January

Edwards ends presidential bid. Obama, Clinton praise ex-rival

John Edwards withdrew from the race for the presidency Jan. 30, saying in New Orleans, where he had launched his campaign, “it is time to step aside so that history can blaze its path.” He was referring to a campaign that could put Hillary Rodham Clinton, the first woman, or Barack Obama, the first African American, in the White House.

Milton Wolff, last Lincoln Brigade Commander

Milton Wolff, a perennial symbol of U.S. working-class internationalism, died Jan. 14 in California at age 92. Born in Brooklyn of immigrant parents, the last commander of the Washington-Lincoln Brigades that fought fascism in Spain was a man of charisma and intelligence.

Tribunals examine U.S. role in Colombia

In Colombia, four million people have been forced from their homes and land. Poverty is rampant: almost 24 percent of Colombians earn less than two dollars a day; 65 percent, less than three dollars daily; 40 percent of the children don’t attend school.