Nation in brief

Million Youth March urges peace, not violence

NEW YORK - The Million Youth March, a flash point for controversy just five years ago, stepped off quietly Saturday with about 300 people joining in the six-block trek in Brooklyn.

Malik Zulu Shabazz, head of the New Black Panther Party, said the purpose of the march was positive.

"Our message to the young people is to stop the killing," said Shabazz, whose group sponsored the event. "Stop going to prison, complete school, go to work and try to rap better lyrics."

The march began with the release of white doves, a symbol of peace.

It was a stark contrast to the initial march in 1998, when city officials tried to deny organizers a permit for the event. Police scuffled with participants in Harlem, and the 1998 march's main speaker, the late Khalid Muhammad, urged attendees to "beat the hell" out of police officers. Sixteen officers and five civilians were injured.

NEW YORK - Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton said Saturday she planned to block President Bush's nominee to head the Environmental Protection Agency over an internal report saying the EPA misled New Yorkers about health risks after the World Trade Center attack.

In a telephone interview, Clinton told the Associated Press she would place a hold on the nomination of Utah Gov. Mike Leavitt, a procedural move that would prevent the full Senate from voting on his confirmation, though it does not stop committee hearings.

"This is an effort to get the administration that he wants to join to take responsibility," she said.

Clinton said she would lift the hold only if the White House answered her concerns about the EPA report.

"It's unfortunate that Sen. Clinton would seek to politicize such a qualified nominee as Gov. Leavitt," White House spokesman Taylor Gross said Saturday.

HIGHLAND, Calif. - A brush fire fueled by erratic winds threatened about 1,500 homes east of Los Angeles Saturday, while in central Oregon, crews held back another wildfire that had earlier jumped containment lines.

About 400 of the 1,500 threatened homes along the edge of California's San Bernardino National Forest were evacuated, and firefighters were taking advantage of calmer weather Saturday morning to battle the blaze, said Melody Lardner, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Forest Service.

The fire was threatening the communities of Smiley Park, Fredalba, Knob Hill and Enchanted Forest, about 60 miles east of Los Angeles.

In Northern California, firefighters continued to battle a midweek siege of lightning-sparked fires, with at least 40 new ones spotted.

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