of the 100,000 workers Compass employs in the United States. The suit claims that the plaintiffs were victims of multiple acts of racial discrimination by co-workers and company management.  It charges that Black workers were the target of racial slurs, were denied promotions and were forced to work only in the kitchen area, while White workers were brought in to work private events. “This lawsuit has been filed to make sure no other Black employees at Compass or anywhere else are ever called the “N”-word, gorilla, referred to as chimps or denied equal treatment when they are just trying to do their jobs,” Thompson said. “The Compass Group has clear and strong policies that embrace diversity, inclusion and respect in the workplace and prohibit any sort of behavior that is contrary to these values,” the defendant said in a statement issued from its Charlotte, N.C. headquarters, The Philadelphia Daily News reports. “These are hard-working Black people who want to be left alone to do their jobs,” Thompson said. “They are Americans who go out and work hard and just want to be treated right.”

Barkley blasts his alma mater on race. Former NBA star Charles Barkley, never one to mince words, is blasting his alma mater for hiring a new football coach he says was based on race and not athletic credentials. Auburn University, had a chance to hire Buffalo University’s Turner Gill, a Black man who led a losing team to its first championship, but opted for Iowa State’s Gene Chizik, a White man who eked out a 5-19 record in two seasons with the Cyclones. Granted, Chizik was the defensive coordinator at Auburn four years ago when the Tigers finished with a 13-0 record and ranked No. 2 in the country, but Barkley’s not satisfied. “I think race was the No. 1 factor,” said Barkley, who played basketball for three seasons at Auburn during the early 1980s. “You can say it’s not about race, but you can’t compare the two resumes and say [Chizik] deserved the job. Out of all the coaches they interviewed, Chizik probably had the worst resume.” Chizik replaces Auburn’s Tommy Tuberville, who won 85 games over the past decade but was forced to resign earlier this month. Gill, a former Nebraska quarterback, took over one of the country’s worst programs at Buffalo three years ago. He guided the Bulls to an 8-5 record and their first MAC championship this season, upsetting previously unbeaten Ball State 42-24 in the Dec. 5 conference championship game. Barkley has suggested that Gill’s White wife might have been a factor in Auburn’s decision to pass on the former quarterback.

Kings fire Theus. The Sacramento Kings have fired head coach Reggie Theus, the second Black head coach to lose his job in less than a week and the third of six since the season began. The Sacramento Bee reported Monday that Theus will be replaced, at least temporarily, by Kings assistant Kenny Natt. Kings also have fired assistant Chuck Person, according to ESPN. Under Theus, the Kings have stumbled to a 6-18 record this season. Last year, Theus left New Mexico State University, and led Sacramento to a surprising 39-43 record. That’s a far cry from their current position, last place in the Pacific Division. Theus is the sixth NBA coach to lose his job this season, joining Maurice Cheeks (Philadelphia), Randy Wittman (Minnesota), Sam Mitchell (Toronto), Eddie Jordan (Washington) and P.J. Carlesimo (Oklahoma City).

BET will hold on-air voter registration day. As the deadlines for voter registration in each state draw near, BET Networks is making an unprecedented, nationwide effort to encourage its audience to “STAND UP, SIGN UP, BE HEARD.” On Saturday, Sept. 27, BET Networks will host an on-air voter registration day from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. (ET/PT) aimed at getting people registered to vote. The special will re-air from 5-8 p.m. (ET/PT) Saturday. During this historic, three-hour “Stand Up, Sigh Up, Be Heard: The BET Voter Registration Day” special, the BET studio in New York City will serve as the headquarters for the event, featuring host Queen Latifah (The Secret Life of Bees), appearances by Jim Jones and Mary Mary, and an in-studio audience of 100 unregistered voters. In addition, BET will present live remote coverage from voter registration rallies taking place in cities in four key battleground states: Cleveland, Ohio; Detroit; Norfolk, Va.; and Philadelphia. Get more at BET.com/News.

Bolt, Powell, Gay to compete in 100. World record-holding Olympic gold medalist Usain Bolt faces off with sprinters Asafa Powell and Tyson Gay tonight at the Van Damme Memorial in Brussels, Belgium. Powell recently matched the second-fastest 100 sprint time ever, while Gay is a world champion in the event. The race, which will be Bolt’s last of the season, airs at 11 p.m. on the ESPN Classic network and again Sunday on ESPN2 at 3:30 p.m. “I’m definitely going out there to compete at my best,” Bolt says. The three runners are regarded as the fastest men of all time, with the 10 fastest times in the 100 on their collective resume. “This has never happened before,” meet organizer Wilfried Meert says of the race. Gay, however, says it’s possible that he’ll skip the race, depending on the state of his lingering hamstring injury.

Browns’ Braylon Edwards offers help to homeless youths. Cleveland Browns star wide receiver Braylon Edwards plans to score big, both on and off the field, for 4,000 homeless students in the community. Beginning at Sunday’s first Browns’ game of the season, the player says he’ll give $1,000 per each touchdown reception he scores to the Cleveland Metropolitan School District Project’s ACT (Action for Children and Youth in Transition) program. “All children deserve to receive a quality education,” says Edwards. “It’s vitally important that we, as adults and community leaders, recognize the need to support those who are hindered by circumstances of basic survival when they leave class each day.” A Pro Bowl receiver, Edwards caught 80 passes last season alone.

Actress denies pregnancy rumors. NBA All-star Tony Parker may be Eva Longoria Parker’s husband, but he’s not her babydaddy. The actress denies that her recent change in appearance has anything to do with a little Tony or Toni. “I’m not pregnant. I’m just fat,” she says. “I gained five pounds over the summer, so instead of a size zero, I’m a size one.” Hopefully, Longoria Parker will come clean whenever it’s time to start calling her favorite point guard “papa.”

Pamela On Politics: Republicans appeared to have disserted the platform of family values for the 2008 presidential race, and no doubt it’s because their nominee’s checkered record might not stand up to the scrutiny of his challenger. Read more at Pamela On Politics.

Lawmaker: Bill Clinton’s faltering image in Black society is his own fault.

Rep. Jim Clyburn, the third-highest-ranking member of Congress and a member of the Black Caucus, said that former President Bill Clinton ought to look in the mirror if he wants to see who’s responsible for his falling out with Black America. Speaking to ABC News last week, Clinton said that the South Carolina Democrat was once a friend of his, but that he “was not Hillary’s supporter. Never. Not ever. Not for a day.” Find out what else he said and how Clyburn responded at BET.com/News.