Winston-Salem’s Rebel Statue Wranglings; Time To Move The Statue Or Put A Plaque Up Denouncing Jim Crow

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The Winston-Salem Journal has reported that an attorney for the United Daughters of the Confederacy has asked the City of Winston-Salem to delay its plans to move the Confederate statue that stands at Fourth and Liberty:

The United Daughters of the Confederacy is asking Winston-Salem for a 60-day delay in filing any legal action to force removal of the Confederate statue at the corner of Fourth and Liberty streets on the grounds of the former Forsyth County Courthouse.

James Davis,

… Read the rest

Mayor Joines Unveils A New Plan To Remove Johnny Rebel From Downtown Winston

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I made my way to Mt. Pleasant Missionary Baptist Church on New Year’s Day for service honoring former City Alderman and State Representative, Larry Womble.

I was unaware that Winston-Salem Alliance President and Mayor, Allen Joines would be speaking at the event. Not only did he speak, but Winston’s longest-serving mayor revealed a new plan to rid Downtown Winston of a Confederate statue that has long outlasted its welcome.

Here are the words of Allen Joines, transcribed from audio to … Read the rest

Merry Prankster Defaces Downtown Statue That Should Have Been Removed Long Ago

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Christmas came a day early for everyone in Winston that resents the presence of a Confederate statue in front of the old courthouse. Yesterday, some merry prankster with a purpose wrote the words “COWARDS & TRAITORS” on the Confederate statue that has stood tall at Liberty and Fourth for many years, projecting hate.

Earlier in the week I was bemoaning Winston’s inaction, our nonchalance toward Johnny Rebel* when activists in Durham and Chapel Hill (two other college towns) took down … Read the rest

Miss America, Nia Franklin’s Homecoming Parade

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November isn’t an ideal time to throw a parade. I wonder if the City of Winston-Salem or Miss America Inc. is to blame for Saturday’s spur-of-the-moment parade? A grand parade in the spring planned out over many months that would have been nice.

If Miss America, Nia Franklin came to town a few weeks ago, she could have been part of Pride Winston-Salem’s parade. That would have been amazing!

Saturday afternoon’s parade, though modest, was noteworthy. Winston’s own, Nia Franklin … Read the rest

The New Central Library Turns One

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A year ago, Downtown Winston-Salem’s Central Library reopened after being closed for entirely too long. One year later, it’s fair to mention the Central Library’s shortcoming.

Winston’s Central Library is an amazing redeveloped building. It’s so much better than the old Central Library which was opened in the 1950s and expanded in the 1970s.

Winston’s Central Library is where millionaire’s row meets skid row. The portion of 5th Street where the library now stands was once home to the city’s … Read the rest

Winston-Salem Light Project Shines Light On The Horrors Of World War I

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The Winston-Salem Light Project just completed its 10th annual outdoor lighting installation. The Winston-Salem Light Project has become a tradition, a must-see exhibition of public art.

This year’s WSLP returned to its original home, the Millennium Center, to mark the 100th anniversary of the end of WWI. While the WSLP focused primarily on WWI, they used the “great war,” the “war to end all wars” as a starting point to explore the wider topic of war.

Eight large-format projectors blended … Read the rest

Ramkat Ramblings: As Downtown Winston Creeps East It Must Embrace East Winston

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The Ramkat hosted its first concert Friday night. The Vagabond Saints Society, an amazing collection of the city’s best musicians had the honor of reopening Downtown Winston’s premier music venue.

It’s been just over two years since the club that Jay Stephens opened in 2011 on the corner of 9th and Trade closed. It’s nice to see large-scale live music return to Downtown Winston. The hope is that The Ramkat will succeed where Ziggy’s failed.

Over the last couple of … Read the rest

Public Ownership Of Shuddered Music Venues In Winston?

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Winston was sad to see its beloved little music venue (the Garage) close on New Year’s Eve. The question now is, what should Winston do to promote live music in a city that calls itself, “The City of Art’s and Innovation?” Public ownership of Winston’s shuddered music venues is a solution worth exploring.

Downtown Winston’s success killed The Garage. Bars and breweries now line Trade Street and Liberty Street. The Garage’s fate may have been sealed when Tucker Tharpe’s former … Read the rest

Cheap Rents Are Needed For Artists And Workers To Thrive

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Saturday night at the Garage, the Vagabond Saints’ Society played two hours worth of the Velvet Underground’s greatest hits. As usual, the Vagabond Saints’ Society put on a great show, which will surely be memorialized in the Garage’s hallway of posters.

The Velvet Underground were a very influential rock band, ahead of their time. They were only fully appreciated years after the band broke up.

But the Velvet Underground and other New York bands of the late 1960s and 1970s … Read the rest

Not Much Going On In The Pages Of The Journal, Check Out This Interview of Gayle Anderson

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The output of the city’s paper of record has been a little lackluster lately. After the ink dried on BAT’s acquisition of Reynolds a couple of weeks ago, the Journal has largely ignored issues of importance to residents in Winston-Salem. Instead, they have covered a high-profile murder case in Davidson County and other stories that just aren’t that relevant to Winston’s urban core.

To my dismay, Friday the Journal published a story on Craig Engels. Engles, an Olympic-hopeful runner from … Read the rest