It's the 150th anniversary of The Civil War and the effects are still with us. Celeste Headlee reflects on her family's role in the Civil War; the branches of her family tree include both slaves and owners. The Civil War is over, but the fight continues; we still argue over whether to fly the Confederate flag and how to teach the history of the war.

It's the 150th anniversary of The Civil War and the effects are still with us. Celeste Headlee reflects on her family's role in the Civil War; the branches of her family tree include both slaves and owners. The Civil War is over, but the fight continues; we still argue over whether to fly the Confederate flag and how to teach the history of the war.

Manning Marable, a pioneering scholar and author of a highly anticipated biography of Malcolm X, died Friday. He was due to speak with us about his new book, out today. Joining us to discuss Marable’s accomplishments and his final work are Michael Eric Dyson, Professor of Sociology at Georgetown University, and Melissa Harris-Perry, Associate Professor of Politics and African-American studies at Princeton University. Marable considered "Malcolm X: A Life of Reinvention" book his life's work. It is the definitive account of Malcolm X drawn from primary sources, explains Michael Eric Dyson.

While the image of union workers is one of white men in hard hats, the reality is that African-Americans and other minorities may be hit hardest if the unions fall. Studies show that 14.5 percent of all public sector workers in the nation are black and one in five black workers are employed in public administration. Teachers, police and firefighters are not the only professionals affected in the battle raging in Wisconsin between union workers and the Republican-led state government, either. If the law passes, service employees like janitors, garbage collectors, and home health care workers will not only lose their ability to collectively bargain for wages and benefits, but their right to a union altogether.

Immediately after the end of the Civil War, Congress drafted and pushed to ratify the 14th and 15th amendments to the Constitution, which were intended to guarantee African-Americans full equality under the law. But despite these amendments, Jim Crow laws quickly took hold of much of the nation, stripping African-Americans of such basic rights as serving on juries and voting without the penalty of a poll tax. What went wrong?

In February 2007, the FBI and the Department of Justice announced that they would "do everything we can" to prosecute Civil Rights-era hate crimes. The Civil Rights-Era Cold Case Initiative was an attempt to put federal dollars and manpower into closing unsolved murder cases. However, these crimes are more than 40 years old. Few of the cases have been solved and key suspects are dying.

24-year-old Jennifer Keeton was pursuing a master’s degree in education at Georgia’s Augusta State University until the school became aware of her religious opposition to homosexuality. At that point, the school demanded that Ms. Keeton participate in diversity sensitivity training, and suggested that she attend a gay pride parade in order to complete her training. Ms. Keeton has sued the school in federal court for infringing on her civil rights.

President Obama is scheduled to speak today on education reform, just days after a team of civil rights groups joined forces to release a policy framework criticizing his education policies. Obama's speech is part of the program for the National Urban League's Centennial Conference this week.

President George H. W. Bush signed the Americans with Disabilities Act into law 20 years ago, today. Since then, we’ve almost come to take for granted many of the things it required: accessible public transportation, reserved parking, more frequent curb cuts, equal access to employment and education opportunities, and much more.

 

Dr. Rand Paul, the anti-establishment candidate in Kentucky's Republican Senate primary, put the Tea Party on the political map last week as he handily beat GOP-blessed candidate Trey Grayson. But in the first few days after his victory, the novice politician stumbled on his first big political test as he repeatedly said that he did not support the portion of the 1964 Civil Rights Act that enforced non-discrimination on private businesses.

With the passing of civil rights leaders, in any social movement — civil rights, gay rights, women's rights — Can younger people appreciate the way things used to be, or will they take earlier accomplishments for granted? And is taking things for granted a good thing; is it a sign of real progress?

We remember photographer Charles Moore, who made his name taking iconic Civil Rights photographs down south during the 1960's. He died at the age of 79, Thursday. Hank Klibanoff, who is the author of the book, "The Race Beat: The Press, the Civil Rights Struggle, and the Awakening of a Nation," helps us remember the life and work of this great photojournalist.

In honor of Martin Luther King we look at a new documentary about songs that helped drive the civil rights movement.

On Tuesday, Maine voters headed to the polls and reversed the state legislature's decision to permit gay marriage. Maine is the third state in the country where voters repealed a legislature-granted law allowing same-sex marriage, and the 31st state to ban gay marriage outright. We ask Columbia University law professor Suzanne Goldberg, director of the Gender and Sexuality Law Program, if this repeal is part of a larger national trend. We also speak with Jill Barkley, a resident of Portland, Me., who was planning to marry her partner next summer; and to Andrew McLean, a gay man in Portland, Me., who volunteered with Equality Maine.

• Washington Takeout: Congress has passed an expansion to the federal definition of "hate crimes"; the law will now include crimes based on gender, sexual orientation, gender identity and disability.  The Takeaway's Washington correspondent, Todd Zwillich, has more about the bill now headed for the president's desk.  
• Sports Takeout: The Takeaway's sports contributor, Ibrahim Abdul-Matin, takes a look at Game 5 of baseball's American League Championship Series. The NY Yankees lost last night to the Anaheim Angels and now lead the series 3-2.
• Listener Takeout: Listeners respond to our question on whether the government should regulate executive pay at bailed-out corporations.

Since the health care debate began, advocacy groups, including the NAACP and the National Council of La Raza, have been arguing for a public option and for health care that's affordable for all their members. But will they be successful in using a civil rights organizing platform to affect the health care debate? For a primer on whether or not affordable health care can be considered a fundamental human right, we turn to Kathleen Hall Jamieson, director of the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania. We also hear from Hilary Shelton, the NAACP's senior vice president for advocacy and policy and director of its Washington bureau. And we talk to Jennifer Ng’andu, deputy director of health policy at the National Council of La Raza.

The regular baseball season is winding down, but the excitement for fans is far from over. Both the American and National League teams are making their big push for the playoffs and then (hopefully) a run at the World Series. The Takeaway's sports contributor Ibrahim Abdul-Matin gives us his picks for teams to watch.

Also on Ibrahim's agenda? For years, Native American groups have been trying to change the name of professional sports teams such as the Braves, the Cleveland Indians, and the Florida State Seminoles. Now, Native American activists are focusing on the Washington Redskins, and they are trying to take the case all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court. Our very own sports contributor, Ibrahim Abdul-Matin, brings us up to speed.

Ted Olson, Solicitor General under President George W. Bush, argues this week in California courts against Proposition 8, the voter-approved ban on gay marriage. He spoke with The Takeaway's Washington Correspondent Todd Zwillich about his motivation for taking the case and discusses why he feels gay couples shouldn’t be the political football they've become in recent years.

President Obama said yesterday that he will extend some benefits to the same-sex partners of federal employees. But with the Defense of Marriage Act still in place, how big a step forward is really possible? The Takeaway talks to Kenji Yoshino, the Chief Justice Earl Warren Professor of Constitutional Law at the NYU School of Law.

To see a map of the state of gay rights across the globe, click here.

Gay marriage has been a longtime wedge issue in the United States, but the pace of change has quickened in the last few months. Last month, Iowa and Vermont legalized same-sex marriage and last week, Maine became the fifth state to allow gay couples to wed; similar legislation is advancing in New Hampshire. Washington D.C. also got into the mix, voting last week to recognize same-sex marriages that have been performed in other parts of the United States. Joining us to talk about this latest round of legislation and to look ahead at whether this momentum could carry across the country is Suzanne Goldberg. She is a professor at Columbia Law School and the director of the Gender and Sexuality Law Program.