Empire actor Jussie Smollett leaves Cook County jail after posting bond on Thursday. Nuccio DiNuzzo/Getty Images hide caption

Can I Just Tell You?
NPR's Michel Martin gives a distinct take on news and issuesIn a speech at the Golden Globes, Oprah Winfrey told the story of Recy Taylor's violent rape by six white men in 1944. Taylor, pictured above, died last month at age 97. Her attackers were never prosecuted. Phelan M. Ebenhack/Associated Press hide caption
Carryn Owens, wife of Navy SEAL William "Ryan" Owens, is recognized as U.S. President Donald Trump addresses a joint session of Congress last Tuesday. Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP/Getty Images hide caption
Police tape blocks off a street where a 16-year-old was shot and killed and another 18-year-old was shot and wounded on the on April 25 in Chicago. Joshua Lott/Getty Images hide caption
Demonstrators protest the police shooting of Michael Brown in August 2014 in Ferguson, Mo. A Justice Department report found the police in Ferguson levied excessive fines for small infractions. Joe Raedle/Getty Images hide caption
For Some, Powerball's Promise Wasn't Just A Big Payout — But Stability, Too
Why would a mother whose baby died after she put him down for a nap be considered a murderer and not part of a tragedy? iStockphoto hide caption
An unidentified Freedom Rider sticks his head out of a chartered bus window in Jackson, Miss., in August 1961. AP hide caption
People gather outside of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, ahead of a ceremony for the victims of Friday's terrorist attacks. Even as we mourn for those lost in the violence, NPR's Michel Martin says, we should not forget the many who have died in similar attacks the world over. David Ramos/Getty Images hide caption
Grief Knows No Native Tongue — But We Must Listen, Wherever It Speaks
Candles are placed on graves at the Slavicie udolie cemetery in Bratislava, Slovakia, on November 1, 2015. The day is celebrated by many around the world as All Saints' Day, a time for remembering saints and deceased loved ones. Vladimir Simicek/AFP/Getty Images hide caption
Rep. Paul Ryan — shown on Capitol Hill in 2013 with his daughter Elizabeth — told his fellow Republican congressmen he would agree to run for speaker of the House only if, among other things, his time with his family was protected. Drew Angerer/Getty Images hide caption
A boy stands onshore after arriving with other refugees and migrants on the Greek island of Lesbos, after crossing the Aegean Sea from Turkey, on Saturday. Dimitar Dilkoff/AFP/Getty Images hide caption
Writer Svetlana Alexievich answers questions during a press conference in Minsk, Belarus, on Oct. 8, following the announcement of her Nobel Prize. Alexievich writes about hard truths, making Russian authorities uncomfortable. She says she wants her country to be better — instead of comfortable with where it is. Sergei Gapon/AFP/Getty Images hide caption
Tell Me More producer Amy Ta in racing mode. John Clark Jr./Courtesy of Amy Ta hide caption