Progressive Voices
NC physician shares her patient’s painful abortion dilemma
I am a family doctor in North Carolina and taking holistic care of people during their pregnancy as part of my daily job. This includes counseling about genetic testing, medication safety during pregnancy, managing miscarriage, and discussing abortion. I share with permission a patient story that is powerful, and sadly, not unique. The female body […]
How and why did my choices become a political statement?
For the past decade, anti-abortion lawmakers have needlessly and relentlessly attacked our right to bodily autonomy, and our right to access safe and legal abortion care in North Carolina. These lawmakers have been especially ruthless this session in their attempt to take away the right of all North Carolinians to access an abortion. Access to […]
What’s behind the Republican attack on accreditation?
If you were going to spend thousands of dollars seeking a college degree, you’d want to be sure to get your money’s worth: knowledge vetted by subject-matter experts; teachers who use the best practices to promote student growth; and a range of experiences that help you discover and develop your potentials. You’d want to avoid […]
Bill to override sheriffs on immigration enforcement is dangerous and undemocratic
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? Over the last four years, voters in each of North Carolina’s counties have expressed their democratic will and selected sheriffs across the state that they trust to […]
UNC experts: Abortion ban proposal is not what sponsors say it is
By Maxine Eichner, Professor, UNC School of Law; Amy Bryant, MD, MSCR; Mimi Chapman, Professor, UNC School of Social Work; Sian Curtis, Professor, UNC School of Public Health; Rebecca Kreitzer, Associate Professor, UNC, Department of Public Policy; Jessica Morse, MD, MPH; Erica Pettigrew, MD, JD, MPH; Alison M. Stuebe, MD, MSc; and Jennifer Tang, MD, MSCR, […]
Is this really the North Carolina we want?
There are few days that go by that I don’t have a moment of appreciation for the beauty around us in North Carolina. The trees, the hiking trails, the flowers… It’s quite amazing. I seem to notice it even more lately, as Spring has taken its time. As I had another of these moments recently, […]
On transgender student athletes: Just let them play
I received some needed clarity from an unlikely source while working on a column about recent legislation that has passed the House of Representatives targeting transgender athletes. “Trans Marathoner Defeats 14,000 Women in Race after Competing as Man Months Earlier,” reads the National Review headline. The wording seems to support the contention that transgender people […]
NC Supreme Court gerrymandering reversal highlights urgent need for congressional action
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. But growing momentum in state courts took a stumble last week with the deeply troubling decision by the North Carolina Supreme Court to […]
North Carolina GOP legislators promote ignorance for partisan gain
If social scientists who study inequality agree that white people enjoy more favorable treatment, relative to Black people, in the labor market, schools, the health care system, and the courts, and if this pattern of advantage is well documented by solid research, should a group of non-expert legislators be able to keep this knowledge from students because it might cause discomfort?
North Carolina physician: Proposed abortion restrictions threaten the practice of medicine
Bills that elevate politics over science, research and training are an attack on the integrity of the medical profession As a doctor about to finish residency after multiple years of training, I have never been so worried about the future of medical practice.
NC Freedom to Vote Act would protect and improve our democracy
The freedom to vote has faced serious challenges in recent years. New voting restrictions, rampant disinformation, threats to voters and election officials, and even violent attempts to overturn election results have led to growing concern about the future of our democracy and election process.
The 2023 legislative session: Out of the starting gate — sideways
We weren’t expecting it to be pretty – “it” being the launch of the N.C. General Assembly’s new session, with freshly emboldened conservatives eager to flex their muscles. The reality, one month after things got under way, hasn’t failed to disappoint. Two themes stand out: