‘The game needs us’: MLB has diversity problem and no easy solution
PHOENIX – With no United States-born Black baseball players featured in the 2022 World Series between the Houston Astros and Philadelphia Phillies, many felt as though baseball had taken a step away from building a diverse game. The next generation of players are growing within the youth community and the MLB DREAM Series in Tempe proved that the game still has more to learn.
‘Breaking the chain’: How George Floyd Square sparks change
MINNEAPOLIS – The aunt of George Floyd, along with others, is bringing the Minneapolis community together to spread the message of change through George Floyd Square. After Floyd’s 2020 murder at the hands of police, Angela Harrelson has found a new meaning to her life.
Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs creates independent prison oversight commission
PHOENIX - Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs signed her sixth executive order Wednesday, establishing an independent prison oversight commission to improve the transparency and accountability of Arizona’s corrections system.
‘We were always sovereign’: Hia-Ced O’odham seek federal recognition as a tribe
PHOENIX – In Arizona, 22 federally recognized tribes inhabit nearly every region of the state, but the Hia-Ced O’odham community isn’t one of them. Some members are working to change that, and others believe it may be too difficult to achieve.
Jury convicts Arizona Oath Keeper of seditious conspiracy in Jan. 6 attack
WASHINGTON - An Arizona man charged with seditious conspiracy in the Jan. 6 insurrection thought he was supporting peaceful protesters, his attorney argued Wednesday, but prosecutors said Edward Vallejo was played an essential role in the Oath Keepers' attack on the Capitol.
Representation on police force builds trust with LGBTQ people
Greg Miraglia, founder of Out to Protect, said training, recruitment and officer representation on a police force are among the ways to build trust with LGBTQ community people.
Arizona led nation for rise in homeless youth last year, HUD report says
WASHINGTON - Arizona saw the largest increase in the number of homeless youth in the nation last year, at a time when other large states were seeing those numbers decline, according to a recent federal report.
Police in Colorado town use outreach, TikTok to gain immigrants’ trust
AVON, Colorado – Avon Police Chief Greg Daly says many people in his small Rocky Mountain town are afraid to call police. To improve trust among the large immigrant population, the department conducts an annual Latino Police Academy, has hired more Spanish-speaking officers and even posts fun TikToks in Spanish.
As more LGBTQ+ people face eating disorders, providers work to create appropriate care
PHOENIX – With research showing that LGBTQ+ individuals face a higher risk of developing eating disorders, more and more providers are creating specialized treatment to address these disparities and ensure people get the care they need.
Colonias residents fight long, and often lonely, fight for basic services
EL PASO COUNTY, Tex. - More than 134,000 residents to colonias - unincorporated rural communities along the U.S.-Mexico border - live withough basic services like roads, water or sewer, and the fight to change that is long and lonely, often left to residents and private nonprofits.
‘It’s changing’: As police officers quit the profession in droves, an opportunity for change emerges
PHOENIX – Police departments across the country are in a workforce crisis. Some leaders see this as an opportunity, and they’re trying harder to attract candidates who reflect the communities they serve, with a focus on women, people of color and members of the LGBTQ+ community.
Fighting hate: Approaches range from expanding hate crime definitions to gathering data
LOS ANGELES – The system for reporting hate in America is broken. The FBI’s database has limited scope, and people often don’t – or sometimes can’t – report hate crimes to authorities. But federal, state and local entities are tackling hate in a variety of ways – from expanding definitions and launching hotlines to capturing data.
