Recently, the American Academy of Pediatrics reaffirmed its policy statement on corporal punishment in the public schools, calling for the practice to be abolished in all states by law and replaced by alternative forms of student behavior management.
The energy transition could help our democracy flourish. But, in North Carolina, powerful industries and their political allies are doing everything they can to roll back progress – wasting our money and keeping us locked into an outdated and polluting fossil fuel economy.
Imagine yourself in the following situation: Your children lack decent clothing and shoes and depend on reduced-price school meals to meet their weekly nutrition requirements.
Perhaps it was wishful thinking. More than two months ago in this space, I explained why a seemingly innocuous state House bill is actually a hugely dangerous example of big government treading in an area in which it has no rightful place.
Last week, North Carolina Election Integrity Team (NCEIT) President and Lee County GOP Chair Jim Womack said the quiet part out loud when he told news reporters he would “fundamentally disagree” with the notion that more people voting helps conservatives.
What determines who knows best how to keep our communities safe? Is it a mandate from voters to prioritize certain policies? Is it expertise in law enforcement leadership?
In recent years, state courts have been rare bright spots in the fight against gerrymandering, with voters around the country successfully using state constitutions to challenge politically skewed voting maps drawn by both major parties.
In March, an appeals court affirmed the historic $75 million in damages that a jury granted to Henry McCollum and Leon Brown, brothers who were sentenced to death in Robeson County in 1983 and spent 30 years in prison for a murder they didn’t commit, and who’s case was plagued by systemic racism.
There are many factors that go into building and sustaining a strong and healthy democracy: free, clean and transparently funded elections; inclusive suffrage; freedom of speech and association; an independent news media; predictable and reliable law enforcement; and an absence of widespread corruption.
The extreme weather that has battered much of the U.S. in 2022 doesn’t just affect humans.
