Charlotte
New jobs report: Big recovery in largest metro areas, most of the state still lagging
The last North Carolina jobs report for 2022 was just released, and the NC Budget & Tax Center published a detailed analysis Wednesday. Good news? Bad news? It really depends how you look at it — and especially where you look. North Carolina added more than 190,000 jobs in 2022. That isn’t just good — […]
Voters embraced affordable housing initiatives. Advocates say Congress should do the same.
Bond referenda successes in Buncombe County and Charlotte seen as emblematic of growing national support Voters in Colorado approved a statewide affordable housing initiative in November; while voters in nine communities across the country (including two in North Carolina) OK’d measures to finance the construction of affordable housing, preserve existing rental properties and support renters. But as housing costs soar, analysts and advocates say more needs to be done and argue that federal action is needed.
North Carolina communities making LGBTQ equality gains, according to annual report
North Carolina towns and cities are largely scoring higher on LGBTQ equality measures, according to a new study from The Human Rights Campaign. The national LGBTQ advocacy organization released its annual Municipal Equality Index Wednesday, scoring more than 500 cities across the country on 49 different criteria with regard to law, policies and services of […]
Monday numbers: A closer look at the relative well-being of LGBTQ Americans
Last week Charlotte became the latest — and, by far, largest — North Carolina community to pass new LGBTQ-inclusive non-discrimination protections. The new protections come five years after state lawmakers and then-Gov. Pat McCrory passed HB 2, preventing local governments from introducing new non-discrimination ordinances.
Charlotte latest city to expand LGBTQ protections
The Charlotte City Council unanimously approved new non-discrimination protections Monday, completing the work state lawmakers blocked with the passage of HB2 and its ensuing national controversy five years ago. A ban on such local non-discrimination ordinances expired last year. On Monday, Charlotte became the tenth community — and by far the largest — to pass […]
Charlotte PD settles civil rights suit, promises to stop using tear gas on protesters
In a settlement with civil rights groups, the city of Charlotte and the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department agreed to abide by directives geared toward a more peaceful response to protests, including a ban on the use of tear gas and the practice of corralling crowds, according to a press release distributed Friday by legal groups representing the […]
Charlotte Mayor: It’s time to be uncomfortable about race
As the public expresses outrage over the death of George Floyd and the weekend shooting of Rayshard Brooks in Atlanta, Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles writes that quick police reforms and hastily appointed task forces are not enough this time. We need to have uncomfortable discussions about race, and be comfortable with being uncomfortable. Here’s more […]
Cooper rejects GOP’s calls for a full-scale convention in August
Gov. Roy Cooper responded today to calls for the Republican National Convention to proceed as normal, rejecting the idea of a “full convention.” On Saturday, Ronna McDaniel and Marcia Kelly, chairwoman and the CEO of the Republican National Convention, respectively, sent Cooper a letter asking for a “full convention” with hotels, restaurants and bars reopened […]
How Cooper should respond to Trump’s mad convention rant
It will probably be a difficult task given the political realities that accompany demands issued by the President of the United States, but Gov. Roy Cooper should, if at all possible, ignore yesterday’s Trump tantrum about the planned GOP convention in Charlotte this summer. As you’ve probably heard by now, King Donald decreed that he […]
Hotel chain on use of its Charlotte facility by group featuring extremist speakers: “Meh”
As Policy Watch reported earlier this morning, a growing number of voices are calling on Lt. Gov. Dan Forest to withdraw from next week’s “North Carolina Renewal Project” event at the Renaissance Charlotte Suites Hotel. This includes the Washington, DC-based Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) which decried the idea of a public official like Forest […]
Amid resegregation fears, North Carolina House approves controversial municipal charter bill
On Wednesday, members of the N.C. House of Representatives were prepared to cast a vote on town-run charter schools with major ramifications for the future of public education, but Rep. Kelly Alexander’s mind was on the past. In the late 1950s, as Alexander explained, some North Carolinians were urging state lawmakers to pursue predominantly white […]
As lawmakers clash over race and re-segregation, N.C. Senate votes to approve controversial municipal charter bill
“Are you a racist?” Sen. Bill Cook, a Republican representing eight counties in northeast North Carolina, asked the rhetorical question of Sen. Dan Bishop, a Mecklenburg County Republican supporting a controversial state House-approved bill that would potentially clear town-run charters in several Charlotte suburbs. The local bill, which opponents argue to have statewide implications, survived—passing […]