Author: Jordan Meadows

[caption id="attachment_19156" align="alignnone" width="1536"] State Auditor Dave Boliek compared the economic cost of the state's inefficient DMV to the damage brought by Hurricane Helene, and called for a similarly extensive response on Monday, August 4, 2025. (Photo: Brandon Kingdollar/NC Newsline)[/caption] By: Jordan Meadows Staff Writer North Carolina State Auditor Dave Boliek said his office uncovered a growing pattern of financial mismanagement across municipalities and public institutions statewide, with a series

[caption id="attachment_19151" align="alignnone" width="1536"] The first protester rises at the House Rules Committee on Wednesday, June 24, 2026, moments before members of the public are ejected from the auditorium. (Photo: Brandon Kingdollar/NC Newsline)[/caption] By: Jordan Meadows Staff Writer Gov. Josh Stein chastised state Republicans at the state Democratic Party's Unity Dinner in Raleigh on Saturday, escalating a months-long feud with GOP lawmakers and Republican State Auditor Dave Boliek over control

By: Jordan Meadows Staff Writer The Trump administration has halted plans to place abolitionist Harriet Tubman on the $20 bill, ending a decade-long effort that began under President Barack Obama's administration and was revived under President Joe Biden. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said last Monday that the department is "not at present" moving forward with the redesign, prompting criticism from Democratic lawmakers who argue the decision abandons years of bipartisan

By Jordan Meadows Staff Writer Historians examining colonial and antebellum North Carolina are continuing to uncover how enslaved people exercised agency in their daily lives, often through clandestine spiritual and medical practices rooted in African traditions, according to compiled archival records and academic research. These practices-commonly referred to as Hoodoo, Obeah, or conjuring-blended herbal knowledge, ritual, and belief systems to influence health, relationships, and, at times, the balance of power

[caption id="attachment_19007" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Screenshot from a surveillance video from inside a North Carolina jail (June 3, 2026).[/caption] By Jordan Meadows Staff Writer Recent inmate escapes and security incidents across North Carolina have renewed attention on how correctional facilities track and respond to escapes. The North Carolina Department of Adult Correction (DAC) and local sheriff's offices track several types of escapes each year, including inmates leaving secure facilities, walking away

By Jordan Meadows Staff Writer The North Carolina Gang Prevention and Intervention Task Force convened in Raleigh Tuesday morning with law enforcement, public safety officials, and community leaders as the state grapples with a recent surge in youth-related violence and "teen takeover" incidents in the capital city. The meeting, held at the Governor's Crime Commission and streamed online, was led by co-chairs Leslie Cooley Dismukes, secretary of the Department of

By Jordan Meadows Staff Writer Voting rights organizations gathered outside the North Carolina Legislative Building Monday morning to mark 100 days until Election Day and call on state lawmakers to reject what advocates described as efforts to create additional barriers to voting. The event, titled "100 Days Out: Voting Rights Groups to Launch Countdown to Election Day," brought together representatives from Forward Justice, Common Cause North Carolina, the North Carolina

By Jordan Meadows Staff Writer The only freedmen's schoolhouse known to remain standing in North Carolina was formally dedicated in Smithfield, capping nearly a decade of preservation work and drawing community leaders, historians and descendants of the formerly enslaved people who built and attended the school more than 150 years ago. The ceremony was held on Juneteenth at First Missionary Baptist Church before a ribbon-cutting and public tours of the

By Jordan Meadows Staff Writer The Food Bank of Central & Eastern North Carolina is continuing its "Stop Summer Hunger" campaign through July 31 as officials warn of what they describe as the most severe hunger crisis in generations across the region. The campaign, which focuses on addressing food insecurity during the summer months when school meals are unavailable, aims to provide 7 million meals to families across central and

By Jordan Meadows Staff Writer Book Harvest NC hosted its sixth annual Summer Block Party on Saturday at Durham Central Park, offering families across the region a free afternoon of books, live entertainment and community activities. The centerpiece of the event was a collection of 15,000 free children's books available for kids from infants through high schoolers to take home and keep. The books are described as culturally inclusive and