Opinion
North Carolina reaches for the STARs
By deflating the credentialism bubble, we’ll help workers enter new occupations while also improving public services. Sounds like a win-win.
Opinion
NC court-imposed fines often trap those too poor to pay
Every year in North Carolina, citizens convicted of a crime are not just subjected to punishments like imprisonment and parole, they are also forced to pay millions of dollars in court fees, fines, and penalties. Although these Legal Financial Obligations (LFOs) are intended to be an alternative to imprisonment and help recoup to the state...
News
The shaky legal ground of Bank of America’s new race-based mortgage program
North Carolina’s largest corporation, Bank of America, received pushback after announcing last week they created a home loan program only available in black and Hispanic neighborhoods. Legal scholars told Carolina Journal that the program appears to violate federal civil rights laws by favoring certain racial groups over others. Bank of America, however, told Carolina Journal that the loans are legal under an exception in lending law.
Opinion
To brief or not to brief: Roy Cooper’s bad Hamlet act
We’re all more suspicious of public health guidance than we used to be, but pandemic policy forced me and my goombahs into meeting weekly over a Zoom video feed rather than across coffee shop tables. While there’s no substitute for ordering a macchiato under cafe speakers where Mick Jagger and his bandmates are oozing their...
Opinion
Federal civil rights leader pans university racial preferences
A member of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights says racial preferences in university admissions hurt the people they're designed to help.
Opinion
Law enforcement: Use caution when calling for sweeping policing reforms
In America 2020, protests and hashtags have replaced public policy debate and deliberative process. Giving into protesters demands to #DefundThePolice, the Minneapolis City Council pledged to “dismantle” the city’s police department. A note of caution. Take my words through the filter of a proud wife of a retired member of law enforcement. My husband spent...
Opinion
Judicial Appointment Proposal Would Silence The Voice of the People
RALEIGH — Under the proposed system, debates over the merits of potential judges would be moved from the public square to private clubs.
Opinion
CEO Gets a Bum Rap
A federal Department of Education examination of admissions policies at N.C. State University does not reflect an attempt by a Washington-area think tank to reduce the ranks of minority students on campus.
Opinion
Speaking of Diversity. . .
If anyone thought there was a uniform, predictable position on affirmative action on the "Right," the reaction to this week's Supreme Court decision has squashed that notion.
Opinion
Call. 92: N.C. School Mascots May Violate Federal Law
The mascots of two North Carolina colleges may violate federal antidiscrimination laws, under the wording of a statement released in April by the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights.
Opinion
Call. 77: Dropping Scores to Admit More Minorities Means “Strange Bedfellows”
Large public university systems in California, Texas and Florida may have increased minority enrollment in the face of an end to affirmative action. But the change may not be the result of increased minority test performance. In fact, many schools are dropping the SAT and ACT academic achievement exams as admissions requirements altogether, according to a recent USA Today report, automatically admitting students who are top-ranked in their high schools.
