social issues

The Baltimore Housing Authority's plan to sell 22 of its 28 apartment and townhouse complexes drew dozens of concerned tenants and workers Wednesday to a City Council committee hearing.

61 percent of Republicans under 30 now favor allowing same-sex marriage, according to a new Pew survey.

Christian Rojas wants to get his paralegal certificate. Then, he figures, he'll go into business for himself, helping people write their wills and file motions in court. He dreams of earning a law degree, eventually, and practicing law. First, though, he has to get out of prison.

Gregory Lawrence has fought the Maryland Aviation Administration over alleged discrimination before, and now plans to do so again following his termination as acting fire chief last week.

The city mustn't pass up the chance to rehab thousands of low-income public housing units

With signs in the hall saying "Carson 2016" and "Run Ben, Run," Dr. Ben Carson doubled down on some of his most controversial statements in a speech Saturday at the Conservative Political Action Conference in National Harbor, Maryland.

An analysis by the Urban Institute found a yawning gap between the number of low-income renter households and affordable units available in every jurisdiction in the country.

The Columbia Triathlon Association — one of the country's premiere endurance race organizers — expects to be taking event registrations again and offering reassurance to nervous athletes on its website next week after drafting a plan to put the organization back on more sound financial footing.

The controversy surrounding the renaming of the Laurel library has taken a turn as the Confederate past of Charles H. Stanley, for whom the library is currently named, has some city residents in conflict with a campaign to keep Stanley's name on the building.

Eleven-year-old Sydney Kirby of Brooklyn Park saved her birthday and Christmas money to sponsor adoption fees for five cats at Anne Arundel County Animal Control's shelter.

LGBT-related news and commentary from around the web

The Housing Authority of Baltimore City is selling nearly 40 percent of its public housing to private developers under a national model designed to raise millions for upgrades and maintenance, Commissioner Paul T. Graziano said Wednesday.

Playing with building tools can also inspire girls to enter the construction trades, and more should be done to encourage this, starting in childhood and continuing through school, in training programs and in industry. The dearth of women in construction deprives the industry of productive workers and denies women entry into a most lucrative field on any level.

Help the homeless in Howard County by eating chili at the fourth annual Hotter Than Thou chili cook-off Sunday, March 9, from 12:30 to 2:30 p.m., at the Church of the Resurrection in Ellicott City.

The Maryland Senate on Tuesday approved a bill that would prohibit discrimination against transgender people. The Fairness for All Marylanders Act, which passed the Senate 32 to 15, now goes to the House of Delegates.

Proposal to expand Earned Income Tax Credit deserves Republican support (and probably won't get it)

Tomi B. Finkle was turned down for a volunteer in a Howard County Police Department mounted patrol, and now she's suing the county in federal court for employment discrimination, a complaint that could potentially bolster the case law on legal protection for transgender people.

It's time to change Maryland's marijuana laws, which are costly, ineffective, racially biased and the cause of a permanent blot on the records of too many of our young adults.

Baltimore's much-heralded CitiStat program should track grant money to avoid more mistakes

A bill that would protect transgender people from discrimination in jobs, housing and other areas gained preliminary approval Friday in the Senate.

Magic Johnson may have survived for more than 20 years with HIV and is in apparent good health, but don't let the basketball legend's success story fool you.

Pet lovers in Bel Air have a new shopping option thanks to the opening of Mill at the Mall, a pet-supply boutique sharing space with the Humane Society of Harford County¿s "Rescue Me!" adoption center inside Harford Mall.

The federal government has ordered Baltimore to pay back $3.7 million from a homeless services grant, saying the city and its subcontractors cannot sufficiently account for how the money was spent.

As part of a strategy to reduce homelessness in Baltimore, several city agencies are teaming up with BGE to eliminate some families' past due utility debt, Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake announced Tuesday.

Groups that meet regularly in Howard County

Vladimir Luxuria, Europe's first openly transgender parliamentarian, was reportedly detained twice in Sochi this week for supporting LGBT rights at the Winter Olympics.

Removing barriers to contraception

North County Ravens Roost 99 members plunge into outdoor water tank to raise money for Maryland Special Olympics

Maryland's Senate unanimously voted Wednesday to rescind support for a constitutional amendment it approved in 1862 to protect the institution of slavery.

Somewhere among the nearly 500 pairs of donated jeans and khakis that drape the corridors of Wilde Lake High School are trousers with an eclectic display of rhinestones on blue denim. The jeans' donor, Wilde Lake senior Tyesesha Beasley was more than willing to give them away.

Mayor Rawlings-Blake's State of the City address last week called for the creation of curfew drop-off centers. This policy aims to lower delinquency and victimization among our city's youth, while getting at-risk youth needed services. These are goals worth achieving; however, curfew centers are not a proven solution to either issue.

Efforts to rescind Maryland's 1862 vote upholding slavery is a misguided act of political correctness

The attorney general is right to call for repealing state laws that bar ex-felons from voting.

Government funded jobs would benefit the breadwinner, his or her children and the Baltimore. Work skills of the long-term unemployed would not atrophy, and those of all participants would increase. Their children would have a brighter future in school and life, and Baltimore would reduce some of its infrastructure and social service deficits. A training component, such as that contained in the apprenticeship model, should be part of each job so that people can achieve mastery in an occupation

Working with a friend, Judy Davanzo co-founded CaringOn, a nonprofit created to give a short break to caregivers whose loved ones are battling terminal cancer.

Internet behemoth Facebook has added a customizable option to the gender field on its profiles, allowing users to identify beyond male and female.

The significance of Missouri defensive end and NFL draft prospect Michael Sam's ground-breaking announcement that he's gay immediately struck a chord with former Ravens linebacker and special-teams ace Brendon Ayanbadejo.

Business leaders are investing in education in Baltimore, and not just out of charity, or to "give back." While both are worthy purposes, our business leaders recognize the bottom line value in a growing and diverse Baltimore economy. Investment in education will make that a reality. Various levels of government are reciprocating, and the legislative session and upcoming gubernatorial race offer a perfect time to take that work to the next level

Rescue dogs: Separating myth from fact

Beyond the faulty launch of the federal website, the Affordable Care Act penalizes the Hispanic-American community in Maryland in several serious ways. The end result that a law that was supposed to help us actually makes affordable and quality health care even harder to find.

How does a professed anti-bullying and gay-rights advocate with a love for Russia and its people feel about the swirling controversy over the country's gay rights record as the Winter Olympics in Sochi gear up? One could ask Catherine Curran O'Malley, the first lady of Maryland, that very question.

A broad coalition of government agencies and non-profit organizations will be offering free HIV/AIDS testing in Baltimore on Friday -- which is National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day.

In an effort clearly meant to defend himself, Piers Morgan invited Janet Mock back to discuss the controversy over their first interview.

It is clear from all the trumpeting of "We're No. 1" that Maryland's political-educational establishment is tone deaf to its own confusion, all the more reason not to leave education reform to the politicians.

List of Howard County support groups