Author: The Carolinian

WUNC - The story of school integration in Wake County begins with a young boy who was not the first to desegregate a local school. But he was the first Black student to try. Now 83, Joseph H. Holt, Jr. remembers first hearing about the Brown vs. Board of Education ruling in a current events class at the all-Black Oberlin Elementary in 1954. In that landmark decision, the U.S. Supreme

[caption id="attachment_20667" align="alignnone" width="880"] Folger Shakespeare Library[/caption] THE GUARDIAN - "William Shakespeare was a black woman." In 1985, Maya Angelou spoke these words as part of a keynote speech at a convention in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. There, she spoke of the role poetry played in her transition from muteness as a child and how she fantasized herself triumphantly delivering Portia's speech from William Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice in front

WFAE - The news conference was supposed to be an update on the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department's third-quarter crime statistics. But when Chief Estella Patterson stepped to the lectern, she had something else to address first: reports that six CMPD officers were under investigation over racist and sexist messages shared in a group text. Patterson said the reports left her feeling "disgust, anger, frustration." "As a Black woman who began my

Tracing a family tree or curious about the stories behind the people and places that shaped the community? Wake County Public Libraries offers resources to help residents explore family histories and connect with the community's past. Olivia Raney Local History Library, the system's local history and genealogy branch, houses more than 100 archival collections representing local people and families, community organizations, businesses, religious and political groups, schools and more. The

RALEIGH, NC - For many people, owning a home is a source of pride and a foundation for putting down roots in a community. At the same time homeownership comes with the ongoing cost of keeping that home safe and in good condition. When a roof starts leaking, an HVAC system fails or major electrical or plumbing repairs are needed, the cost can quickly become more than a family can

KFF Health News-If you have medical debt, there's a good chance you owe money to a hospital. One way patients can avoid medical debt is through hospital financial assistance, also known as charity care. Most of the nation's hospitals offer free or discounted medical care to patients with very high medical debt or low incomes. Getting financial assistance, however, can be challenging. Many patients don't know that hospitals offer financial

Phillip Arthur Spence peacefully transitioned from labor to reward on September 21, 2026, a the age of 72, leaving a legacy rooted in faith, family, education, basketball, and a lifelong commitment to helping young people recognize the greatness within themselves. Phil was born to the late Arthur Lee Perkins and Maggie Lee Southerland Spence, the youngest of six children. Born and raised on the south side of Raleigh, Phil's life

WILLIAMSBURG, Va. (AP) - The reconstruction of one of the nation's oldest Black churches, where congregants gathered in secret before building a meeting house in Virginia, was celebrated Friday. Hundreds of residents gathered for a community-wide re-dedication of the original First Baptist Church of Williamsburg, which was established in 1776 by enslaved and free African Americans in defiance of laws that prevented them from congregating. In 1805, its original parishioners

RALEIGH, N.C. (October 11, 2026) - What is possible when people who live, work, learn, build and invest in themselves and their families in the same community take the time to break bread together and get to know one another? That question was at the heart of the Love Is Local Raleigh Sunday Supper, where Southeast Raleigh Promise celebrated 10 years of community impact by bringing residents, businesses, and partners

AP NEWS - An effort to address decades of underfunding at some historically Black colleges and universities kicked off Wednesday with a lawsuit against the state of Missouri. Students and graduates of Lincoln University in the state's capital of Jefferson City allege the lack of financial resources undercut their education and devalued their degrees. More than a dozen other states are in the crosshairs of a newly formed group called