Archives for October 2020

It’s Time to Cover Black Women as the Norm and Not the “Other”

Though I’ve seen the way the media portray Black women evolve over time, I don’t think I’ve ever seen it done exactly right — or at least with the complexity and nuance we deserve. I say we intentionally, though journalists are not supposed to be part of the story. But seeing — and not seeing — myself in the newspapers my family read and the television news shows we watched was what spurred me to choose the profession.

Or, maybe it was the reason the profession chose me.

Now, with Black women rising in visibility in fields from culture to politics, journalists are being tested in reporting on a group of Americans who have been, at turns, ignored and stereotyped. I have viewed the situation from the inside and outside.

Mary C. Curtis: Will A Supreme Court Justice Sway The Presidential Race?

CHARLOTTE, NC — In her first week on the job, Justice Amy Coney Barrett could be weighing in on a number of important cases piling up in the Supreme Court, including several related to next week’s election.

WCCB political contributor Mary C. Curtis weighs-in on what kind of impact Barrett could have on the presidential race.

POLITICAL WRAP: Comparing COVID Responses; Supreme Court Nominee Vote on Monday

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – The parties, taking different approaches as the U.S. reaches a daily record high number of COVID cases.

Meantime, Vice President Mike Pence remains on the campaign trail, despite several of his aides testing positive.

Our political contributor Mary C. Curtis has more on this and on Monday’s expected conformation of Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett.

The Heat: Trump, Biden final debate

US President Trump and democratic challenger Joe Biden are back on the campaign trail, hoping to gain momentum from their last debate. The two men debated each other on a number of issues in Nashville, Tennessee – challenging each other’s views on COVID-19, immigration and racial disparities in the United States.

CGTN’s White House Correspondent Nathan King reports.

Joining the discussion:

  • Mary C. Curtis is a columnist for Roll Call and the host of the “Equal Time” podcast.
  • Joel Rubin is a Democratic strategist and President of Washington Strategy Group.
  • Amy Holmes is a writer for HBO’s “Real Time with Bill Maher” and a political columnist.
  • Eric Bolling is a political commentator and Host of “America This Week.”

‘Republicans often racialize poverty. Democrats often run from poverty’

MacArthur “genius” grantee, founder of Repairers of the Breach, and organizer of the Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival, Rev. William J Barber II has made eradicating poverty his life’s work. He sits down with host Mary C. Curtis for a candid and surprising conversation.

What’s in a name? Identity, pride and love. Ask Kamala Harris

Every person’s name is special. It demands respect.

I learned how seriously I felt about that at a pre-coronavirus conference, when a speaker who fancied himself Don Rickles but came off more like the rude uncle at a holiday party, prefaced his remarks with a self-styled roast. It supposedly poked “fun” at the attendees, including, apparently, those he barely knew. (And frankly, except for an occasional greeting at conferences past, I did not know this man from a can of paint.)

The Heat: Right-Wing U.S. Militias

The recent arrest of 13 men, some accused of plotting to kidnap the governor of Michigan and planning to start a civil war, has drawn new attention to the threat posed by right-wing militias in the United States. Heavily armed militia members have shown up on the steps of the state capitol to protest the governor’s coronavirus restrictions. And some have also taken to the streets in cities across the U.S. this summer in response to the Black Lives Matter movement. All of this is generating attention from the international media. Here’s part of a report by Britain’s ITV News filed from Louisville, Kentucky.

To Discuss:

  • Mark Potok is a former Senior Fellow at the Southern Poverty Law Center
  • Muhammad Fraser-Rahim is executive director of  North America for Quilliam International.
  • Colin Clarke is a Senior Research fellow at the Soufan Center
  • Mary C. Curtis is a columnist for “Roll Call’ and host of the “Equal Time” podcast.

Exploring America’s Racial Divide

It’s a challenge that has been with America since its beginning: Where are Americans now, as they deal with a pandemic, economic upheaval and a racial reckoning and what are the paths to unity?

Mary C. Curtis: Candidates Try to Close Deal in North Carolina

CHARLOTTE, NC — Less than 2 weeks until election day and both campaigns are making their rounds to key states including, North Carolina.

WCCB political contributor Mary C. Curtis talks about the candidates final push ahead of November 3rd.

POLITICAL WRAP: Candidates in North Carolina; Final Presidential Debate

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Two weeks and two days until the November 3rd election.

Millions across the country have already voted early, including more than 98,000 people in Mecklenburg County.

The candidates are in our area this week, fighting for any voters who remain undecided.

President Trump will hold a rally in Gastonia on Wednesday, while former Vice President Joe Biden spent the day Sunday in Durham.

Our political contributor Mary C. Curtis has more in the video above.