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A few days before Christmas 2011, photographer Stafford Braxton was at Raleigh’s Crabtree Valley Mall when he noticed an older Black man with a white beard walking through the crowded shopping center.
“I ran over to him and handed him my business card,” Braxton recounted. “I said, ‘I’m not trying to make you feel big or anything but you have a white beard and white hair and I’m kind of trying to find a Black Santa for next year.’”
As North Carolina grew more diverse, Braxton saw demand for Santas of color rising. Now, the founder of Santas Just Like Me is in his 12th holiday season holding Black Santas events around the state.
Black Santa Clauses are Coming to Town
A desire for more inclusivity spurred a North Carolina man to make Black Santas a holiday tradition. Santas Just Like Me makes Christmas magic all over the state.
“When we did Gastonia years ago and I saw older white men in bib overalls come and get photographed with Black Santa with their families, I knew were we on the right track,” Braxton said. “There are definitely a lot more people who embrace it than don’t.”
Have a news tip for our team? You can reach us at scoops@theassemblync.com.
A Tale of Two Biltmores
Christmas at the Biltmore House might be the Christmas-iest Christmas ever to Christmas.
Everything is on a grander scale at Asheville’s top tourist attraction, a 250-room French Renaissance chateau built in 1895 by railroad heir George Vanderbilt. This year, it boasts 58 decorated Christmas trees, 282 candles, and 45,000 lights, and 6,000 feet of garland.
The holiday season is typically the busiest time of year, with up to 6,000 guests. So it was particularly fortuitous that estate suffered minimal damage during Hurricane Helene and was able to officially reopen for visitors on November 2.
But as Jessica Wakeman reports, across the street is a different story entirely. Biltmore Village, the adjacent shopping district in a low-lying area south of the Swannanoa River, was among the most catastrophically flooded neighborhoods of the city. It still sits mostly dark, though local businesses are trying to remain optimistic they’ll be back in action by spring.
It’s Christmas at the Biltmore. For Nearby Businesses, It’s a Lost Holiday Season.
Asheville has welcomed tourism back after Hurricane Helene. But in Biltmore Village, recovery is still months away.
Trustee the Process
As the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill entered the admissions season in October 2023, a member of the Board of Trustees asked its chair to advise the group on how to recommend applicants they thought should be admitted.
“Admissions clearly said to write a few / limited thoughtful letters of rec re students you know well,” trustee Jennifer Lloyd wrote. “Don’t talk about how great their families are or their potential as donors. Talk about the kid and why he should be admitted.”
“Advocate. Don’t expect favors,” Lloyd wrote in a follow-up text.
Over the following eight months, Erin Gretzinger reports, at least six trustees asked for information on specific applicants or the admissions process, according to texts that The Assembly obtained through a records request.
What We’re Reading
You’re Hired: In a surprise to many, including, seemingly, some city council members, Durham’s deputy city manager was unanimously chosen as the new city manager at a council meeting, per INDY Week.
Pick Me, Choose Me: The Republican candidate narrowly trailing in the state Supreme Court race has asked that same court to throw out 60,000 ballots from last month’s election, via NBC News.
Get the Dirt: A member of the Cumberland County Soil and Water Conservation District Board of Supervisors has missed seven meetings in a row and could be removed from office. She told CityView she wants to stay.
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