Introduced Bills CRIMINAL JUSTICE HB 834 – Ban the Box would prohibit the state from asking a job applicant about his/her criminal history until that applicant had been selected for […]
INTRODUCED BILLS CRIMINAL JUSTICEHB 781 – Limitations on Use of Solitary Confinementactually contains several items related to prisons: Solitary confinement couldn’t be used for inmates with serious mental illness unless […]
INTRODUCED BILLS CRIMINAL JUSTICE HB 587 – Repeal Death Penalty would abolish the death penalty, and all prisoners currently on Death Row would be resentenced to life imprisonment without parole. […]
INTRODUCED BILLS CRIMINAL JUSTICE/PRISON REFORM HB 460/SB 545 – Fair Chance Hiring would require state agencies to reduce barriers to hiring people with a criminal history. Specific provisions include: Prohibits […]
INTRODUCED BILLS ECONOMIC JUSTICE HB 422/SB 234 – Healthy Families & Workplaces/Paid Sick Days is similar to the paid sick leave provisions of HB 46. (See RR, February 26.) Introduced […]
INTRODUCED BILLS GUN VIOLENCE PREVENTION With the passing last month of the first anniversary of the shooting deaths of 17 at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, FL, the […]
INTRODUCED BILLS ECONOMIC JUSTICE HB 46 – Economic Security Act of 2019HB 46 is a collection of issues long of concern to workers and worker advocates. Specific provisions would: Increase […]
The 2019 Long Session of the General Assembly is now in full swing. As a result of last November’s elections, Republicans maintained majorities in both Senate and House but lost […]
By George Reed, Retired Executive Director Senate Bill 75 is on the move. It would put on this November’s ballot a constitutional amendment setting a maximum income tax rate of […]
Photo credit: Episcopal News Service We join with our Episcopal brothers and sisters in celebrating the election of the Rt. Rev. Michael Curry as their 27th Presiding Bishop. Those of us […]
We celebrate today’s Supreme Court ruling with our gay brothers and sisters who wish to marry and have their marriages recognized nationwide, with denominations and congregations that have authorized and […]
Raleigh’s Martin Street Baptist Church (historically African-American) and Pullen Memorial Baptist Church (historically white) have a partnership that has extended over more than two decades. It grew out of the […]
The North Carolina Council of Churches celebrates today’s Supreme Court decision upholding the Affordable Care Act. For decades, the Council has supported universal health care, and while the current version […]
Photo via Telesport.al In my decades in North Carolina, first with the NC Baptist State Convention and then with the NC Council of Churches, I’ve known and worked with lots […]
Two events this month have reminded me of how fortunate the Council is to have congregations willing to host our events. The first was the Faith and Immigration Summit, held […]
I’m exceptionally pleased to announce that the Rev. Dr. Jennifer Copeland has been named by the Council’s Governing Board to be the next Executive Director of the North Carolina […]
Discussions in recent days of so-called religious freedom bills in Indiana, Arkansas, and now North Carolina raise issues – both legal and pastoral – which the NC Council of Churches […]
Lots of us will have our attention focused on taxes over the next couple of weeks. This focus provides a unique opportunity for faith communities to help North Carolinians make […]
Any of you who have already done your tax return for 2014 have discovered new questions about your health insurance status. For many of us, it’s just a matter of […]
Gene Nichol was the recipient of the Council’s 2013 Faith Active in Public Life Award. (To see his keynote address at our 2013 Legislative Seminar, “It’s Better Not to Be […]
In these challenging days in North Carolina, there is nothing more important for people of faith who support progressive and prophetic public policies to do than to take part in […]
We received word last week of the passing of Sydnor Thompson Jr. less than a month shy of his 91st birthday. There are few people who have a longer history […]
I am delighted to announce that we have hired Monica Motley as program director for Partners in Health and Wholeness. She started with us in January. Monica holds master’s degrees […]
People who are poor pay a greater percentage of their income in taxes than do those who are wealthy. The NC Council of Churches joined many allied organizations two years […]
Education has been of central importance to the NC Council of Churches throughout our history. Part of our opposition to segregation was support for a fully integrated public school system. […]
On the third Sunday of Advent, the New York Times ran an essay by Arthur C. Brooks, president of the American Enterprise Institute. (It was reprinted by the Raleigh News […]
I had a chance to talk with Mahan Siler at last week’s Road Show in Asheville. Mahan, who has retired to the Asheville area, was my family’s pastor at Pullen […]
We are coming to the end of the time for voting. Early Voting ends this Saturday, November 1. (Check with your local board of elections for the places and hours for Early […]
The immediate impact of the most recent court decisions regarding marriage is that same-gender couples who want to get married in North Carolina now can, clergy who want to perform […]
It is my unhappy task to announce that Willona Stallings is leaving her position as program director for Partners in Health and Wholeness. She is going to work for the […]
Our friends at the NC Conservation Network have created a useful (and nifty) interactive map of North Carolina that will point you quickly to your closest early voting site. Click […]
Because of the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals ruling, some information in the Council’s voter bulletin insert may no longer be applicable. As soon as there is a definitive ruling […]
October 9, 2014 Update: On October 8, the US Supreme Court handed down the final word about voting for this fall’s elections in North Carolina. It upheld the District Court’s […]
November 4 is Election Day. Because of changes in election laws, it is important that people in our pews know when and where they can vote. All of the following […]
We have all been touched by news of the growing Ebola crisis in Liberia, Sierra Leone, Guinea, and Nigeria, a crisis that so far has resisted efforts at containment. Those […]
Sandy is on the right. Her friend, Susan Cummings, is pictured on the left. I am pleased to announce that the Council’s 2014 Distinguished Service Award will be […]
One of the most harmful parts of last year’s voter suppression bill was the limitation on early voting. There had been 17 days of it. Last year’s bill, adopted by […]
I recently took a wonderful walk down Memory Lane for me, though it was also poignant at times. On a Saturday, the Episcopal Diocese of North Carolina sponsored a remembrance of […]
I am delighted to announce that our Governing Board has elected Jennie Wilburn to the position of Program Associate for Immigrant and Farmworker Rights. Jennie is a 2009 cum laude […]
I’ve been engaged with Habitat for Humanity since its earliest days. In my previous life with the Baptist State Convention, I helped to promote this pathway to home ownership when […]
The Episcopal Diocese of North Carolina is sponsoring a “Day of Diocesan Story-Telling and Celebration,” focusing on Lex Mathews’ time as Director of Christian Social Ministries from 1975 until 1985. […]
In an earlier blog, I noted a congregation’s questions about becoming a partner with HKonJ. If you haven’t seen that blog, please click here. It contains information that will be […]
A group of Presbyterian clergy have prepared and circulated A Pastoral Letter to their colleagues. It is a fine statement, noting that “[a]n enduring principle of our discipleship is the […]
I had two conversations recently with members of a congregation which was voting on whether or not to join the HKonJ Coalition. Those conversations have reminded me that it’s helpful […]
We in the Triangle have a truly rare opportunity this Sunday, to hear and dialogue with Taylor Branch. He is a preeminent historian of the civil rights movement, probably best […]
Join the NC NAACP, the North Carolina Council of Churches, and coalition partners for this weekend’s Moral March on Raleigh and HKonJ People’s Assembly. Events include: A Mass Meeting and […]
Congratulations to Steve Smith for being named as recipient of the 2013 Joseph Branch Professionalism Award, presented by the Wake County Bar Association. Steve is a close personal friend of mine […]
It’s now just four weeks until this year’s HKonJ People’s Assembly. There is nothing more important for people of faith to do this winter as we work for prophetic social justice than […]
For any of us trying to lose weight or to maintain a healthy weight, the weeks from Thanksgiving through New Year’s Day are the hardest of the year. All that […]
The NC NAACP has endorsed an open letter to Gov. McCrory about the state’s decision to deny certain unemployment insurance benefits and expanded Medicaid coverage to hundreds of thousands of […]
I’ve been thinking about mustard seed as I reflect on Moral Mondays. Jesus once described the coming kingdom of God by comparing it to a tiny seed that grows into a large tree.
Moral Mondays started with a simple call to people of faith to prayer, to pursue the “moral high ground” of nonviolent protest and peaceful assembly, to register distress at the direction our state was being taken by the General Assembly and Governor. The call came from the Rev. William Barber, pastor of Goldsboro’s Greenleaf Christian Church, president of the state chapter of the NAACP, and the creator and prophetic force behind Moral Mondays. On April 29 (my birthday, but I’m pretty sure that’s just coincidental) there was a “pray-in,” followed by a rally at the General Assembly, followed by civil disobedience that resulted in 17 arrests.
I come with sad news. Bishop Michael Burbidge and Bishop Peter Jugis, bishops of the two Catholic dioceses in North Carolina, communicated to the Council early this year their plan […]
One of the problems for people of faith trying to understand the Affordable Care Act and its requirements and benefits for them is that there is bad information out there. […]
Bishop Michael F. Burbidge of the Catholic Diocese of Raleigh is inviting people of faith to an Interreligious Prayer Service for Peace in the Middle East. It takes place Saturday, […]
Bishop Joseph Gossman, who died yesterday, was a great friend of the North Carolina Council of Churches. He led the Diocese of Raleigh into full membership in the Council in […]
The News & Observer
These are difficult times. We pray that our lawmakers and governor will demonstrate compassion for our fellow North Carolinians who need food, clothing, health care and shelter and for the many charitable nonprofit organizations that provide this support.
Many of you listen to Marketplace, a business-news program produced by American Public Media and carried in North Carolina by WUNC radio. Monday night, Marketplace carried a very good, though […]
Tax Reform: Not So Simple A funny thing happened to House Bill 998, the Tax Simplification and Reduction Act, on its way through the state Senate. It got simplified. House […]
“Outside agitators.” The very term reminds those of us of a certain age of the Civil Rights Movement, when anybody coming from outside the South to suggest that the South’s […]
A brief summary of significant points in the Senate budget with additional commentary by Steve Ford.
Moral Mondays continue (though they will take the day off on Memorial Day). This week’s protest had the largest number of participants (around 600) and of people taking part in […]
As many of you already know, Rev. William Barber and the state NAACP are organizing weekly protests at the General Assembly, voicing opposition to the direction our state is being […]
I learned Tuesday morning of the passing of Bill Smith. I knew of Bill long before coming to the NC Council of Churches. He had been the state director of […]
Tune in as George Reed, our Executive Director here at the NC Council of Churches, explains the legislative process in North Carolina. How can “ordinary citizens” get involved? What strategies can we use to be as effective as possible? Listen as George crams 25 years of experience into one jam-packed hour.
House Bills Senate Bills Notable Quotes Arizona-like Immigration Bill Introduced In the wake of failed attempts by Congress to pass comprehensive immigration reform, states and localities have increased their own […]
With the passage of deadlines for the introduction of most bills, there’s been a flurry of new legislation. This issue of Raleigh Report will cover some of these new bills, with others to come in the next issue.
Voter Suppression & Campaign Finance Other New Bills Commentary Tax Fairness Public Education Voting Rights Death Penalty Rush to the Right Continues From the first days […]
In 2008, the Council co-sponsored an event called Jesus for President, which took place at First Baptist Church on Wilmington Street in downtown Raleigh. About 500 twenty-somethings came together to […]
Gun bills that extend the availability and use of guns flood the General Assembly.
From the Palm Sunday chapter of Preparing the Way: A Social Justice Study for Lent. We’re offering this free resource to you and your congregation as we walk through the season […]
As you probably know, the Voting Rights Act is being challenged in the US Supreme Court, and General Assembly leaders in Raleigh are renewing their push to pass laws that […]
There will be no more important and overarching issue before the General Assembly this year than tax reform. Proposals being floated by legislative leaders would reduce or eliminate personal and […]
Attacks on Struggling North Carolinians Advance Medicaid Coverage Unemployment Insurance Earned Income Tax Credit Fracking Moratorium Gun Violence Raise the Age Refusing to Extend Medicaid Coverage SB 4, which would […]
Payday Lending What It Is, How It Harms People, Why We Don’t Need It Back Payday lending, sadly, could be coming back to North Carolina. It was banned […]
One of the most insidious proposals coming up in the General Assembly session is the one to require people to show photo IDs in order to vote. It has the […]
The NC Council of Churches has been engaged with issues related to child poverty for decades. We were one of the founders of the Covenant with NC’s Children, a leading […]
You probably already know that the General Assembly goes into session on Wednesday, January 30. They’ve already had a one-day organizational meeting. You probably also already know that this will […]
A recent article in the Baptist Peacemaker focuses on what churches are doing to address creation care and global climate change. In addition to mentioning our NC Interfaith Power & […]
In the weeks just before November’s general election, the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association paid to place full-page ads in newspapers including the [Raleigh] News & Observer to The New York […]
Last week, North Carolina lost a religious leader we hardly knew. Bishop James McCoy had been named back during the summer to be the Presiding Prelate of the Eastern North […]
I’ve got critical issue overload. How about you? So probably the last thing you want to hear about is one more issue that really needs to be on our radar […]
Ed: This post is part of a new series called “Reclaiming the Bible’s Prophetic Voice,” in which Council staff consider the biblical and theological roots of their work. You can […]
Our friend Carolyn King passed on Tuesday evening after a long “medical adventure” (to use Sr. Evelyn Mattern’s term) with cancer. She and her husband Cy have been leaders […]
Recently, I heard a powerful message from the Rev. William Barber. Many Council folks know him. He’s the President of the NC NAACP and pastor of the Greenleaf Christian Church (Disciple of Christ) in Goldsboro. The power of his message was not in fiery delivery. It was a low-key conversation with a group of fifty or so progressive leaders, sitting in a circle in the chapel of University United Methodist Church in Chapel Hill. The power was in the profound thoughts he expressed and in the clear rightness of his words.
You probably know how the phrase “canary in the coal mine” came into being, but it doesn’t hurt to repeat it. Before there were other ways of monitoring for dangerous […]
You may have seen news yesterday about a just-released report from the Natural Resources Defense Council on food waste. I read the full report – only 26 pages, and eminently […]
The following are some of Executive Director George Reed’s remarks at the statewide launch of the Strive to Revive campaign on August 7: We see preserving health as an issue […]
Bills needing immediate attention; Updates on other bills; Information on contacting legislators.
I was struck, as I listened to remembrances from the past, that we really are seeing progress on issues of social justice. But it happens over a period of years or even decades. The issues we heard about at the Anniversary are difficult ones. They have produced years of frustration and sometimes what looked like complete failure. And yet . . .
Penny Hooper and Richard Fireman, both with the Council’s NC Interfaith Power & Light program, have collaborated to write a powerful op-ed on coal ash which has just appeared in […]
Certainly the BP spill has heightened concern about the environment, but that concern was already growing among many people of faith. It’s an area the Council has been working on for […]
Last week’s march and rally to halt re-segregation in Wake County was a powerful experience. Thanks to all of the Council folks who turned out. I saw several current leaders […]
