NC Politics: A Balanced Perspective

Its so easy to give up. Anyone can quit, but it takes strength and faith in an higher power to persevere. I am a living witness that no matter where you come from, no matter what has come your way, you can be a winner. You can make it. You can persevere! The odds were against me from the very beginning. I was born to a single mother on government assistance in rural Pitt County. My father entered the NC correctional system while I was still a toddler. I vividly remember being without plumbing in the "stone house" as we called it. In the early 1990s my mother, sisters and I had to boil water to bath, eat, and drink. Despite these conditions my mother made it her duty to ensure that my sisters and I were well fed, well dressed, and well mannered. I remember watching her struggle daily so that we could have have basic necessities. I will never forget the sacrifices that my mother made for my sisters and I. From my mother I learned how to persevere. My mother showed me that no ma...

Virginia  based Sentara Healthcare will become the new the managing partner for Albermale Hospital of Elizabeth City, NC. Kudos to Pasquotank County Commissioners and the Albermale Hospital Authority for listening to hospital employees by selecting Sentara. This 40 year lease agreement will include annual lease payments of 1.5 million dollars to Pasquotank County. This is a big step forward for the hospital and Pasquotank County. Furthermore, the quality of medical services for citizens in Pasquotank County and the surrounding areas should improve with this new agreement. For more information visit www.dailyadvance.com

Montravias D. King, a 22 year old senior political science major at Elizabeth City State University filed for one of two seats in the already highly contested fourth ward city council race around 10:15 AM  today. The deadline to file in North Carolina for the 2013 municipal elections are officially closed as of 12:00 PM today. Montravias hopes to become the first student at ECSU to become a member of city council. However, Montravias realizes and understands that as a representative for the fourth ward, he is serving all of the citizens, not just the students. That's why since last week he has been out and about introducing himself to the people in the nieborhoods surrounding the university. Montravias hopes to address several key issues that specifically concern the the residents of the fourth ward. For more information, comments, ideas, or to join the campaign, please contact kingmontravias@gmail.com . The campaign website and other social media tools will be launched soon. ...

The ECSU college chapter of the NAACP led a rally last February on the campus of ECSU, in protest of the proposed budget cuts to the UNC System which forced universities to increase tuition. We also traveled to Chapel Hill with a delegation from ECSU to protest the UNC Board of Governors meeting with hundreds of other students from throughout the 17 campuses in the UNC System. Tuition was increased, but our voices were heard, and we are more organized today than ever before. Once again students at colleges in the UNC System will see an increase in their tuition bills. Gov. McCrory released his proposed 20.6 billion dollar budget for NC in March. Gov. McCrory is proposing a 139 million dollar cut to the UNC System. If his proposed budget is enacted out of state students will fare the worst with a 12.3 percent increase in tuition. This is in addition to over 400 million dollars in cuts to the already struggling UNC System within the last two years. Student Power North Carolina, a group t...

“We the jury finds the defendant not guilty” were the painful words read late last night in the Seminole County Court House in Sanford, Florida. For the second time, George Zimmerman has walked away a free man. This case has captured the attention of the entire nation, and will definitely go down in the history books. All of this first started last February of 2012 when Trayvon Martin, a unarmed black male teenager was murdered on his way home from the store with a bag of skittles and an ice tea in his possession. Due to Florida’s “Stand Your Ground Law” the police allowed George Zimmerman to walk free. Thanks to the efforts of organizations like the National Action Network, and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People rallies and marches all across the U.S. demanded that justice be served. A special state prosecutor was brought in and charged Zimmerman with the murder of Trayvon Martin. Now, over a year and a half later the verdict has been rendered and Ge...

This is a shameful day in American history! Republican members of Congress are now seeking to drop the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) which includes Food Stamps with new revisions to the Farm Bill. The first Farm Bill was passed in 1933 under President Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal. Revisions have been amended  to the bill. Basically, the bill is the primary agricultural and food policy tool for the federal government. The Farm Bill provides subsidies for American farmers, and the farm bill provides food for hungry families.  House Republicans are now seeking to separate farm assistance and nutritional assistance by dropping SNAP from the bill because of trouble trying to pass deep cuts to the Food Stamp Program last month. So instead of negotiating with the minority, republicans are now moving to drop the food stamp program from the revised 608 page Farm Bill. Simply stated, what republican lawmakers are seeking to do is to hurt the working poor in Amer...

Monday, July 1, 2013 was the first day on the job for newly appointed Elizabeth City State University interim Chancellor Charles Becton. A retired judge, Becton's last assignment was interim chancellor of North Carolina Central University. Becton was appointed by President Tom Ross of the UNC System last month. Becton fills the position previously held by Dr. Willie Gilchrist before he announced his resignation last month amid an ongoing SBI investigation into allegations of obstruction of justice and witness intimidation at ECSU. The campus has been at the center of controversy the past three months surrounding campus shootings during Viking Fest, sexual assault allegations and over 120 criminal complaints that were not properly solved, investigated or reported. Becton pledges to continue to improve the overall safety of the campus and will work on improving the sharp decline in enrollment. "There is still time to savage this year" he said referring to enrollment. For ...