Winston-Salem City Council

Winston Native Crowned Miss America, But Poverty In Winston Keeps Many From Achieving Their Dreams

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Monday, the Winston-Salem City Council honored Nia Franklin, the recently crowned Miss America. Though Franklin’s pageant sash read New York, the 2018 Miss New York was born and raised in Winston, though she attended high school at North Davidson (a stain upon her hometown girl narrative that can be overlooked).

Recently, I asked a classmate of hers at North Davidson what she remembered of Franklin? My African American friend told me, that “being Black at North Davidson” they were … Read the rest

Downtown Developments

Deconstructing Industry Hill

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From the folks that gave us the term “Ramkat” now comes the term “Industry Hill.” Industry Hill-were history meets marketing. Industry Hill-a new name for a place that you probably never knew had a name. Its name is now Industry Hill!

Industry Hill, we are told from the developers who recently created it, stretches from Seventh Street to Northwest Boulevard and from Martin Luther King Drive over to Trade Street.*

The name Industry Hill has many flaws. First, there isn’t … Read the rest

Activism

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 … Read the rest

East Winston

The Liberty Street Market Isn’t In Transition, Neither Is East Winston

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The Winston-Salem Chronicle recently reported that the Liberty Street Market was “in transition once again.” Once again, in the market’s short, but troubled history it’s without a manager. But setbacks at the Liberty Street Market are hardly news.

To say that the Liberty Street Market is in “transition” implies that the property is in motion. In truth, the Liberty Street Market has been mostly dormant since it opened in October 2014. It’s an utter failure, a monument to the incompetence … Read the rest

Year In Review

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. Immediately there was a community uproar. The new routes disrupted the lives of the city’s bus riders. They had to walk greater distances to … Read the rest

Housing

Stay Strong Boston-Thurmond, Keep Fighting Against Gentrification!

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On Tuesday, the Winston-Salem Journal showered praise on local government leaders for their development of the Enclave apartments off Shattalon Drive. The Chronicle ran a similar article on the Enclave apartments days earlier.

The implication of these articles is obvious. (But admittedly, I didn’t realize it until a friend on facebook pointed it out to me.) The article isn’t just about the Enclave, it’s a message to the Boston-Thurmond community.

The Journal and Chronicle would like the residents of Boston-Thurmond … Read the rest

East Winston

Urban Street Church: A Symbol Of Winston’s Neglected Urban Core

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I drive by the old Urban Street Baptist Church, at 2315 Urban Street from time to time. It holds some sentimental importance to me. I attended church there when I was a kid in the early to mid-1980s.

The physical building and the neighborhood around it have both deteriorated over the decades. Recently, the City of Winston-Salem boarded up the place after vandals knocked out many of the church’s windows and open a couple of its doors. Probably so that … Read the rest

Local Media

The Camel City Dispatch If Not Already Dead, Appears To Be Mortally Wounded

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The Twin City Sentinal ended its run as an independent newspaper when it merged with the Journal in 1985. It’s hard to say exactly when the Camel City Dispatch died. Was it this year or the year before? But there is little doubt that CCD is dead.

Camel City Dispatch is a local journalism project that came to Winston’s mobile devices, tablets, and PCs in 2012. The ambitious upstart website was determined to challenge the Winston-Salem Journal. After a good … Read the rest

Immigration

Minerva Garcia: Another Example Of Our Broken Legal System

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Time is not on Minerva Garcia’s side. Despite her best efforts to stay in this country with her children, ICE is poised to deport her. Unless ICE issues a stay of deportation, Minerva will be on a bus back to Mexico by Friday.

Minerva’s case for staying here in Winston is a just one. That’s why members of Winston’s faith community have rallied to her side in recent weeks. She came to this country 17 years ago to provide a … Read the rest

Tobacco

Winston Hasn’t Quit Tobacco, It Just Reduced Its Dependence

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Today is World No Tobacco Day. All around the globe health advocates are mobilizing to educate people about the dangers of tobacco. This might seem like an old song to many. But the dangers of tobacco need repeating.

Tobacco consumption, in the form of chewing tobacco, cigarettes, e-cigarettes or any of the other nicotine-addicting products Big Tobacco peddles is bad news. Cigarettes, the deadly product that put Winston-Salem on the map, continue to kill 480,000 people in the U.S. … Read the rest