Vigils and rallies will be held in 100 US cities this weekend to press for federal civil rights charges against George Zimmerman over the shooting of unarmed teenager Trayvon Martin.

The parents of a shot Florida teenager have accused police of leaking information about their son being suspended for marijuana and details about the fight in which he died that portrayed him as the aggressor.

Rhythm & blues legend Etta James was remembered at a service attended by hundreds of friends, family and fans as a woman who triumphed against all odds to break down cultural and musical barriers in a style that was unfailingly honest.

Rhythm & blues legend Etta James has been remembered at a service attended by hundreds of friends, family and fans as a woman who triumphed against all odds to break down cultural and musical barriers in a style that was unfailingly honest.

The Rev Al Sharpton today said Etta James should be remembered as a woman and an artist who “turned her pain into power”.

PARIS JACKSON wept as she stepped into the mausoleum where her father, Michael, was to be entombed. Katherine Jackson, overcome by sorrow, turned back when she was faced with her son’s final resting place.

MICHAEL JACKSON’S long-time lawyer and a family friend were given permission to take over running the singer’s estate by a judge last night.

David Bowie has donated $10,000 to a legal defence fund for six black teenagers charged in an alleged attack on a white classmate in the tiny central Louisiana town of Jena.

New York city anxiously awaited a decision by a jury over whether or not to charge five police officers who unleashed the 50-shot barrage that killed an unarmed man on his wedding day.

James Brown's grown-up children refused to be part of a TV tribute to the late soul legend on CNN show Larry King Live on Wednesday night when they discovered his widow would be taking part.

At a gathering marked by joy more than sorrow, thousands of James Brown’s fans and friends filled an arena bearing his name today for their final tribute to the homegrown singer known as the “Godfather of Soul”.

Even in death, James Brown can move a crowd.

The Rev. Al Sharpton promised a “royal day in Harlem” as he raced through the night in a van to make sure the late US singer James Brown did not miss his last date at the historic Apollo Theatre in New York.

A public funeral service for “Godfather of Soul” James Brown at an 8,500-seat US arena bearing his name in his hometown of Augusta, Georgia, has been set for Saturday.

New York’s mayor said police appeared to use excessive force when they fired 50 shots at an unarmed man in a confrontation outside a strip club, hours before his wedding.

An angry crowd gathered in New York last night, demanding to know why police officers killed an unarmed black man on the day of his wedding, firing dozens of shots that also wounded two of the man’s friends.

Police fired 50 rounds at a car of unarmed men leaving a stag party at a New York strip club, killing the groom.

Police shot three young men who had just left a bachelor party at a strip club early today, killing one man on the day of his wedding, according to police and witnesses.

A group of American black leaders including the Revs Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton are to boycott British oil giant BP, accusing the company of exploiting customers and racially discriminating in its business practices.

JOHN KERRY, with only pushovers left in the Democratic race, easily won four Southern primaries on Tuesday to bring him within striking distance of the presidential nomination.

FIGHTING against time and his inability to move to the top of polls in Super Tuesday states, John Edwards sharply attacked front-runner John Kerry as a Washington practitioner of politics as usual.

THE Democratic presidential contenders clashed sharply over race in the final debate before the Iowa caucuses on Sunday, with civil rights activist Al Sharpton challenging front-runner Howard Dean’s record as Vermont governor.

Black activist the Rev Al Sharpton today claimed he was the victim of a smear campaign after a 1983 tape showed him discussing a major drug deal with an undercover FBI agent.

Pop star Michael Jackson is to travel to Sudan to crusade for an end to child slavery in the country, it was reported today.

Family and friends of the Rev Jesse Jackson are seeking prayers and privacy for the civil rights activist and CNN talk show host .

Civil rights groups are to meet in Washington to discuss the alleged denial of blacks' voting rights during the US presidential election.