Greensboro Officials Host Community Conversation
Greensboro residents packed into the Carolina Theater Wednesday to talk about race, policing, and equality for minority residents.
It was a tough conversation. But the phrase “revolutionary love” came up a lot last night, as both a term of endearment and a call to help residents of every race understand one another.
During the two-hour discussion, panelists talked about policing, the justice system, and local government as agents of both oppression and change when it comes to the black community.
Michelle Alexander, author of “The New Jim Crow,” said the laws of the land are contributing to systemic discrimination in a way that keeps the cycle of oppression ongoing.
Greensboro Mayor Nancy Vaughan was a panelist at the event. She said the city is working hard to eradicate bias and continue the conversation about race across the city at large.
Triad Stage To Cut Budget And Staffing
A Piedmont theatrical institution is facing budget cuts.
Triad Stage will produce eight plays next season instead of nine in Greensboro and Winston-Salem, and will cut several full-time staffing positions.
The company is also reducing year-round operations to a season that runs from September to early May.
Triad Stage co-founder Richard Whittington tells the News and Record of Greensboro the theater faced an operating deficit of almost $410,000 in the last fiscal year.
Whittington says that with the budget changes and added contributions, he believes the theater can break even this year.
Triad Stage made its debut in 2002, but despite artistic success, it's struggled to support itself with ticket sales and donations.
Firefighters In Greensboro And Charlotte Hit By Car Break-Ins
Authorities in Charlotte and Greensboro say firefighters in their cities have been the targets of car break-ins during the last several weeks.
Charlotte Fire Department spokeswoman Cynthia Robbins Shah-Khan said there have been at least a dozen break-ins at the city's fire stations over the last 10 days. Shah-Khan said the break-ins started on the weekend of Feb. 13 and continued through last Friday morning, when two more stations were targeted. In all, five stations have been hit.
In Greensboro, officials say 11 Greensboro firefighters were the victims of car break-ins Tuesday night. Another break-in was reported out in the county, and officials are trying to determine if the crimes are related.
Police in both cities are seeking information that will lead to suspects.
Group Wants Investigation Of McCrory, Pro-Bond Committees
The head of a left-leaning advocacy group wants North Carolina election regulators to investigate the relationship between a committee pushing to pass a $2 billion bond question next month and Gov. Pat McCrory's campaign.
Wednesday's complaint filed by Gerrick Brenner with Progress North Carolina Action focuses on a video advertisement featuring McCrory, who has championed the bond package. In the video, the governor talks about the state's growth and says the debt won't require a tax increase.
The complaint says the ad went beyond rules laid out by the State Board of Elections about what role 2016 candidates could have in a referendum committee's work.
Leaders of the Connect NC pro-bond committee say they've complied with the board guidelines. The board wants a committee response by next Tuesday.
4 Democratic Senate Hopefuls Participating In TV Debate
The four North Carolina Democrats seeking to win their party's nomination for U.S. Senate are meeting for a televised debate the week before in-person early voting begins.
Kevin Griffin of Durham, Ernest Reeves of Greenville, Chris Rey of Spring Lake and Deborah Ross of Raleigh were slated to appear in Thursday night's debate at the WRAL-TV studios in Raleigh. The March 15 primary winner is seeking to replace Republican incumbent Richard Burr, who has his own primary against three GOP challengers.
Ross is a former state House member who secured the most campaign money early in the Democratic race. Rey is Spring Lake's mayor and Reeves is an Army veteran. Griffin operates an employment staffing company.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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