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Morning, gang.
A group of academics gathering to talk about history, society, and the rule of law shouldn’t be remarkable—especially in a college town like Greensboro. But this week, when UNCG and Elon University’s School of Law held a joint symposium, its moderators had to acknowledge we are living in, as they say, interesting times.
Merely talking about that in public can make you a target these days, particularly in academia. So, today week we’re bringing you a story on the sort of talk that shouldn’t be remarkable — but is and will be for the foreseeable future.
Gale Melcher also has a report from the annual Fair Housing Luncheon held by the City of Greensboro’s Human Rights Department. As the problem of homelessness and the need for affordable housing grow more desperate, these discussions are becoming more essential.
Let’s get into it.
— Joe Killian
The Rule of Law in Crisis — At Home and Abroad
When UNCG and Elon University’s School of Law held a joint symposium on the rule of law Monday, it shouldn’t have been remarkable.
But David Levine, associate dean and professor of Law at Elon Law, felt compelled to point out it was.
“[Legal scholar] Mark Lemley at Stanford [University] has been a mentor and colleague,” Levine said. “And he said, ‘Institutions need to stand for truth now more than ever’ — and that’s what this has been about.”
“Everyone has opinions,” Levine said. “But we focus here on facts and evidence. I will also add that it’s particularly important, given the world that we’re in now, that private institutions and public institutions work together now… It’s essential that those in education, those in fields where we have a public-facing role, stand together in times like this.”
Levine spoke in a cautious, elliptical, one might even say lawyerly manner. He was careful to say he wasn’t speaking for Elon University or its law school. But everyone in the lecture hall knew what he meant by “now more than ever,” “the world that we’re in now,” and “in times like these.”
He was talking about the administration of President Donald Trump, which has spent the last four months defying court orders, deporting people without due process, having federal agents board Amtrak trains to make passengers prove their citizenship, revoking the visas of international students without explanation and punishing museums and universities—public and private—for “divisive narratives” and “improper ideology.”
In February, the American Bar Association was moved to release an unprecedented statement in which it called on the government to “follow the rule of law, protect due process and treat individuals in a way that we would treat others in our homes and workplaces.”
Monday’s symposium, divided into two panels, wrestled with how that statement became necessary and what comes next.
Read the full story here.
— Joe Killian
Thanks for reading The Thread, a 3x week newsletter written by Greensboro editor Joe Killian and reporters Sayaka Matsuoka and Gale Melcher. Reach us with tips or ideas at greensboro@theassemblync.com.
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Focusing on Greensboro’s Housing Shortage
“How many of you have experienced not living in a home?” asked Shon Smith, chair of the city of Greensboro’s Human Rights Commission. ”Not having a place to go at the end of the day?”
A smattering of hands rose across a room of city leaders, nonprofit members, health care workers, mental health professionals, and real estate agents.
“I have,” said Smith, a professional counselor with three decades of experience. “How stressful do you think that is?”
Smith was speaking at the city’s annual fair housing luncheon on Tuesday. The event, organized by the city’s Human Rights Department and N.C. A&T University’s Transcending Leaders Cohort Program came just as April, fair housing month, comes to an end.
The afternoon’s panel of experts came from fields such as health, housing, and law, including Smith, the city’s assistant city attorney Brent Ducharme, the university’s physician Dr. Brian Shackleford, Director of the Office of Workforce Engagement/Equal Employment Opportunity for NC Department of Health and Human Services Dr. Bryle H. Hatch, and realtor Kristle Williams with Keller Williams Reality.
Housing is a pervasive issue for so many, even A&T’s students. Down the hall from the luncheon, held on the university’s campus, City Councilmember Hugh Holston stepped into a housing fair for students. If they didn’t win the lottery of getting on-campus accommodation, Holston told The Assembly, this helps them snag something off-campus. Holston is also the CEO of the nonprofit Greensboro Housing Coalition.
Real change happens when people sit at the table together, said Lovelle McMichael, the university’s director of community engagement.
Addressing the housing crisis requires “a shared responsibility,” he said. The university is not separate from the city but embedded in it.
Housing is an issue the city is “seriously engaged in,” said City Manager Trey Davis. In February, he announced an ambitious goal: Adding 10,000 new housing units to the city in their race to build a third of the units Guilford County needs by 2030.
“You cannot separate health and human services from housing,” said Hatch.
If they don’t have safe, fair, and quality housing, they probably won’t have great health outcomes, he said. Maybe their home has mold. Now they’re at risk for health issues. Maybe their home is in a place where they can’t access public transportation. How will they get to their doctor appointments?
It’s all interlinked, agreed Shackleford. And we’re not all on the same playing field, he said.
Systemic racism can and has dictated where people live, and where they reside can have major impacts on their health. There shouldn’t be a reason that someone who lives in one zip code lives a shorter life than someone living in another part of town, Shackleford said—but it happens.
When we talk about resources, we have to look holistically, Hatch said.
“Until we address who is being left out, we’re going to keep having these conversations.”
— Gale Melcher
Read this newsletter online or contact The Thread team with tips and feedback at greensboro@theassemblync.com.
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