Finding the Solution to Growing Gun Violence in Charlotte

Featured at WCCB Rising

CHARLOTTE, NC — The country has been talking about the murder of Nipsey Hussle in Los Angeles, shot outside a store he owned. The young Grammy-nominated rapper was making a difference in his community, stressing education and entrepreneurship among young people, even as he moved on from former membership in a gang to business and personal success.

Gun violence is a problem beyond Los Angeles, reaching many communities, including Charlotte. There have been more than 300 shootings in Charlotte this year, more than 30 of which were homicides. Members of the community – students, community leaders, citizens – gathered Tuesday night in a vigil to confront the problem and talk about ways to turn around the dangerous trend and turn toward a safer city. (Mary C. Curtis)

Rev. Corine Mack, president of the Charlotte NAACP said: “All the talking we’re doing has to stop, we need some real concrete changes, some tangible changes.”

Read the rest atWCCB Rising
Apr032019 TAGS: , , , ,

If Trump is looking for a national emergency, he should try these ones instead

Featured at Roll Call

OPINION — Dueling teleprompter speeches and a high-drama walkout: This is what it looks like when our country’s leaders debate the best way to meet the challenges at the border and whether shutting down the government is the best way to settle it.

If no one budges this week — and the way talks have been going so far, optimism is not particularly warranted — the next step could be a national emergency, declared by the president. But first Donald Trump seems intent on diluting the word “emergency” to mean whatever he wants it to mean on a particular day or hour.

Read the rest atRoll Call
Jan102019 TAGS: , , , , , , ,

After This Election, the NRA Is No Longer Calling All the Shots

Featured at Roll Call

OPINION — The only thing that stops a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun. It’s the mantra of the National Rifle Association, and a certainty for those who would brook no incursion into Second Amendment rights and definitely no gun control measures, no matter how small or “sensible,” as they are often described by those who propose them.

When children were gunned down at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, in 2012, and federal legislation that would strengthen background checkswent nowhere, gun control advocates despaired. If the murder of children failed to crack the gun lobby, what would?

But real-life events and political surprises indicate that the landscape might be changing. And the work of groups such as the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, the Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence and other large and small organizations has made a difference.

Where once politicians were loath to cross the NRA because of the organization’s hefty purse and powerful get-out-the-vote success, candidates in unlikely places are showing that a nuanced position is not a deal breaker. Earlier this month, Democrat Lucy McBath, a onetime spokesperson for Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense, won a House seat in Georgia that Newt Gingrich once held, no doubt surprising some leaders in her own party. Though the district has been trending away from its once deep-red hue for a while, a well-financed race by Democrat Jon Ossoff last year that engendered enthusiasm could not achieve what McBath did with far less attention.

Read the rest atRoll Call
Nov292018 TAGS: , , , , , , , ,

National School Walkouts in Charlotte: What’s Next?

Featured at WCCB Rising

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Thousands of students across the country, and right here in Charlotte, are expected to walk out of their classrooms today to demonstrate against gun violence.

Political Contributor Mary C. Curtis talks about the planned protests, and steps students and families can take moving forward.

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Mar142018 TAGS: , ,

Charlotte Talks Friday News Roundup: NC Legislature Update; Cam Newton Makes Sexist Comment; More

Featured at WFAE

On this edition of the local news roundup…

State lawmakers reconvened in Raleigh this week for another special legislative session. Overriding gubernatorial vetoesand a push to redraw judicial districts were topics that were tackled. We’ll talk about what, if anything, was accomplished.

The North Carolina Supreme Court dismissed a last-chance appeal to halt the I-77 toll lane project, ending the legal fight for the group Widen I-77. We’ll hear about the reaction from stakeholders.

Cam Newton’s comments about a female reporter went viral, causing widespread backlash and even talk that he’ll lose some of his sponsors. We’ll talk about what he said and the aftermath.

The homicide count in Charlotte for 2017 continues to rise, and this week officials changed the number from 2016 as well. We’ll discuss the change.

President Trump arrives in North Carolina this weekend for the first time since his election as president.

And we’ll bring you local politicians’ reactions to the mass shooting in Las Vegas and talk about the NRA and gun control with host Mike Collins and the roundup reporters on the Charlotte Talks Local News Roundup.

Guests:

Tom Bullock, WFAE Reporter.

Sarah Delia, WFAE Reporter.

Mary C.Curtis, columnist at Roll Call and a contributor to other publications including WCCB News Rising and NBCBLK.

Ann Doss Helms, Reporter for The Charlotte Observer

Read the rest atWFAE
Oct062017 TAGS: , , , ,

Opinion: When Silence Says Everything

Featured at Roll Call

The parable of the frog being boiled alive — with the poor creature jumping out immediately if the water is red hot, but, if the heat is cranked up slowly, not realizing its plight until it’s too late — may not be based on science (so don’t try this on little Croaky). But in politics, sweating officials are still doing the backstroke.

Americans are becoming used to abhorrent events, shocked, and wondering if anything can be done to make things better. After every man-made or natural disaster, or every statement from a leader that crosses the line, we wonder if the water will ever be hot enough to get a rise out of those in charge. So we do the best we can.

Read the rest atRoll Call
Oct052017 TAGS: , , ,

Weighing In on How the Orlando Shootings Are Shaping Campaign 2016

Featured at WCCB Rising


CHARLOTTE, NC — Presidential hopefuls are starting to weigh in following the deadliest mass killing on U.S. soil since 9/11. Mary C. Curtis weighs in on how the Orlando shooting is shaping the current political landscape and impacting the race for the White House.

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Jun152016 TAGS: , , , , , , , ,

Can we talk about gun violence?

Featured at The Washington Post

CHARLOTTE – On the federal level, the gun-control debate is now focused on proposed changes to gun legislation, from tightening background checks (given little chance of passage) to efforts to ban military-style assault weapons and limit the capacity of ammunition magazines (given even less).

On the local level, however, in the city neighborhoods where violence doesn’t merit the headlines of Newtown or Aurora, that debate is secondary. The concern there is concentrated on gun violence rather than gun control. At a community conversation in Charlotte on Tuesday evening, a police officer, a doctor and a minister – all experienced in dealing with the daily consequences of young men with guns – led an effort to find solutions.

Read the rest atThe Washington Post
Apr172013 TAGS: , , , ,
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