Politics

Rocky Mount is Dead. Long Live Rocky Mount

A deeply divided city has banked on a renaissance fueled by outside investment and historic preservation. But can its reinvention take place without reconciliation?

BY Katie Jane FerneliusMarch 24, 2021

Trending Topics

Essays

Graves by the Sea

Institutions

A Harebrained Idea

Institutions

The Ill-Fated Chancellor

Politics

The Motivations of Phil Berger

Short Form

Essays

Graves by the Sea

Across two narrow strips of sandy, marshy land, a team of volunteers is making Currituck County unique in answering a statewide call to document lost Black gravesites. What can their efforts teach us about remembrance and memorial? // Illustration by Isabel Seliger

BY Emily CataneoApril 14, 2021

Essays

An Alternate History for The Piedmont

A new novel imagines a North Carolina that avoided the school resegregation of the ‘90s and explores the family struggles and community tension that accompany the fight to maintain integration. But the book takes a broad brush to the idea of place, leaving a North Carolinian reader feeling a little overtroped and underwhelmed.

BY Brenna M. CaseyApril 07, 2021

Long Form

Politics

Election Red Meat

Republicans and Democrats vehemently disagree about how to handle North Carolina’s elections, a fight that will only get more intense over the next two years. It’s time to find a modicum of common ground.

BY Rick HendersonApril 07, 2021

Environment

Silent Waters

Fear, stress, and a growing list of health dangers. “Forever chemicals” have seeped their way into North Carolina’s waters and public awareness. Does anyone have a plan to fix them?

BY Tonya Simpson and Riley DavisMarch 17, 2021

Politics

A Bottle Too Far

North Carolina stands out for its stringent liquor laws and sprawling control bureaucracy. That rigidity is now crashing headlong into a growing array of outspoken entrepreneurs, intent on exposing the system’s absurdities. // Art by The Assembly

BY Jeffrey BillmanMarch 10, 2021

Institutions

The Ill-Fated Chancellor

In Cecil Staton’s three years as East Carolina University’s leader, football fans revolted, enrollment dropped, and an anonymous dossier questioned his hiring as “gross negligence.” What does his tenure say about ECU’s future? // photo courtesy of City of Greenville

BY Pam KelleyMarch 02, 2021