Gut-amend-release. How NC’s translucent lawmaking tactics hurt democracy.

WFAE - What you see is not always what you get in the North Carolina legislature. For decades, lawmakers have used a "gut-and-amend" strategy to quickly pass legislation without much, if any, time for the public, opposing advocacy groups - and sometimes, other lawmakers - to weigh in. This year, an effort to regulate cellphone use in schools transformed into an anti-squatter law. A campaign finance bill turned into a

Greg Rice and the Foundations of BCG Concrete Construction

By Jheri Hardaway Staff Writer In the world of commercial construction, "solid foundations" usually refers to the PSI of a concrete slab. But for Greg Rice, founder of BCG Concrete Construction, the foundation of his firm is built on something far more enduring: a commitment to Christian values, family legacy, and a standard of customer service that he feels the industry has long missed. I recently sat down with Greg

Trying to improve your health and wellness in 2026?

AP NEWS - The new year is a time when many try to start new good habits and commit to improving health and wellness. But resolutions, lofty as they may be, can turn daunting quickly with all the advice and sometimes contradicting information coming at you from news reports, advertisers, influencers, friends and even politicians. But they don't have to be. This year, The Associated Press got the downlow on

Tarboro Road Tradition Serves Holiday Joy At Breakfast With Santa

  By Judaea Ingram Staff Writer The line stretched out the door as cars filled the parking lot and spilled onto Tarboro Road outside the Tarboro Road Community Center, where hundreds of families gathered Saturday morning for the 44th annual Breakfast With Santa, a holiday tradition rooted in the Tarboro Road community and led for decades by Octavia Rainey. Held from 10 a.m. to noon on the Saturday before Christmas,

Older Black Men Are Affected More By The Overdose Crisis

By Dr. Nora Volkow NIH Saturday, August 31, was International Overdose Awareness Day, when we collectively remember those who have lost their lives to drug overdose, support those who grieve those losses, and offer encouragement to those who seek recovery from addiction. It is also an opportunity to share new knowledge about the overdose crisis and strategies for confronting it. There is some very good news this year: Provisional data

People’s Champ Bass Distinguished For Community Uplift

RALEIGH, N.C. - Boxed lunches eased appetites during North Carolina Black Alliance's (NCBA) midyear retreat at a Southeast Raleigh church in August. There Marcus Bass was after lunch breaking down the boxes for easier disposal, going about the task with a certain vigor, like he was the clean-up man for the church. Bass is NCBA's deputy director. He's a big deal. Yet he cared about the person whose job at

‘Our Homes Shook’: Nigerian Villagers Describe U.S. Airstrike Impact

[caption id="attachment_15363" align="alignnone" width="900"] Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.People visit the site of a U.S. airstrike in Northwest, Jabo, Nigeria, Friday, Dec. 26, 2025. (AP Photo/ Tunde Omolehin)[/caption] JABO, Nigeria (AP) - Sanusi Madabo, a 40-year-old farmer in the Nigerian village of Jabo, was preparing for bed on Thursday night when he heard a loud noise that sounded like a plane crashing. He rushed outside his mud

Howell-Bey Leaning In And Listening In Johnston County

RALEIGH, N.C. - Try as some might to confine Black history to a month, there's just too much to limit it to 28 days a year. Faith Howell-Bey discovered similarly with Women's History Month. "When I first created Queens Table Brunch, it was envisioned as a one-time Women's History Month event highlighting the work and legacy of Shaundrelle Watson. She's the founder of The Brown & Black Cultural Exchange, a

An inside look at some NC environmental justice projects impacted by Trump administration’s EPA cuts

[caption id="attachment_15334" align="alignnone" width="1760"] Democracy Green "What's in Your Water" campaign in Raleigh, NC.[/caption] WUNC - When the Trump administration terminated the nearly $2 billion EPA Community Change Grant Program earlier this year, organizations across the nation lost millions of dollars in environmental justice grants. In North Carolina, the birthplace of the environmental justice movement, three organizations have lost more than $41 million in grants combined, due to the termination

Losing Speed. Tiny NC town on verge of shutting down.

[caption id="attachment_15328" align="alignnone" width="780"] Welcome sign to the town of Speed, in eastern Edgecombe County. Lucas Thomae / Carolina Public Press[/caption] Carolina Public Press - SPEED - Despite its name, life moves slowly in the Town of Speed. So does its municipal government, which has been pressured by the state's Local Government Commission to dissolve voluntarily after falling way behind on mandatory financial reports. Speed, a 0.3-square-mile parcel of land