Sybrina Fulton, whose son, Trayvon Martin, was killed by a neighborhood watch captain in February, has released a Mother’s Day video message via an advocacy group.

In the video, posted to the Martin family’s JusticeTM website, an emotional Fulton, her voice sometimes wavering, says that Sunday will be her first Mother’s Day without her son, and she says her faith and family will pull her through.

“On Sunday, I’m going to say a prayer for other mothers across the country who share this unbearable pain,” Fulton continues.

She cites statistics, saying she will pray on Sunday for the 30,000 mothers who, like her, have “lost their children to senseless gun violence,” and she calls on people to “join Florida by calling upon the governor of your state to re-examine similar Stand Your Ground laws throughout the nation, to keep our families safe.”

On July 1 the interest rate on federally subsidized Stafford Loans will double from 3.4 percent to 6.8 percent if Congress doesn’t act. Though this rate hike will have devastating consequences on more than 7 million studentsnationwide who currently hold a Stafford Loan, change will hit students of color especially hard.

The facts below show how students of color depend on financial aid to finance their college education and how they are uniquely impacted by student debt.

1. Students are having trouble paying back their college loans. Studies show that only 37 percent of students are able to repay their loans on time. Students of color are more likely to depend on financial aid to attend college and have higher trends of student debt.

2. For the first time, student loan debt has surpassed credit card debt in the United States. Student college loan debt is now higher than all credit card debt in the country put together. Nationwide, student debt is at $867 billion compared to credit card debt at $704 billion.

3. People of color, particularly African Americans, are graduating with more student debt. African American students in particular are graduating with much more debt than white students. A 2010 study by the College Board Advocacy & Policy Center found that student loan debt levels of $30,500 or higher were more common among 27 percent of black bachelor’s degree recipients compared to 16 percent of their white counterparts.

4. Youth unemployment (ages 16 to 24) is higher for people of color, making student debt a significant financial burden. Youth unemployment is highest among youth of color, with rates for African American youth at 30 percent and Latino youth at 20 percent, compared to the white youth unemployment rate of 16 percent.

5. Students of color rely on other forms of financial aid, such as Pell Grants, which are also facing significant cuts. Students who will lose eligibility or be cut from the Pell Grant program—a means of access to higher education and social opportunity for low-income families—will likely turn to loans to make up the difference. At a majority of historically black colleges and universities in particular, two-thirds or more of all enrolled students receive Pell Grants, with more than 90 percent of students receiving these grants at eight such institutions of higher learning. 

6. While educational attainment increases among Latinos, the achievement gap continues. From 2001 to 2011 the number of Latinos with a bachelor’s degree or higher education increased 80 percent from 2.1 million to 3.8 million. But there’s still an achievement gap: By 2012 only 14 percent of all U.S. Latinos over the age of 25 had bachelor’s degrees, compared to 34 percent of whites. A 2009 Pew Hispanic Center survey found the most common reason for the gap was pressure to support their families financially, forcing them to choose between college and their families. This means that low-interest-rate loans are that much more important to Latino youth in completing their college careers. 

7. More students of color are taking out private loans, exposing them to more financial risk. There was an approximate 16 percent increase and 12 percent increase among black and Hispanic students, respectively, that took out private loans, from the 2003-–04 to 2007-–08 school years. While federal loans have lower interest rates than private loans, doubling the rate will bring the two closer together, making students of color more vulnerable to defaulting on their loans.

8. Students of color are more likely to enroll in for-profit schools, which currently account for nearly half of student loan defaults. For-profit colleges and universities tend to have higher tuition, increased dropout rates, and insurmountable debt for students. This puts economic and academic barriers on students of color, making it more difficult for them to graduate.

9. Students of color with higher student debt are left with fewer options. Deferments and forbearances often provide short-term debt relief, but the interest on the loans may accrue and capitalize during the forbearance or deferment period, making the loans more expensive in the long term.

10. Student debt hinders students of color from homeownership. Past-due payments hinder borrowers due to lower credit scores and having their wages used for loan repayment. According to the Federal Reserve, fewer young people are getting mortgages—just 9 percent of 29-to-34-year-olds got a first-time mortgage from 2009 to 2011, compared to 17 percent in 2001.

Allowing Stafford Loan interest rates to double would make the cost of college skyrocket—the cost of college for those relying on Stafford Loans would increase by 20 percent. Given that students of color are more likely to rely on financial aid to finance their college education and graduate with higher student debt, increasing these interest rates would disproportionately impact them. We need to focus on making college more affordable, particularly at a time when students need a good education to be competitive in the international economy.

Jennifer Hudson can finally close the the book on the most painful chapter in her life.  Friday afternoon, her former brother-in-law William Balfour was convicted of murdering Hudson’s mother, brother and her 7 year old nephew, Julian King.

Hudson and her sister, Julia Hudson took time to thank family, friends and fans for their support during the murder trial:

“We have many people to thank but our first thank you is to God, always.  We are so grateful to prosecutors James McKay, Jennifer Bagby and Veryl Gambino and State’s Attorney Anita Alvarez and her team for their dedication and tireless work from the beginning. We have the best police department, and they have been with us every step of the way. We thank all of the State’s witnesses who came forward on our behalf. We have felt the love and support from people all over the world and we’re very grateful.”

Balfour has been sentenced to life for three counts of first degree murder, as well as convictions for aggravated kidnapping, residential burglary, home invasion and possession of a stolen vehicle.

The Detroit Public School League’s (PSL) Martin Luther King Jr. High Crusaders saw two of its favorite sons drafted in the 2012 NFL Draft. Nick Perry, PSL Class of 2008, and Chris Greenwood, Class of 2009, are now joined together as the PSL’s 2012 NFL draftees.

Defensive end/linebacker Perry was taken with the 28th pick by one of the NFL’s preeminent teams, the tradition filled Green Bay Packers, following a stellar career at the University of Southern California (USC) where he earned 2011 All-Pac-12 first team pick and was a finalist for the Hendricks Award. He declared for the NFL Draft following his junior season.

Greenwood, a cornerback, was drafted by his hometown Detroit Lions in the fifth round (138th overall). The former Crusader was a three-time All-Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) first team pick, American Football Coaches Association Division III All-American and the MIAA Defensive Players of the Year after leading Albion College to a berth in the NCAA Division II Championships.

After a crazy good scouting combine where all left calling Perry “a tremendous physical specimen,” at 6-foot-3 and 271 pounds, he then went out and ran the 40-yard dash in the 4.5’s — almost unheard of for a player that size — had a 38½-inch vertical leap and put up 35 repetitions of 225 pounds on the bench press.

The Packers went 15-1 last season and lost in the Divisional Round of the playoffs to the eventual Super Bowl-winning New York Giants. No matter the Packers record, its defense took a step back from its 2011 Super Bowl winning team. Green Bay is banking on Perry, who finished with 21.5 sacks for the Trojans, including 9.5 last season which led the Pac-12. He also led the Trojans in 2011 with 13 tackles for loss.

“I am elated to be going to a franchise that has the tradition the Packers have,” Perry said. “This is a winning organization and I know I have to come in here and give everything I’ve got, because these fans don’t deserve anything less than my best.”

Perry and Greenwood are firmly etched in PSL lore after leading King to a Michigan State championship in 2007 — the first in PSL history (Cass Tech has since matched King in 2011).

Greenwood also set the NFL scouts on fire with his showing at Michigan’s pro day. The 6-foot-1, 193 pounder smoked the track in a 4.42-seconds over the 40-yard dash and produced a vertical jump of 43 inches. He became the second Division III football player selected in the past three drafts.

To Greenwood’s credit he played in the East-West Shrine Game in January, one of the top senior all-star games. 

“It was fun to get out and play football with a high level of competition,” he said. “Everybody has a lot of talent at this level so a lot of time was spent on techniques because excelling at the little stuff helps you get further. I was ready to soak up whatever the coaches had to teach me.”

Packers General Manager Ted Thompson said of Perry: “He’s got that special kind of juice. We’re looking forward to getting him with (outside linebackers coach) Kevin (Greene) and (defensive coordinator) Dom (Capers). He’ll jump in with our guys and compete with our guys and we’ll see how he stacks up.”

Said Capers: “We think he (Perry) can certainly fit into our nickel scheme, being an edge rusher there. Maybe we can move him around a little bit. You’ve seen how much we move Clay (Matthews) around. He has explosion in his body and I don’t think the power and the physical part of it will be any problem for him.”

About Greenwood Lions coach Jim Schwartz said: “He’s a size-speed corner. He runs real fast. When I first saw him, down at the East-West game, and you see right away that he has physical attributes, he can run quick, he’s got great length. That was a big step up in competition for him but we stayed with him through the process, because he didn’t look out of place. We’ve got a good feel for him and think he is a good developmental corner.”

Perry and Greenwood both are elated to have been drafted, but they are really to put in the work to achieve at the NFL level.

Said Perry: “I think I have the raw set of skills and the mind to do it. I think I have a lot to bring to the table.”

Said Greenwood: “I’m living a dream. I know I have what it takes to play in the NFL. I can make plays. I’m glad the Lions have given me the opportunity to show everyone I can play at this level.”

By now you have probably heard about Brian McKnight’s X-rated sex song, “If You’re Ready to Learn.” Considering the class act he had always been and the songs he has recorded, this comes as a shock. It is difficult to understand the motivation.

The song, about a man telling (and showing) a woman how to use her body is about is explicit as you can get. Believe it or not, he actually says, among many  other things, “Let me show you how your p---- works.”

How crude is that? Apparently he thinks it’s funny. 

In any event, it comes as no surprise that McKnight has been asked to perform “If You’re Ready to Learn” at the AVN Awards, which is the leading adult entertainment industry awards show. 

At last report, McKnight had been declining because he doesn’t plan on performing the song in public.

I have no problem whatsoever with adult entertainment in any form, but there is a time and place for everything. 

If you want to hear McKnight talk about the song and sing part of it, go to YouTube and enter “Brian McKnight: If You’re Ready to Learn.” (If it has not been removed by the time this reaches print.)

DETROIT -- Mayor Dave Bing on Thursday appointed Jack Martin the new chief financial officer for Detroit, a position required by the city's financial stability agreement with the state of Michigan. That landmark agreement, designed by a financial review team with input from the mayor, the Detroit City Council, the state treasurer and the governor's office, created the CFO job, as well as several other city administrative posts and mandates on budgeting and labor contracts.

Martin is a certified public accountant who founded Martin, Arrington, Desai & Meyers, an accounting and business consulting firm. He served as CFO of the U.S. Department of Education under President George W. Bush.

As Detroit CFO, Martin will have considerable power over operations as the city struggles to reach benchmarks set by the consent agreement. He will oversee the implementation of a budget that Bing hopes will bring the city enough surplus to start paying down its debt, albeit through a huge number of layoffs and major cuts to every city department. The mayor said Thursday that eliminating 1,800 jobs will save the city $100 million.

"These are aggressive reductions," Bing said. "We are being very aggressive in implementing our deficit reduction plan in the most responsible way possible to maintain the city's core services for our citizens."

Martin will join Detroit's yet-to-be-named project management director and nine-person Financial Advisory Board in overhauling the city's finances. He will be paid $220,000 per year.

He lives in Bloomfield Hills, a Detroit suburb. Critics have argued that the consent agreement is ushering in new, non-resident leadership for Detroit, and the City Council appears stymied in its efforts to find Detroiters to serve on the Financial Advisory Board.

Martin himself had served on the state-appointed review team that brokered the consent agreement that created the CFO position. But he dismissed any possible conflict of interest on Thursday

Greektown Casino Hotel’s Eclipz Lounge was host to Detroit Piston’s Charlie Villanueva, along with several other V.I.P’s. on April 24th. Detroit’s basketball elite came out to support a private fundraiser for cause very near to Vllianueva’s heart. The ‘Wish Upon a Teen’ Organization. 

In the mist of the cocktails, music and beautiful people change was being made by donations of the guest along with an silent auction with proceeds going to support the programs at ‘Wish Upon a Teen’.  “I strongly believe in the work that the folks at Wish Upon a Teen are doing,” said Villanueva, power forward for the Detroit Pistons,” I just want to be one more advocate to help bring awareness to the teens that are sometimes forgotten.”

Detroit Piston, Point Guard, Rodney Stuckey was also in attendance,“Charlie is one of my teammates and like a brother to me, I am here to support him, his cause and the foundation.”Stuckey said.

Founder and President, Michelle Soto, talked about what gave her the vision for this organization “I have always worked with children and one of the things I learned working with children is that teenagers are always left behind. People want to do things for the younger children, typically under the age of eight. But those children do get older and the services start to become more minimal.” Soto continued, “My goal was to create a organization that didn’t leave any teenager behind. Teenage life can be difficult, imagine being a teenager with a life altering issue.”

Wish Upon A Teen is a non-profit organization that through creative, interactive social and educational events the teens they assist will rediscover and rebuild their self-esteem and continue the healing process towards a healthy reintegration into society.

For more information on this great organization or how you can get involved please visit www.wishuponateen.org

Native Detroiter Andrae Townsel wears many hats: He's in school to get his doctorate in education administration, works as the dean of students at a Washington D.C. public school, raps and even had a stint as a professional football player (albeit on a Canadian Football League team).

Now, Townsel has a new plan. He's running for mayor of his hometown, heannounced Saturday.

The Detroit mayoral race for 2013 hasn't hit full steam yet, but several other candidates have showed interest in the top city position. City Council President Charles Pugh announced earlier this year he would not run for re-election to his current position and is considering a run for mayor, and state Rep. Lisa Howze (D-Detroit) announced her candidacy in February. Then there's Mike Duggan, CEO of Detroit Medical Center -- while he's confirmed nothing, rumors of a run have beenmounting.

For now, Mayor Dave Bing has focused on the work at hand and has not announced his plans for 2013, though he hasn't ruled out seeking a second term.

Compared to other possible candidates, Townsel, who grew up on Detroit's west side and graduated from Cass Technical High School before getting a scholarship to Howard University in D.C., is younger and less immersed in city and state politics. But he argues his passion for his hometown, innovation and leadership abilities will make up for his lack of experience.

HuffPost Detroit caught up with Townsel to discuss the city and his plan to run for mayor.

Why did you decide to run for mayor?

I ultimately decided to run for office when the emergency financial manager was an issue. I saw how we were fighting tooth and nail to keep that from happening, and I saw how we had to sign a consent agreement and create two positions out of an already tight budget. People's hearts were broken in the city, mainly with what happened in the past and also because democracy and our democratic process were threatened.

How does your work in education prepare you for a job in politics?

The leadership component of public service ... as an educator you’re dealing with public and then managing large bodies of people within a district as well as decision-making skills understanding the policy process. I have the ability to lead and the talent to lead.

What would you offer Detroit?

Detroit No. 1 needs to be inspired. I feel a lot of our residents have been let down, hyped up and let down, hyped up and down. We're losing residents, people are moving away to the suburbs or another state.

Instead of running away from the city, I want to come back and offer my talents and resources I've developed while away. I have the perspective of being an insider from Detroit and the outsider of being away while studying. I think I have the resources from the people I met out here, I can bring those resources back to the city as well as what the city already has to offer.

I see how an inner city can be run and run effectively in the nation's capital, and that's almost a blueprint for how Detroit can be.

What would be some of the most important issues you would work on if you were elected mayor?

I'd love to work with city services. Response times from EMS and fire and the police department. Public transportation -- that's just standard. There's an expectation that services be delivered. One of the main things I provide is a sense of urgency for restoring city services, and as a service leader I'd be on the front lines.

This is not coming from a political standpoint this is coming from my heart. It's not a game to me; this is home, this is family, this is friends.

As the city struggles with its deficit, one of the ways Mayor Dave Bing has attempted to provide services while trimming the budget is through privatization. Do you have thoughts on that?

I don't have a problem if we're privatizing with the city entrepeneurs who live in the city, but I wouldn't go to any other neighboring city and ask for them to assist us. I would employ people within our city.

How will you deal with your lack of experience in city politics?

People can talk about experience all they want, that's fine, but my thing is it's about the potential. I have experience with different sectors, and I know the city like the front and back of my hand. In school I learned to be well-rounded and surround myself with a team. If I go into office I'm going to surround myself with a Superbowl-calibre team. Everything I've ever done, whether it's academically, musically or athletically, it's at a high level, earning honor and recognition, and that's a pattern.

People say Barack Obama didn't have the experience to lead the U.S. and in my opinion he's done a great job.

You live in D.C. with your young son and wife, who's a doctor. Would it be a challenge to uproot your family?

I always come back home, I'm back and forth. She understands the passion I have for my hometown, and she's supportive 100 percent. She thinks Detroit would be a wonderful place to raise a family, and I always wanted to raise my family here.

What else should Detroiters know about you and your vision?

I don't remember what author I read this from but I'd like to quote something. I heard if you go to the people, learn from them, live with them, start with what they know and deal with what they have, the best of leaders when the job is done, when the task is accomplished, the people will say "we have done it ourselves," not look what he has done, but what have we done. I think that's the type of leadership I bring.

WASHINGTON — Former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick is facing federal civil charges of taking part in an influence-peddling scheme involving the city's public-employee pension funds.

WASHINGTON — Former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick is facing federal civil charges of taking part in an influence-peddling scheme involving the city's public-employee pension funds.

The Securities and Exchange Commission says Kilpatrick and ex-city treasurer Jeffrey Beasley received $125,000 in private jet travel and other perks from an investment firm. The SEC says that was in exchange for getting the city's pension fund to make an investment favoring the firm.

Kilpatrick and Beasley violated federal securities laws, the SEC alleged in a civil lawsuit filed Wednesday in federal court in Detroit.

Kilpatrick says he's innocent of these charges and separate criminal charges brought previous by the Justice Department.

"I truly believe that all of the entities involved in these `so-called' investigations know that I have done absolutely nothing wrong," Kilpatrick said in a Facebook message to The Associated Press.

MayfieldGentry Realty Advisors, the investment firm, asked the pension funds' trustees to invest $117 million in a real estate investment trust controlled by the firm, the SEC said.

Kilpatrick and Beasley were among the trustees in 2006 and 2007. The SEC says the two should have told the other trustees that they received perks from the investment firm.

The SEC also accused the investment firm and its CEO, Chauncey Mayfield, of taking part in the influence-peddling scheme in violation of federal securities laws. It said the firm received millions of dollars in management fees from the pension funds' decision to invest.

Lawyers for Beasley and Mayfield didn't return phone calls seeking comment. Peter Zeidenberg, a lawyer representing MayfieldGentry, declined to comment.

Beasley was indicted in January on federal criminal charges of extortion, attempted extortion and conspiracy related to investments by the city employee pension funds.Kilpatrick and his father are accused of taking kickbacks and bribes to steer city business to certain contractors. Their corruption trial is set for September in federal court in Detroit.

In its court filing, the SEC said Kilpatrick, Beasley, Mayfield and the firm engaged in "brazen influence-peddling and betrayal of the public trust."

The agency said Kilpatrick and Beasley "secretly solicited and received lavish gifts" from Mayfield and his firm, including a trip by private jet to Las Vegas with luxury hotel accommodations, concerts and rounds of golf.

The SEC is seeking unspecified fines and restitution from the four defendants, and an injunction barring Kilpatrick and Beasley from participating in any decisions involving investments by public pensions

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Associated Press writers Ed White and Corey Williams in Detroit contributed to this report.

While manufacturing jobs are on the rise in Detroit, a new "plant" opening this fall will be more about coffee than cars.

The Roasting Plant, a coffee roaster and shop with two locations in New York City, announced Wednesday it plans to open a third location in downtown Detroit at the First National Building, across from Campus Martius.

It's a double homecoming for Roasting Plant's Elizabeth Rose, who was raised in Detroit and played in the halls of First National as a kid when her father brought her to work with him.

"We jumped at the chance to open our first non-New York shop in the heart of resurging downtown Detroit," Rose said in a statement.

The Roasting Plant will offer 11 bean choices daily and use its Javabot system to individually create each customer's drink.

While coffee by-the-cup and in-house roasting might seem like novelties, Corktown's Astro Coffee, which opened last summer, also brews individual cups, and it's not the only new coffee shop to open in Detroit recently. It's been a big year for the addictive beverage -- Germack Coffee Roasting Co. (the very same as the pistachio company)opened this March in Eastern Market, also brewing on-site. Anthology Coffee, which makes and roasts its own blends, hosts a pop-up shop in MOCAD and has secured a storefront in Corktown, set to open before the end of the year.

But according to the Detroit Free Press, the Roasting Plant promises the "freshest cup of coffee in the world." If you can't wait until fall to take that bait, you can apparentlysubscribe to the company's coffee through its website.

With cupcakes and a Chrysler office at the nearby Dime Building (now renamed Chrysler House), Twitter starting a small operation in the Madison Building and several other companies opening offices, Gilbert seems to be working overtime to fill his Woodward Avenue spaces with people and shops. Or, with some 2 million square feet of property to his name, he's at least scrambling to collect some rent money.The Roasting Plant's cafe is the newest in a slew of business and retail openings in Quicken Loans founder Dan Gilbert's thick portfolio of downtown properties. Through his real estate company Rock Ventures, hepurchased the historic First National Building for $8.1 million in August, according to Crain's Detroit Business.