The People’s Business

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Monday, 9/17/2018:

Noon – The Public Assembly Facilities Commission will meet at the Benton Convention Center. 3:00 p.m. – The Outstanding Women Leaders Program Committee will hold its monthly meeting in the City Manager’s Conference Room at City Hall. 7:00 p.m. -City Council Meeting, in the Council Chamber, City Hall, Room 230. Tuesday, 9/18/2018:

4:00 p.m. – The Minority and Women Business Enterprise Citizen Advisory Committee will hold its monthly meeting in the Public Works Conference Room, City Hall, Room 348. Wednesday, 9/19/2018:

2:00 p.m. – Forsyth County Commissioners meeting at the Forsyth County Government Center.

FLOC Promotes Civil Rights Unionism At The Beloved Community Center

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FLOC (Farm Labor Organizing Committee, AFL-CIO) and its allies brought a sizable contingent of supporters down from Toledo, Ohio to North Carolina this week. The purpose of their North Carolina tour was to explore the intersections between Black and Brown struggles for justice. The Black/Brown Unity Coalition’s first stop was Greensboro on Thursday. The Black/Brown Unity Coalition visited the International Civil Rights Center in the morning. Later in the day, they came to the Beloved Community Center for food and fellowship. After the getting steeped in the history of the Civil Rights movement, the group journeyed to the tobacco fields of Eastern North Carolina Friday to witness the harsh and often inhumane conditions that tobacco workers endure.

The Power Of The People Was On Display At The August 20 Meeting Of The W-S City Council

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The August 20th Winston-Salem City Council meeting was one to remember. It was the most democratic city council meeting that I have ever witnessed. It was a rare example of people in the council chamber pushing back against the mayor and city council. Typically the Winston-Salem City Council doesn’t give much time for citizens to voice their concerns. Public comments are given at the end of council meetings, just before adjournment.

Charlottesville: Fascist Thugs Will Assault Black Folks In The Streets, But White Liberals Will Take House And Home

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This weekend is the one-year anniversary of Battle of Charlottesville. Everyone reading this article remembers the events of last August in Charlottesville; a college town that will forever be associated with Thomas Jefferson, like Winston-Salem will always be associated with R.J. Reynolds. Gun-toting nazis and fascist white supremacists of various stripes in the streets of Charlottesville were a reminder of how relatively little progress our country has made combatting racism. America is still a violent and racist nation. God bless the Antifa activists that confronted the fascists.

Protests At Richard Burr’s Office Past And Present

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Wednesday, March 14, 2018, will be remembered as a day of action against gun violence. It was the one-month anniversary of the mass shooting in Parkland, Florida that took the lives of 17 students and staff members at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. Across the country, students walked out of their classrooms to protest Congress’s failure to pass sensible gun control measure that would decrease the frequency and severity of mass shootings. Locally student walkouts varied from school to school. Many Winston-Salem/Forsyth County students walked out of their classes at 10 a.m. for 17 minutes to honor the 17 victims of the country’s most recent mass school shooting and then returned to their school day. Also at 10 a.m. Wednesday, while students were walking out of class, protestors assembled outside of Richard Burr’s office. For a good summary of the protest, read Triad City Beat’s account of local liberals in Burr’s hometown who are tired of Senator Burr’s indifference to gun violence.

Trump Protesters Shouldn’t Give Allen Joines A Free Pass

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Thousands of protestors from around the Triad gathered at Corpening Plaza Saturday to denounce Donald Trump and the politics of hate. It was nice protesting an ugly president on such a beautiful day. Donald Trump has made life dramatically worse for women, immigrants, the LGBTQ community, workers, minorities, and the environment upon which we all depend. (By contrast, Trump has delivered for the billionaire class that elected him)

Indivisible Piedmont NC did a great job of bringing thousands of women and their male allies to Downtown Winston. I hope they succeed in getting enough progressive voters registered to counteract the General Assembly’s gerrymandered voting districts.

Supporting The Undocumented In The Age Of Trump

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Friday night, a little over 25 people gathered at Parkway United Church of Christ to support undocumented members of our community. Immigration reporter Tina Vasquez and her partner Ben Presley prepared a delicious family style Mexican dinner-complete with appetizers and desserts. Tickets were $20 per person. Members of Parkway UCC helped set-up and clean-up the dinner. Compare Foods donated the groceries. All proceeds-over $500 raised, went into an emergency fund to benefit undocumented community members being targeted for deportation. Tina Vasquez told the crowd of students, church-goers, and community activists assembled that she used to think that her contribution as an immigration reporter was enough.

From Martin Luther King, To Market-Based Solutions

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Martin Luther King Day is a curious holiday in the United States. We give Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. a day, yet ignore Dr. King the other 364 days of the year. What if we celebrated Christmas the same way that we celebrate Martin Luther King Day? Only a fool would unwrap their gifts, enjoy them for one short day, then box them up until next Christmas. But that is how we celebrate Martin Luther King Day. We need Dr. King each and every day of the year.

Winston’s Seven Most Important News Events Of 2017

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1. Bus route change chaos

The 2017 news cycle started in earnest when the Winston-Salem Transit Authority completely overhauled its bus routes. Months of preparations took place and many community meetings were held. But obviously, the implementation of WSTA’s new bus routes was a massive failure. The new routes went into effect January 2.

The Sanctuary City Coalition Winston-Salem Says No To War

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Last Monday was International Human Rights Day. A fitting occasion for the Sanctuary City Coalition Winston-Salem to show the documentary, “Hell on Earth: The Fall of Syria and the Rise of ISIS” at the Community Mosque of Winston-Salem. The film shows the carnage of the Syrian war in graphic detail. Something that our media has failed to do. It was a vivid reminder of the evil and destructive nature of war.