Karen Grigsby Bates

'American Winter' Families Struggle To Survive Fall From Middle Class

Karen Grigsby Bates — Tue, 26 Mar 2013 07:26:00 +0000

It's a visual no parent wants to picture: a child describing what it's like to live in a house with no power for lights, heat or cooking. For many middle-class American parents, it's hard to imagine their family ever facing a situation like that.

1963 Emancipation Proclamation Party Lacked A Key Guest

Karen Grigsby Bates — Tue, 12 Feb 2013 22:52:00 +0000

Fifty years ago, the White House was the site of an unusual party.

It was a celebration of the Emancipation Proclamation's centennial, held on Abraham Lincoln's birthday, and many of the guests were descendants of the people Lincoln's historic document freed.

But noticeably absent was the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.

Bloomingdale's Lays Out Welcome Mat To Chinese Shoppers

Karen Grigsby Bates — Sun, 10 Feb 2013 11:36:00 +0000

A number of luxury retailers are rolling out tactics this year to mark the beginning of the Lunar New Year. For Bloomingdale's in New York City, though, reaching out to Asian shoppers during the cultural celebration is a decades-long tradition.

The upscale department store's marketing strategy traces back to 1971, the year President Nixon lifted the U.S. trade embargo with the People's Republic of China.

New Policy For Young Immigrants Creates Paperwork Deluge

Karen Grigsby Bates — Wed, 12 Dec 2012 22:03:00 +0000

In the six months since a new law opened a path to temporary legal status for some young immigrants in the U.S., more than 300,000 people have applied — and have rushed to request qualifying documents from their schools.

The law, Deferred Action on Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, offers legal status, renewable every two years, to people ages 30 and younger who were brought to the country as children. Applicants must prove they were in the U.S.

A Mohawk Hero In The Not-So-Diverse Gaming World

Karen Grigsby Bates — Wed, 31 Oct 2012 20:33:00 +0000

The Assassin's Creed video game series has become a megahit for gaming enthusiasts.

A Trailblazing Black Architect Who Helped Shape L.A.

Karen Grigsby Bates — Fri, 22 Jun 2012 19:54:00 +0000

Paul Revere Williams began designing homes and commercial buildings in the early 1920s. By the time he died in 1980, he had created some 2,500 buildings, most of them in and around Los Angeles, but also around the globe. And he did it as a pioneer: Paul Williams was African-American. He was the first black architect to become a member of the American Institute of Architects in 1923, and in 1957 he was inducted as the AIA's first black fellow.

His granddaughter, Karen E. Hudson, has been chronicling Williams' life and work for the past two decades. Her latest book, Paul R.

Nailing The American Dream, With Polish

Karen Grigsby Bates — Thu, 14 Jun 2012 21:11:00 +0000
If you've had a manicure in California, odds are the person at the other end of the emery board was of Vietnamese heritage.
Vietnamese immigrants now dominate California's nail-care industry — and make up a significant percentage of all manicurists nationwide.
The story began with a hurried immigration after the fall of Saigon almost four decades ago.
Sparked by the interest of a group of refugees and the help of a Hollywood star, the demand for affordable manicures quickly became the foundation of the American dream for many Vietnamese newcomers.
On The Job Market, Fast

The L.A. Riots: Looking Back At A City Under Siege

Karen Grigsby Bates — Sun, 29 Apr 2012 12:18:00 +0000
Twenty years ago Sunday, Los Angeles erupted into destructive riots after the verdict in the Rodney King trial. The violence lasted six days and left more than 50 dead and over $1 billion in damage. NPR's Karen Grigsby Bates remembers; she lived in the one of the neighborhoods that went up in flames.
Several years ago, I interviewed Karl Fleming for the 40th anniversary of the Watts riots.

Rodney King Comes To Grips With 'The Riot Within'

Karen Grigsby Bates — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 07:23:00 +0000
With a helicopter buzzing overhead, the videotape of Rodney King's encounter with police is so famous, you could say he was beaten into American history: The image of him writhing in pain as several Los Angeles police officers repeatedly beat, kicked and tasered him is, by now, world-famous — and synonymous with abuse of power.
When four of the officers were charged with use of excessive force, many who'd seen the video assumed they would be convicted. But a year later, a mostly white jury in the far northwest L.A.

Data Reveals Complex Picture Of Hispanic Americans

Karen Grigsby Bates — Wed, 04 Apr 2012 22:02:00 +0000
Just over half of Americans of Spanish-speaking origin have no preference between the terms "Hispanic" and "Latino," according to new data from the Pew Hispanic Center.
Of those with a preference, 33 percent preferred "Hispanic," versus the 14 percent who said "Latino" better describes them.
How Hispanic-Americans identify themselves is only one aspect of the detailed picture provided by the Pew study released Wednesday.