What the General Assembly wants, however, is in stark contrast to what the children of North Carolina need. In their pursuit to destroy public education via budgets that cut funding, school vouchers that favor private companies, and the elimination of master’s degree pay, the legislature shows how little they care about the quality and longevity of those educating our kids. I am a seventh year teacher whose pay is frozen at the second year rung of the pay scale, in the state with the 4th worst teacher pay in the country. I have seen dozens of excellent teachers move on to other professions or other states so they could sustain themselves and their families. At my school, students regularly ask new teachers “will you be here next year?” because they are so used to our terrible turnover rates.

It’s not just education legislation that is bent on destroying our most vulnerable communities through persistent instability. The General Assembly is curbing voting rights, letting unemployment benefits expire, and repealing the Racial Justice Act, all while giving tax breaks to corporate giants. My students aren’t naïve. They know that their communities are being marginalized.

Read the full statement here:

Patheos – The Heart of a Teacher, the Soul of Our State

Via WRAL:

However, the measure has been modified from earlier version so as not to conflict with federal law. As originally drafted, the bill would have require local DSS offices to send information to law enforcement. The measure now requires the state Social Service Commission to develop rules for information.

According to the committee’s staff, those rules will likely require law enforcement to request certain information on recipients rather than have DSS workers automatically hand it over.

WRAL – Background checks for benefits advances

A bill filed in response to HB 392 requiring the Department of Commerce to conduct criminal history checks on CEOs and CFOs of applicants for Job Development Investment Grants never made it out of committee.

Related stories:

House passes background checks for public assistance applicants

Background checks for CEOs?

Bill would require DSS to perform criminal background checks

Via PPP:

The first choice of GOP voters by a wide margin is Virginia Foxx who’s at 23%,giving her a 12 point edge on runner up Phil Berger at 11%. Rounding out the field after Tillis and Ellmers are Jim Cain at 8%, Greg Brannon at 7%, Mark Harris at 4%, and Lynn Wheeler at 3%.

Foxx’s early lead is being driven by the right wing of the Republican Party. Among voters identifying themselves as ‘very conservative,’ she’s at 32% with Ellmers next at 12%. But even with moderates Foxx leads the way at 23% to 11% for Cain. Foxx also has the strongest geographic base of any of the candidates, polling at 55% in the Triad while no one else gets over 25% in their home base.

Voters continue to be closely divided in their feelings about Kay Hagan- 41% approve of her to 42% who disapprove. But with Cherie Berry, who had been the strongest Republican candidate in polling, out of the race Hagan is now back to leading the entire GOP field in head to head match ups.

PPP — Foxx leads NC Republican wish list

Full results and crosstabs (pdf)

Via Public Policy Polling:

Via the News & Observer:

Koster, a museum professional from Baltimore who started as head of the Natural Sciences Museum in January, said he has been conducting an evaluation of the operations of the Natural Sciences Museum and is in the process of preparing a white paper.

As part of the larger study, Koster said, he is looking at the relationship between Natural Sciences Museum, the research center, its science education efforts and other programs.

Brad Ives, assistant secretary of the N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources, which oversees the museum, said in a statement that the science museum and the research center were one entity and should not receive “separate treatment.”

Ives said he worked with Koster to find a way to best use Lowman’s “superb academic reputation and networking and fundraising talents for the benefit of the entire museum.”

News & Observer - Star scientist out as head of Nature Research Center

Members of the scientific community have questioned the decision to transition Lowman out of a leadership position. Kate Clancy, blogger for Scientific American, called the move “a massive waste of talent,” and pointed out that Lowman’s new role “appears to carry no significant responsibilities, and no one reporting to her.”

Via Scientific American:

There has been no news since the original story. No answers for those of us who are great admirers of Canopy Meg as a scientist, a communicator, and a female leader. I have heard that there are many outstanding female scientists who are devastated by the restructuring of the Nature Research Center’s leadership, and especially the loss of Meg.

The Nature Research Center’s core mission according to its website is to “bring research scientists and their work into the public eye, help demystify what can be an intimidating field of study, better prepare science educators and students, and inspire a new generation of young scientists.” This seems inconsistent with the restructuring going on there, especially removing a woman who has done so much for science and underrepresented people in science.

Scientific American – Why has Canopy Meg been ousted?

84 protestors were arrested for civil disobedience during the seventh week of Moral Monday protests, bringing the total arrested since April to more than 450.

Via WRAL:

Barber said before the protests that the next two Mondays will include mass rallies along the lines of an earlier week. The legislature is expected to wrap up its regular yearly session in the coming weeks.

Barber said in an interview earlier in the day that the NAACP will continue leading events that bring greater attention to the policies of the legislature even after it adjourns.

“This is not a temporary exercise in futility,” he said. “This is a movement.”

WRAL - NC NAACP protest ends with over 80 arrests

More information:

WRAL – Researchers find “Moral Monday” crowd mostly from North Carolina

Forward Together - Education on the Forward Together Movement

The Huffington Post – Moral Mondays: A Model Grassroots Movement

The American Prospect – The Man Behind Moral Mondays

Related stories:

Moral Monday: June 10, 2013

151 arrested at ‘Mega Moral Monday’ protest

Moral Monday: May 20, 2013

Moral Monday: May 13, 2013

Few in North Carolina may remember or know of the North Carolina Fund. In 1963, it formed the centerpiece of the state’s comprehensive assault on poverty. It was a signature initiative of Gov. Terry Sanford, incorporating grass-roots efforts with public and private supports and strategies. It was the first project of its kind in the nation, and reportedly inspired President Lyndon Johnson’s War on Poverty, and Congress’s approval of his 1964 anti-poverty measures.

A similar focus is needed to effectively tackle concentrated and generational poverty in North Carolina today. And like Sanford, Gov. Pat McCrory could take a leadership role in making it happen. Policies and strategies from the 1960s brought better education, job training, child tutoring, daycare and other economic development strategies to communities statewide and helped boost the prospects of millions of residents.

Via The Charlotte Observer:

“RJA has only been able to be used in cases we know we have a cold-blooded, first-degree murderer who attempts to call the District Attorney a racist and himself the victim,” said Sen. Thom Goolsby, R-New Hanover and the bill’s lead sponsor.

Republicans have veto-proof majorities in both chambers of the General Assembly.

Democrats argue there’s plenty of evidence that those juries are racially biased. They cite a Michigan State University study of North Carolina that found evidence of prosecutors striking black jurors from capital cases at more than twice the rate of others over two decades.

Charlotte Observer – Racial Justice Act repeal heads to NC Gov. McCrory 

More information about the prevalence of racially-biased capital cases in North Carolina and the constitutional issues that the Racial Justice Act addresses.

Read the full text of the bill here.

Related stories:

House votes to repeal Racial Justice Act

View the rest of our photos on The Carolina Mercury facebook page.

The sixth wave of Moral Monday protests netted 85 arrests, bringing the total arrested in the past month and a half to nearly 400. 1,400 people braved the stormy weather to support those participating.

This week’s demonstration was lead by religious leaders from across the state, and many of the people arrested were members of the clergy.

From a joint statement released by Episcopal, Lutheran, Presbyterian, Roman Catholic, and United Methodist leaders:

As you read this letter, the North Carolina General Assembly is passing bills that will remove 500,000 people from the Medicaid roles leaving them without health insurance; that will remove 170,000 people from unemployment when unemployment rates remain at historically high levels; that threaten to replace the graduated state income tax with a consumption tax that will adversely impact the poorest North Carolinians who will face increased prices on basic goods; that will force college students to return to their often distant homes to vote or cost their parents their $2,500 dependency deduction…. These and many other bills will adversely impact those who can least afford it and therefore demand a fervent response from people of faith!

From a statement of support released by Jewish clergy:

It is our view that the current General Assembly has failed in its pursuit of justice. It has purposelessly prevented 500,000 North Carolinians from obtaining health care; slashed education funding for the poorest children in the state; proposed a tax policy that will further burden poor families, while offering tax breaks to the wealthy; singled out immigrants for special legal harassment; and attempted to restrict the voting rights of thousands of North Carolinians.

Charlotte Observer religion reporter Tim Funk was also among those charged with trespassing. Funk, clearly wearing press identification and taking notes, was arrested as he interviewed protestors after the police issued a dispersal order.

Via News & Record:

“If you’ve got one media there, all media’s entitled to be there, right?” Weaver said this morning, in a telephone interview. “They were given three orders to disperse … and he refused to do that.”

But that refusal wasn’t specific, Weaver acknowledged. It’s not like Funk told an officer, “no.” He simply “stayed among the people,” Weaver said.

Via The Charlotte Observer:

“We believe there was no reason to detain him,” said Cheryl Carpenter, Observer managing editor. “He wasn’t there to do anything but report the story, to talk to Charlotte clergy. He was doing his job in a public place.”

Story of America caught the arrest on film:

Also of note, U.S. Rep. G. K. Butterfield (NC-01) gave a speech during the rally. The congressman told protestors that his colleagues in Washington are paying attention to what’s happening in North Carolina.

“The nation is watching,” Butterfield said.

Butterfield is the first federal elected official to participate in the protests.

Media coverage of the protests has increased as the movement continues. This week The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, The Huffington Post, and The Guardian all published lengthy stories on the demonstrations, while last week Melissa Harris-Perry hosted an entire show on the issue.

Here’s Melissa Harris-Perry’s interview with NC NAACP President Rev. William Barber about the origins of the Moral Monday movement:

Watch the rest of Melissa Harris-Perry’s coverage here.

The next Moral Monday will take place June 17th, and will focus on healthcare and environmental justice. More information here.

More information:

The New York Times – Protests in North Carolina challenge conservative shift in state politics

The singing stopped. Hands went behind backs. While hundreds of people watched from the rotunda that separates the House from the Senate chambers here, officers slipped plastic cuffs onto Duke University professors, ministers, teachers and union members, who were charged with trespassing and other minor crimes. Even a Charlotte newspaper reporter was arrested as he took notes.

Los Angeles Times – In North Carolina, political protesters welcome arrest

“I wanted to be a part of this, and to be heard,” Cayer, a Unitarian Universalist minister from Durham, said moments before a police officer gently wrapped plastic flex cuffs on her wrists and led her off to jail. Her button read, “Forward together — not one step back” — a theme of the more than 380 protesters arrested in the six weekly protests held so far.

The Huffington Post – North Carolina Moral Monday protests split on Bible’s message to help poor

Robert Daniels, senior pastor at St. John’s Missionary Baptist Church in Durham, said Monday that he chose to get arrested to let legislators know that disproportionately hurting the poor wouldn’t go unnoticed by voters or God.

“I want them to know that justice will win,” he said. “God will show his hand that he’s for the poor. It’s only a matter of time.”

The Guardian - Our message to North Carolina’s GOP: ‘Moral Mondays’ are here to stay

The appeal for each Moral Monday has been the same: urging legislators to govern for the good of the whole, rather than for the wealthy. We didn’t come to this decision lightly. In fact, we made several attempts to meet with the far-right legislative leadership. Governor Pat McCrory invited us to his house for a 20-minute chat. We said we wanted to work with him to be sure he governed for the good of the whole, as the US constitution requires him to do. But it was clear he was marching to the beat of a different drummer.

News & Observer – Clergy lead Monday protests at General Assembly

“Many of us have previously attempted to reach out to Assembly leaders for dialogue, and we have been ignored,” the rabbis said. “We therefore endorse the use of nonviolent civil disobedience to draw attention to the reckless and heartless policies currently passing into law in Raleigh. … We recognize the need for solidarity at this time in North Carolina. The Jewish vision of social justice is broadly shared by all people of faith who are mobilizing this Monday, and now is the time to speak out.”

WRAL – More than 80 arrested at NC NAACP demonstrations

Butterfield called proposed GOP legislation “absolutely disgusting” and “devastating to low-income people.”

He also said his colleagues in Washington are taking notice.

“It is a widespread movement that is gaining momentum,” Butterfield said. “The nation is watching.”

MsSpentyouth’s account of her arrest on DailyKos:

Without saying anything, Wayne and one of his colleagues led an increasingly nervous me out of the magistrate’s offices and into the release area, and as we turned a corner and the three of us were alone in a hallway, Wayne leaned in and said with a wink and a smile, “I just knewyou were going to be here one Monday. Thank you for all you’ve been doing these past weeks and months, and thanks to all of you for what you’re doing tonight. It matters.” Teary-eyed, I leaned into his hug as we entered the release area and I was given back a large envelope with my water bottle, cell phone, keys, and identification. Wayne and I shook hands as I headed toward the door and freedom.

Related stories:

Butterfield to join Moral Monday protests

151 arrested at ‘Mega Moral Monday’ protest

Moral Monday: May 20, 2013

Moral Monday: May 13, 2013

17 arrested at General Assembly

Here’s the press release from his webpage:

WASHINGTON, DC – Congressman G. K. Butterfield (NC-01) will join local chapters of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), clergy members, and thousands of supporters on Monday, June 10 during the “Moral Monday” protest at the North Carolina General Assembly in Raleigh.

Butterfield said, “I’ve been deeply troubled by the severe and unilateral cuts being made by the Republican-led legislature in North Carolina.  The cuts to healthcare, education, and unemployment insurance, just to name a few, disproportionately target low-income people, many of whom I represent in the U. S. House of Representatives.”

Monday’s protest will include the support of dozens of religious leaders from across the state and be led by several Durham pastors including Reverend Jimmie Hawkins of Covenant Presbyterian Church, Reverend Dr. William Turner of Duke University School of Divinity, and Reverend Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove of St. John’s Missionary Baptist Church.

“This is a moment when our convictions embolden us to act and take a firm stance against misguided politics.  It is during troubling times when our voices and actions are needed most.  There’s a time to legislate, and there’s a time to demonstrate.  The Republican-led legislature’s attack on the disadvantaged and less fortunate cannot be allowed to continue.”

Butterfield will be the first federal elected official to join the peaceful, but impactful demonstrations.

“As a participant in the 1963 March on Washington, and as a former civil rights attorney, I have seen firsthand how peaceful, civil demonstrations can affect change.  Based on the turnout at the General Assembly over the past few weeks, change is already being realized.  What began as a group of ten has grown to thousands of protestors standing up for what is right.

“I will join them in sending a strong message to the Republican-led state legislature: they cannot continue to ignore the concerns of the people.  They cannot put politics before people.  And they cannot make blind and uninformed decisions that bring dire consequences to North Carolinians.

“I believe that these demonstrations will continue until the Republican-led legislature abandons their dearth of consciousness and moves toward a more balanced agenda that reflects the needs of all its citizens.”

The Congressman will also deliver remarks during the protest.