01-19-2025  3:08 pm   •   PDX and SEA Weather

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NORTHWEST NEWS

St. Andrew Parish to Honor Winners of 2025 Martin Luther King Jr. Service Awards  

St. Andrew Catholic Church is awarding its annual Martin Luther King Jr. Awards to people whose service embodies the values of Dr. King, who used nonviolence, civil disobedience and Christian teaching to advance the cause of civil rights in America

POIC and Community Partners Raise Nearly $3 Million to Make Downtown Safer

POIC opened a downtown safety and resource center last fall.

Seattle Griot Project Secures Permanent Home While Putting Exhibits In Virtual Reality

The former Sanctuary at Admiral in central Seattle will house the Washington State Black Legacy Institute.

Janelle Bynum Becomes First Black Member Of Congress For Oregon

The former state representative for Clackamas County takes oath in D.C. and joins historic Congressional Black Caucus.

NEWS BRIEFS

Biden Lauds STEM Award Winners

President Joe Biden has awarded STEM NOLA the prestigious Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics, and Engineering...

MLK Day Events 2025

The annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day is a time that we celebrate, commemorate and honor the life, legacy and impact of Dr. Martin...

Gov. Kotek Delivers 2025 State of the State Address

“This new year, 2025, carries a clear charge for all of us: to summon our unyielding spirit of resilience, to tackle problems with...

North Portland Library to Reopen in February

Grand opening celebration begins February 8 with ribbon cutting, cultural events, food and fun ...

Joint Center Mourns the Passing of President Jimmy Carter

"We will continue to honor President Carter’s unwavering commitment to public service and his lifelong dedication to racial,...

On eve of CFP title game, some college players ask, What would it look like to be employees?

ATLANTA (AP) — The way Kardell Thomas sees things, it wasn't so much the schools as it was the system that let him down. When thinking about the pros and cons of college players forming a union as they navigate their way through an industry that's changing by the day, the story of...

Oregon man who kidnapped a Seattle woman and kept her in a makeshift cell gets life sentence

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — An Oregon man has been sentenced to life in federal prison after being convicted of kidnapping and sexually assaulting two women in separate instances, including locking one in a cinder block cell. Negasi Zuberi, 31, was sentenced Friday in federal court in...

Auburn hosts Missouri in conference showdown

Missouri Tigers (11-9, 0-5 SEC) at Auburn Tigers (9-9, 0-5 SEC) Auburn, Alabama; Sunday, 3 p.m. EST BOTTOM LINE: SEC foes Auburn and Missouri will play on Sunday. The Auburn Tigers have gone 5-4 at home. Auburn is fourth in the SEC in team defense, allowing...

No. 13 Oklahoma visits No. 2 South Carolina following Verhulst's 38-point game

Oklahoma Sooners (15-3, 3-2 SEC) at South Carolina Gamecocks (17-1, 5-0 SEC) Columbia, South Carolina; Sunday, 3 p.m. EST BOTTOM LINE: No. 13 Oklahoma plays No. 2 South Carolina after Payton Verhulst scored 38 points in Oklahoma's 80-63 victory against the Missouri...

OPINION

As Dr. King Once Asked, Where Do We Go From Here?

“Let us be dissatisfied until America will no longer have high blood pressure of creeds and an anemia of deeds. Let us be dissatisfied until the tragic walls that separate the outer city of wealth and comfort from the inner city of poverty and despair shall...

A Day Without Child Care

On May 16, we will be closing our childcare centers for a day — signaling a crisis that could soon sweep across North Carolina, dismantling the very backbone of our economy ...

I Upended My Life to Take Care of Mama.

It was one of the best decisions I ever made. ...

Among the Powerful Voices We Lost in 2024, Louis Gossett, Jr.’s Echoes Loudly

December is the customary month of remembrance. A time of year we take stock; a moment on the calendar when we pause to reflect on the giants we have lost. ...

AFRICAN AMERICANS IN THE NEWS

Biden urges Americans to 'keep the faith' as he spends final full day as president in South Carolina

NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) — Joe Biden spent his final full day as president Sunday in South Carolina, urging Americans to “keep the faith in a better day to come” and reflecting on the influence of both the civil rights movement and the state itself in his political trajectory. ...

Appeals court overturns ex-49er Dana Stubblefield's rape conviction

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A California appeals court has overturned the rape conviction of former San Francisco 49er Dana Stubblefield after determining prosecutors made racially discriminatory statements during the Black man's trial. The retired football player was sentenced to 15 years...

Biden pardons the late Black nationalist Marcus Garvey as well as 4 others and commutes 2 sentences

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden on Sunday posthumously pardoned Black nationalist Marcus Garvey, who influenced Malcolm X and other civil rights leaders and was convicted of mail fraud in the 1920s. Also receiving pardons were a top Virginia lawmaker and advocates for immigrant rights,...

ENTERTAINMENT

Former WWE CEO Vince McMahon reaches deal with SEC over undisclosed settlement agreements

The Securities and Exchange Commission says that it has settled charges against former WWE CEO Vince McMahon over his failure to disclose to the sports entertainment company's board and others that he signed two settlement agreements worth .5 million with two women in order for them not to...

Life of da party: Snoop Dogg to host NFL Honors, which celebrates highs of the 2024 season

NEW YORK (AP) — Grab a gin and juice, Snoop Dogg is hosting the next episode of NFL Honors. He’s sure to be the life of da party. Snoop Dogg will take center stage at the Saenger Theater in New Orleans for the primetime awards show that recognizes the NFL’s best...

Book Review: Robert Crais spins the tale of a hardboiled private eye who uncovers a conspiracy

Traci Beller was 13 when her father — co-owner of a heating and air conditioning company — went out on some service calls and never returned home. The police, who found no trace of him, concluded that he had simply abandoned his family. The family then turned to Jessica Byers, a...

U.S. & WORLD NEWS

US rejects Venezuelan President Maduro's reelection, but keeps financial lifeline for his government

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Things seemed to be looking up for Venezuela in 2022. Following years of authoritarian...

Missouri lawmakers are going after voter-approved abortion rights. Voters will likely reelect them

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Voters in Missouri last election approved a constitutional amendment that promised to...

Civil rights leaders and King family mark MLK Day as a special call to action as Trump takes office

WASHINGTON (AP) — When President-elect Donald Trump is sworn in as president of the United States inside the...

How the deal to pause the Israel-Hamas war could unfold

The Gaza ceasefire and hostage release agreemen t is expected to take effect as soon as Sunday. But the most...

Journalists in Haiti demand justice as they bury a second colleague killed by gangs

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — The young boy wore a suit and bow tie to his stepfather’s funeral on Saturday,...

Warm weather threatens Epiphany ice water plunges for Russia's Orthodox Christians

MOSCOW (AP) — Thousands of Russians celebrating the Orthodox Christian feast day of Epiphany, where worshippers...

Cristina Silva the Associated Press

LAS VEGAS (AP) -- Her hips don't lie and neither do her massive album sales.

International pop star Shakira was honored as the 2011 Latin Recording Academy Person of the Year in Las Vegas Wednesday night during a star-studded tribute dinner that saw the Colombian singer share an intimate moment with her father and close the night in a burst of song dedicated to her hometown of Barranquilla.

A parade of Latin music's biggest stars paid homage to the 34-year-old "Hips Don't Lie" singer during the concert at the Mandalay Bay hotel-casino on the Las Vegas Strip. They performed hits such as "La Tortura" and "Estoy Aqui" in a two-hour salute to a career that has spanned decades and continents.

Shakira gleefully took in the performances, occasionally bouncing in her chair to show her appreciation, or standing up to dance amid a maze of banquet tables. After each song, Shakira climbed on stage and embraced the performers that included Venezuelan singer Franco De Vita, Mexican rocker Alejandra Guzman and salsa legend Gilberto Santa Rosa.

But it was a performance from her father, William Mebarak, that marked the emotional crescendo of the night. Mebarak, who sat next to Shakira for most of the show, took to the stage mid-way through the celebration and sang "Mi Nina Bonita" to his daughter. The song, which translates to "My Pretty Girl," is a staple father-daughter tribute often heard at Hispanic weddings and birthday parties.

As Mebarak sang, pictures of the father and daughter flooded a screen hanging along the back of the stage. Shakira, visibly moved, buried her face in a tissue.

"Thank you, daddy, for that song," she told him later in Spanish.

Puerto Rican crooner Marc Anthony presented Shakira with a crystal plaque to mark the honor. He called her a close friend and a humanitarian. Shakira's Pies Descalzos Foundation has raised millions of dollars to fight poverty and educate the poor.

"We are in the presence of one of the most special human beings, one of the most talented human beings you will ever meet," Anthony said.

Shakira, who has sold more than 60 million albums in Spanish and English, is the youngest person to receive the Latin Recording Academy's most prestigious award. Previous honorees include Carlos Santana, Gloria Estefan and Ricky Martin.

"I'll carry this night with me always," she said in Spanish after receiving the award. "It's an honor that I am not sure I deserve, but you've made me very happy."

She ended the night with a performance of "En Barranquilla me Quedo," an opus celebrating her hometown that was originally performed by the late Colombian salsa star Joe Arroyo. During the performance, Shakira lifted up the skirt of her sea foam-colored ball gown, revealing her twisting feet as she salsa danced across the stage. It was the only time the singer famous for her rotating hips busted a move on stage.

The celebration came amid a red-letter week for Shakira, who was honored with her own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in Los Angeles Tuesday. She is also up for three awards, including album of the year, at the 12th Annual Latin Grammy Awards Thursday night in Las Vegas.

Shakira, who recently ended an international tour for her "Sale el Sol" album, said it has been a "year of passion."

"I've been able to harvest the efforts of the past," she told The Associated Press.

Shakira, whose full name is Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll, was only 14 when she released her first album, "Magia." She rose to fame in Latin America and Spain in 1995 with the release "Pies Descalzos" and the 1998 release of her Spanish rock album "Donde Estan los Ladrones?"

She made her name in the English-language world with the hit single "Whenever, Whereever" in 2001, selling more than 13 million copies worldwide of the album "Laundry Service."

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