CNN iReport

Women with full lips, jutting hips, multi-colored hair, and long fingernails adorn a 92 feet by 12 feet mural near Times Square in New York City.

The work of art, by muralist Sofia Maldonado, has been met by mixed reviews since its installation on March 2.

iReporters captured a small group gathered to protest and demand the removal of the mural on March 17. Mykwain, a New York University film student, captured reactions of New Yorkers both for and against the mural.

Many of the complaints stem from the fact that the women depicted in the mural are black and Hispanic. Others feel that the position of the mural in Times Square, a place heavily visited by tourists, is inappropriate.

One protester said that the work was “disgusting and degrading to women.” But another observer, who supported the mural, noted that the work depicts the sign of the times and he found the piece to be “astonishingly beautiful.”

Maldonado, who is Puerto-Rican and Cuban, was commissioned by the Times Square Alliance to create the work for Women’s History Month. It is set to be on display until April 30, 2010.

The debate over the artwork is taking place on CNN iReport, too. Several iReporters have weighed in posting over 300 comments under sjunat55’s submission with their take on the piece as art or highly decorated discrimination.

Is the problem with this piece the content, the location, or a mixture of both? Is there a problem with it? Talk about it here.

Yep, literally. Today, the color green isn't a symbol of the environment, it's a celebration of St. Patrick's Day!

iReporters from all over are partying it up and showing off how their cities are commemorating the day. MrIsaacs documented Chicago's annual tradition: Dying the Chicago River a shocking shade of kelly green. sjunat55 sent photos and video from the Irish Arts Center in New York, where Irish music and dance took center stage. And JaneyBracken, our trusty Second Life iReporter, got shots of the colorful in-world celebrations, including a pot of gold at the end of a rainbow.

Are you heading out in an outrageous green hat and "kiss me, I'm Irish" button today? Will you attend cultural or religious events? We'd love to see how you're celebrating.

While conservatives have Joe the Plumber, an alternative group has chosen a cup of joe as their representative.  The Coffee Party, another grassroots organization named after a popular morning beverage, has gained our attention.

This past Saturday, March 13th, was the National Coffee Party Kick-off Day.  According to the official website for the fledgling party, their National Coffee Party Day launched in more than 350 coffee shops in 44 states.

The Coffee Party was formed in response to what Annabel Park, the movement’s founder perceived as media overexposure of the conservative Tea Party movement.

Park volunteered for Barack Obama’s presidential campaign and Democratic Senator Jim Webb’s 2006 campaign in Virginia.  However, she says the group is not “aligned” with any party and calls the two-party system out of date.

The Coffee Party describes itself as a made up of people acting independently of political parties, corporations, and political lobbying networks.

Here at iReport, Coffee Partiers documented the kick-off with photos and videos from across the nation—including one submission from U.S. citizens who celebrated the kick off from Italy.  The groups gathered and had discussions ranging from health care to political infighting.  Only time will tell if this movement gains enough momentum to compete with the Tea Party.

Check out the assignment here to see more submissions.  If you see any groups gathering at your local java hut, be sure to send them to us here at iReport.

The story of a “runaway” Toyota Prius on a Southern California interstate Monday has since raised a lot of controversy. The driver in question, Jim Sikes, told his story to CNN's Ted Rowlands. He said he was unable to stop the car as it went over 90 mph and called 911 for help.

iReport car reviewer romanmica has been especially interested in this story. He often shares videos of the many test drives he takes, and his honest opinions on each car and how it handles on CNN iReport, but this time it was a little different. Using an “unscientific test,” romanmica wanted to see how easy it was to stop a runaway Prius (needless to say, don’t try this at home). Check out the video above.

“I tested the car on a very seldom-used road and of course made sure that the car would stop in a safe distance,” romanmica told me. “I wanted to show in a very straightforward manner that while the technology may be somewhat new and different, the way you stop the car is very much the same” as a traditional car.

As for Toyota, they told CNN earlier this week that they were investigating the incident. There is also a brake feature that U.S. safety regulators are considering for all cars.

If you would like to weigh in on this issue, especially if you own a Toyota Prius yourself, feel free to chime in here.

We’ve certainly seen our share of documentaries on CNN iReport, but we were really impressed with two recently posted on the site.

vijays often makes short videos about schoolchildren and their views on the world. This time, he took a look at some older students who gave up on school altogether. In the two-part documentary “Dropout Nation,” vijays explores the problem of high school dropouts, and some possible solutions. He and his co-producer, Whitney Keyes, say they were concerned about the U.S. “becoming a nation of haves and have-nots.”

vijays explains that their view was that, “Facts don’t tell this story. The kids do. Our interviews include kids that dropped out for various reasons, kids that chose to live on the streets and at-risk youth.” Check out the first part of the documentary above, and part two here.

While vijays looked at problems in the U.S., iUnderground crossed the border to one of the most dangerous areas of Mexico – Juarez. He says the situation wasn’t always that dire in Juarez; he had visited there several times in the past, at one point for cheap dentistry.

He decided to pay a return visit to some of his old haunts and bring along his camera. The footage he captured really gives viewers the flavor of a specific location, and a look at Juarez beyond the headlines of violence between drug cartels. Watch both parts of this iReport here.

"iReport" was the last thing we expected to hear when we watched the Oscars last night, but surely enough, it happened. One of the nominees for Sunday night’s Academy Awards was “Burma VJ,” which told the story of citizen journalists documenting pro-democracy protests in Myanmar in 2007. In the short clip shown during the telecast, CNN’s Dan Rivers could be heard talking about the importance of iReports to CNN’s coverage of the protest there. The clip was super quick, but as soon as it was over, several members of team iReport excitedly jumped on Twitter to talk about it.

These iReports were an early indicator of the power of citizen journalism in places where access was limited. Iran has been another example in recent months.

Click here for some of the images that were sent from Myanmar as iReports, and here for more on “Burma VJ.”

Tuition is getting expensive. States are cutting university budgets. Professors are being furloughed. Enough is enough, say young, first-time iReporters who are speaking out against the death of education.

Vivid protest photographs and chanting videos flooded iReport yesterday as students and teachers nationwide participated in a “national day of action.” We were thrilled to see so many students and new faces joined the iReport community to help tell a story that’s affecting their generation.

iReporter bluestatus is an aspiring photojournalist and junior at Newark Memorial High School in California. He captured images of parents and children taking their message to the streets of Fremont, California.

Another aspiring journalist and film student, CColton, gathered with his classmates at Colorado State University last week to protest potential tuition raises. The freshman edited together a video that really made us feel like we were there.

Over in the land of Lincoln, new iReporter kpimblo2 helped organize a march and rally of about 300 people at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She’s a graduate employee and doctoral student for history.

“We’re trying to form a coalition of all workers and students on campus,” she said. “We want to put pressure on the state to increase state funding on the university. …The university is threatening to increase tuition 18 percent.”

Student protesters at San Francisco State University got creative with their message, donning giant paper mache ghoul and skeleton masks. Student LandraLune says it was the most dramatic protest she’s ever seen.

“Students are really getting frustrated with the fee hikes and the shortage of classes,” she said. “Many of us are not able to get the units we need to qualify for financial aid.”

If you are taking part in protests on your campus, please share your story. Check out the CNN gallery of iReporters protesting all over the country. The youth of America are speaking, so don’t let your voice go unheard.

Taking your clothes off in the name of art isn't for everyone. But newsoz put aside any hesitations about being nude in public and participated in a massive Spencer Tunick photo shoot at the Sydney Opera House in Sydney, Australia. She even iReported about her experience after the fact. Tunick is a photographer known for taking pictures of massive amounts of naked people in public places. "Rather than have a sexual component, the pieces can take on an eerie, sometimes somber note," newsoz explains. "Fans of the artist marvel at the logistics of getting thousands of people to strip off their clothes and pose still, all in the name of art."

The project was part of the Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras in Sydney, but newsoz says people were there for a variety of reasons. One woman was there to allay her midlife crisis, while newsoz and her husband were ringing in their 25th wedding anniversary. The process of going through the photo shoot with more than 5,000 adults "of all shapes and sizes" was less daunting than liberating, she said.

"The whole time my husband and I were laughing our heads off, saying we could not believe we were doing this, especially smack in the middle of one of the world's most iconic landmarks. It felt safely rebellious and at the same time had that feeling of safety in numbers; there were a few 'perfect' bodies but for the most part, we were all normal no matter how big, small or whatever. This was collective courage. We were all in it together."

It’s hard to imagine what an 8.8. magnitude earthquake feels like. But iReporters who experienced the massive quake shot photos and video of the aftermath that helped capture the situation. They shared stories of panic, confusion and chaos.

Marion Maillard, a French resident living in Chile, said the earthquake was "the most awful experience of my life." Melanie Kroeger described Santiago as "eerily quiet" the following morning.

They, along with other iReporters, shared powerful and easily relatable stories. We showcased their dramatic photographs and quotes in this photo gallery on CNN.com.

If you experienced the earthquake in Chile, please share your story. And if you’re looking for loved ones, you can upload photos here.

The 2010 Olympics in Vancouver, British Columbia, have come to a close and we're really impressed with the great photos and videos that have come in. ChrisMorrow brought us great interviews with celebrity athletes like skier Lindsey Vonn as well as footage of the city scene, and AlbertArt showed us a stylistic view of Vancouver.

In accordance with the wondrous closing ceremonies, which featured a giant beaver and dancing Mounties, the iReports at the end of the Olympics have been particularly colorful. We got a glimpse of celebrations in the streets following Canada's men's hockey overtime win against the U.S. team. iReporter seeitnow described them particularly well to us early this morning, so we thought we'd share his words on the "biggest party on Earth":

"As I write this, bullhorns and trumpets are blaring away with no let up. The streets were overflowing with rowdy but peaceful people all ready to party until dawn, which should prove interesting since it's Sunday night and the city is supposed to return to normal by tomorrow morning.

Red and white were definitely the color of choice as the crowds gathered throughout downtown. The main art gallery with the prominent fountain was turned into a giant bubble bath as dozens of people decided tonight was the night to take a nice refreshing bath in the somewhat warm February evening weather.

Although numerous police were on the ready I saw nothing to suggest any trouble anywhere as I combed the streets looking for interesting characters to interview. Vancouverites have more the most part suffered through years of construction and traffic restrictions so now that it's all over there's a lot of pent up demand to finally realize, 'Hey we did it: we finished and we won.' Let's savour the moment for as long as we can."

Thanks for sharing the great iReports! Tell us what you thought about the Olympics in the comments area below.

With all the assignments we have on CNN iReport, and all the great stories shared, we were reminded that the crux of what we do comes down to great storytelling. An iReport from first-time submitter acraigsnyder exemplified the spirit of what we do. He was on vacation when he heard about a fire at Philadelphia International Records. The label is known for recordings in the 1970s and 1980s.

"I was out around 6 a.m. walking around taking pictures, and saw a fire truck go by and went over and got involved in the scene. I stayed inside the fire line and just shot photos for about an hour."

The photos he submitted almost speak for themselves, telling the story from start to finish. CNN affiliate WPVI reports that arson is suspected in the blaze. Fire officials told the Philadelphia Inquirer it was “a little suspicious.” The paper also reported that the recording studio, once used by Patti LaBelle and Teddy Pendergrass, was undamaged right down to the shag carpet.

"The fire wasn't bad when I arrived; it was just smoke coming out of a third story window. When I got there, there was a guy leaning out of the window. The guy was helping him but was doing more harm than good. The guy did escape and had some lacerations on his forearm, and I read later that the fire was indeed suspicious."

acraigsnyder's high-quality photos, skilled storytelling and great quotes inspired us and we hope he will inspire you, too. So if you see news near you, share your story with CNN iReport.

Hey iReporters, ready to get a little creative and have a lot of fun?  Team iReport is pleased to announce the return of Weekend Assignments – a series of engaging, but simple mini-challenges we can work on together.

Here’s how it will go down. Every Friday for eight weeks, we’ll launch a new weekend assignment.  You’ll have ‘til Sunday to complete your mission and upload your iReport. We’ll join in on the fun and find creative ways to mash up your submissions and create cool content for CNN.com.

We’re kicking things off this weekend with a special mobile-only challenge. We want you to take a photo on your mobile device and submit your favorite shot to iReport. We’ll join in the challenge too, and hope to learn about the types and quality of photos people capture on their mobile devices.

And here’s a sneak peek of upcoming weekend assignments.

Feb 26 – Timelapse
We’re raising the bar a bit with our second assignment. We’ll show you how stop-motion photography works and then challenge you to try it over the weekend.

March 5 – Signature dish
It seems everyone has a go-to dish that they make best. We want you to unleash your inner chef and demonstrate how to make your signature dish from start to finish.

March 12 – View from up high
We’ve seen some stunning aerial photography on CNN iReport, and this weekend we want to see your best shots. Go somewhere up high this weekend and show us the view from above.

March 20 – Walk in Our Shoes
iReporters from around the globe will film a one-minute walk during a special assignment taking place Saturday, March 20, the first day of spring. Find out more details here.

March 26 – Operation payphone
Once a mainstay of city sidewalks and mysterious movie calls, it’s hard to find a payphone these days. We want you to go out and find a pay phone in their town, show us where it’s located and whether it’s used.

April 2 – Past meets present
We’re challenging you to find an old photograph of someplace nearby, then line it up and photograph the present-day view. This assignment is inspired by the Flickr group that issues the same challenge.

April 9 – $10 thrifty challenge
How far can $10 stretch? For our last weekend assignment, we’re asking you to spend $10 and show us what you purchased.

Stay tuned for more details. And enjoy this weekend’s mobile assignment.

Black billowing plumes of thick smoke rose from a building in the tech sector of Austin, Texas, as many commuters were heading to work this morning. A man harboring a grudge against the IRS had crashed a small plane into a building housing an IRS office. iReporters became CNN’s eyes, showing us dramatic images of the fire and telling us what was happening on the ground.

"It was pretty frightening at the time, but the whole building just shook violently. It felt like a bomb hit it,” says iReporter Ray Cano, who works in the building. “Everyone was running down the stairwell as fast as they could.”

Nearby, Ryan Hayes and his wife were driving along the highway when they noticed traffic was bottlenecking as cars passed the crash site. He happens to carry a camera with him in his car. He couldn’t believe that such a small plane could cause so much destruction.

In another neighborhood, a house that had been ablaze earlier in the morning became a piece of the puzzle. The pilot had lit his home on fire and left a suicide note before taking off in the plane.

Sherri Stepan lives two streets over from the pilot in the Scofield Farms subdivision. She says she didn't realize the burning house was connected until she heard about the plane crash on the news.

"It's a sad day for Austin. It's a sad day for my neighborhood too. This affects many people, and also that family," she said.

After hearing about climber Joseph Bohlig's fall into the volcanic crater of Mount St. Helens, Richard Keith Beckwith couldn't help but think about his niece Leigh Castleton's trip up the mountain just a few weeks before. Castleton had some footage from the late January climb, so Beckwith helped her share the video with CNN iReport under the username kbeckwith9.

Castleton says her trip was her first big mountain climb. The Portland, Oregon, resident had taken backpacking trips before, but nothing like this adventure. She says she felt lucky to be traveling with her local alpine club and an experienced crew. She advises anyone else to travel with people who know what they are doing. "It was a huge accomplishment for me anyway, but then when you hear things like that, the reality is that you have to be careful."

One incident stands out in her mind in which she feels her guides helped the group remain safe. Castleton says a climber got too close to the rim and accidentally knocked a protective snow cornice down toward the crater. He lost his footing and began to fall. Luckily, she says, he was able to stop himself from going into the crater, but she says the cornice made a thud when it went down.

"[The climber] was able to jump toward us. I heard the boom, and he was rolling down the mountain, and then he stopped and stood up and everyone was shocked because he didn't go down with it."

Bohlig is thought to have died after stepping onto a snow cornice to have a photo taken, causing the cornice to give way. Castleton says the climber she saw during her trip was "very, very fortunate." The kbeckwith9 video includes footage of the mountain before Castleton witnessed the climber get close to the ledge. She says hearing about a person actually falling down Mount St. Helens was both sobering and a reminder of the importance of having trained guides to show you how to remain safe during a climb. "They knew exactly where to draw that line," she said, referring literally and figuratively to a line in the snow pointing to where climbers shouldn't go. Near the end of the video, Castleton talks about the point where she couldn't get any closer to the edge for fear of falling off.

What are your thoughts on this news? Have you ever climbed Mount St. Helens or another peak? Share your story with us, and tell us how you stay safe.

When Sebastiano Puglia first met a young woman named Giovanna, he fell in love. He would write poems for her and recite them outside her window in hopes of winning her heart. His plan worked; they are still together after 65 years of marriage.

Laura Ricciardi, Sebastiano and Giovanna's granddaughter, shared their love story on CNN iReport just in time for Valentine's Day. "I think they have any amazingly strong relationship," she said. "I haven't been able to figure out their secret yet, but I do think it has to do with an incredible amount of mutual respect. And spunk. There's still so much fire between them."

Laura was one of several iReporters to share how-we-met stories just like the couples in "When Harry Met Sally." The submissions were just as delightful as the classic romantic comedy, which hit theaters 20 years ago.

Lulis and Mitch met on a rainy day in New York. They lived in different cities at the time, but now are happily married 15 years later. Al and Roberta met at a country club in California. Al waited more than an hour to ask Roberta to dance -- he was listening for a slow song. Becky and John (full disclosure: they’re my in-laws) admired each other at work and just celebrated 31 years of marriage. And an angry phone call brought Andy and Adriana together; you should hear their story – it's hilarious.

It was so fun to hear such sweet stories and inspiring to see couples who have found true love. Check here to watch all of the submissions, along with a couple from Team iReport. We hope you all have a happy Valentine’s Day!