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The center started the Safe Homes, New Lives program last summer after a community needs assessment determined that emergency housing was one of the most critical gaps in serving domestic violence victims in Orange County.
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Seils said he hopes to build on Carrboro's progressive reputation and on the Town's role as a statewide leader on issues regarding the LGBTQ+ community, racial equity and other items of the progressive agenda that Mayor Lydia Lavelle secured.
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Three UNC alumni as well as a group of undergraduate students will participate in the second annual Compose Carolina series in July. The theme of the series is “In The Now,” which the composers are encouraged to interpret freely.
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Two bills, House Bills 436 and 536, addressing criminal justice reform are sitting in a North Carolina Senate committee after being unanimously passed by the N.C. House in early May. Rep. Ricky Hurtado (D-Alamance) said this bill would prevent situations like the death of George Floyd at the hands of the Minneapolis police last May from ever being possible.
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In honor of Pride Month, the Towns of Chapel Hill and Carrboro are collaborating to host Small Town Pride, a local month-long celebration of the LGBTQ+ community this June. Chapel Hill Town Council member Karen Stegman said this event series is the closest collaboration Chapel Hill and Carrboro have ever had in regard to Pride Month. She said the Towns decided to work together in light of their shared importance placed on uplifting local LGBTQ+ community members.
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Perennial Cafe, a coffee shop located at 401 W. Franklin St., reopened to eager customers on May 28. The cafe had temporarily closed its doors last year due to the pandemic, and customers have missed its unique atmosphere and artisanal beverages ever since.
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The first annual Chapel Hill-Carrboro Juneteenth celebration is set to take place on June 18 and 19. Juneteenth — a portmanteau of June 19 — commemorates the end to slavery in the United States. The holiday originated in Texas following the end of the Civil War and came to be celebrated with music, art, food and other activities.
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With COVID-19 restrictions easing up, spring and summer events are coming back in full force. From concerts to art exhibitions, there are plenty of opportunities to break routine and enjoy everything Chapel Hill has to offer. Here are some events residents can attend in the coming weeks.
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Carrboro Mayor Lydia Lavelle will leave office after her term ends in December, she announced in a press release Wednesday. Lavelle said she feels confident leaving office in light of the progress she and the Town Council have made throughout her term, from the handling of the COVID-19 pandemic to pushing the progressive politics and reputation of Carrboro.
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The Friends of Geer Cemetery aims to restore and preserve a historic Black cemetery tucked away in a Durham residential neighborhood. The organization is pioneering a new approach to cemetery care — one in which the community is responsible for care of the grounds and the people buried there.
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A display honoring the Black Lives Matter movement outside of University United Methodist Church was knocked down sometime between the evening of Thursday, May 6 and the morning of Friday, May 7. While a restored version was put back on display by May 14, Rev. Justin Coleman voiced concern that the person or people who knocked down the door might be willing to do harm to people either verbally or physically.
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Gwendella Guinevere Clemons, an icon of advocacy and a longtime educator and leader, passed away on May 11 at the age of 86. “She inspired me to want to be better and to do better," former student Sherry Smith said. "She helped all students, but because of her roots, she gravitated to children of color and children who were economically deprived."
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People in North Carolina have shown support for Palestinians during the Israeli attacks, from protests in Raleigh to a statement signed by faculty from 23 colleges and universities across the state. “This has been inspiring to the Palestinians on the ground,” said Nadia Yaqub, a professor in the UNC Department of Asian and Middle Eastern studies. “To know in this very difficult time there are hundreds of people, just in one state, who care enough to sign a statement like this."
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UNC and Chapel Hill community members gathered Thursday morning to show their support for Nikole Hannah-Jones ahead of the Board of Trustees' 9 a.m. meeting at The Carolina Inn. The rally was organized by the Chapel Hill-Carrboro NAACP and the Carolina Black Caucus in response to the BOT's choice to not take action on approving a tenured position for Hannah-Jones at the Hussman School of Journalism and Media.
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Deborah Stroman, who is a professor at the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health, the treasurer of the Chapel Hill-Carrboro branch of the NAACP and a social justice trailblazer, was selected as the branch's 2021 Woman of the Year. "I felt very blessed, very honored," Stroman said. "Not of my accomplishments, but to receive it from an organization that has been working tirelessly to make a difference."
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