The Daily Tar Heel

Serving the students and the University community since 1893

Sunday June 4th

Elevate: Amplifying voices in our community

Elevate is here to do exactly what it says — to give a platform to those whose voices are often silenced. This is a page to celebrate and uplift the underrepresented communities that make up Chapel Hill, who contribute to our culture and daily lives in ways that are often not reported. Elevate adds depth to stories across campus, the town and Orange County.


The page is in part put together and reported by members of the Sharif Durhams Leadership Program, a talent and leadership development course for DTH students from underrepresented groups. Elevate accepts pitches throughout the year for op-eds and letters from members of different groups in our community. Please send submissions to elevate@dailytarheel.com.



Janora McDuffie, a Durham native and UNC alumna, will be one of the first Black and queer announcers in Oscar history. Photo courtesy of Janora McDuffie.

'This is her time': UNC alumna to voice announcements for 94th Academy Awards

UNC alumna Janora McDuffie will be the voice behind all the announcements at the 94th Academy Awards on Sunday. Now living in Los Angeles, she has appeared in numerous television shows and has done voice acting for commercials, video games and other animations. “It’s been a beautiful process to be a part of watching the growth in her career and growth as a person,” McDuffie's wife, Leila Ryan, said.

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Cornell Watson, the photographer behind "Tarred Healing," poses for a portrait in his Durham office on Saturday, Feb. 26, 2022. "Tarred Healing" is a photo story reflecting on Black history in Chapel Hill and at UNC. 

'This is really disrespectful': Display of 'Tarred Healing' photo story canceled

Photographer Cornell Watson's "Tarred Healing" project is a reflection of Black history through places, people and systems in Chapel Hill and at the University. Twelve days after the display at the Sonja Haynes Stone Center for Black Culture and History was initially canceled, the center went back on the decision on March 1 — without consulting Watson — before canceling it for the final time the next day. “Who plans and schedules an exhibition without the artist?" Watson said. "No one, ever.”

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Dr. LaSaundra Booth plays piano in the piano lab at Kenan Music Building on Tuesday, Mar. 8, 2022. Dr. Booth was recently featured as the NAfME 2021 All-National Honors Orchestra Conductor.

'I hope to empower': Meet music education lecturer LaSaundra Booth

LaSaundra Booth, a lecturer of music education at UNC, began playing the cello in the fourth grade and fell in love with it. She has since performed in a variety of symphonies and orchestras, and founded the Wake Forest Community Youth Orchestra, a nonprofit organization that provides instruments and musical training to over 350 children across three counties. “If there’s one word I’m taking into 2022, it’s 'empower,'" Booth said of her work. "I want to empower the next generation of teacher leaders.”

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