Durham, N.C. — While Black students make up 25% of children in North Carolina public schools, they receive 55.2% of all short-term suspensions. White students, who comprise 47.3% of all students, only receive 25.8% of all suspensions. These and other findings of disparity are detailed in the statewide Racial Equity Report Card issued today by the Southern Coalition for Social Justice.
Southern Coalition for Social Justice Files Amicus Brief To Help Protect North Carolina Voters From Intimidation
Durham, N.C. — The Southern Coalition for Social Justice (SCSJ) has filed a brief of amici curiae (“friend of the Court” brief) in support of the defendants in Public Interest Legal Foundation v. North Carolina State Board of Elections, which is currently pending in front of the United States Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit. SCSJ filed the brief on behalf of the Association of Mexicans in North America, Inc., El Pueblo, Inc. and North Carolina Asian Americans Together, nonprofit organizations that advocate on behalf of minority populations across North Carolina, seeking to highlight for the appeals court the risk to voters of color if the decision below is not affirmed.
North Carolina Court of Appeals Blocks Voter ID Law in Key Win for Southern Coalition for Social Justice
Durham, N.C. — The North Carolina Court of Appeals yesterday issued a key decision in Holmes v. Moore, blocking the state’s voter ID law from taking effect until the trial of the case has concluded. The lawsuit challenges the constitutionality of S.B. 824, which was passed in December 2018 following the approval of a state constitutional amendment requiring people in North Carolina to present an ID before voting.
SCSJ Launches CROWD Academies To Protect Voting Rights of Communities of Color During Post-2020 Census Redistricting Process
The Southern Coalition for Social Justice (SCSJ) is partnering with community organizations in six states to offer in-depth training sessions to educate community organizers on the redistricting process and potential voting rights violations following the 2020 census. Community Redistricting Organizations Working for Democracy (CROWD) Academies will equip individuals and organizations with tools to monitor and engage with redistricting processes at every level of government, spot warning signs and take action if decisions are likely to infringe on the right to an equal opportunity to participate in elections.
Judge Rules Accusations of Voter Fraud Can Be Defamatory; Plaintiffs’ Claims to Proceed to Trial
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEFriday Jan. 3, 2020 Durham, N.C. — A North Carolina judge has ruled that accusing someone of an unsubstantiated claim of felony voter fraud can be defamatory and such accusations are not protected speech under federal or state law. This ruling, issued by Judge Allen Baddour in favor of the plaintiffs in Bouvier, […]
Southern Coalition for Social Justice Leads National Initiative To Combat Criminalization of the Ballot Box
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Monday, Dec. 9, 2019For media inquiries:Michelle Rashmrash@rlfcommunications.com336-553-1733 (office) 336-823-5501 (mobile) Durham, N.C. — As part of its ongoing work to protect voting rights and eliminate barriers for people with past involvement with the criminal justice system, the Southern Coalition for Social Justice recently hosted a national convening to launch its new initiative to address […]
Plaintiffs in North Carolina Voter ID Lawsuit Seek Documents On Legislative Motivations Behind Challenged Law
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASETuesday, Dec. 3, 2019 For media inquiries:Michelle Rashmrash@rlfcommunications.com336-553-1733 (office)336-823-5501 (mobile) Durham, N.C. — Plaintiffs in Holmes v. Moore, a lawsuit challenging North Carolina’s voter ID requirements (S.B. 824), filed a motion in Wake County Superior Court earlier today asking a judge to compel the General Assembly to release communications between legislators and General […]
Southern Coalition for Social Justice Confirms Three New Board Members
Durham, N.C. — The Southern Coalition for Social Justice (SCSJ) is delighted to announce that Dr. Andra Gillespie, Lisa Jones and Susan Price will join its board of directors, effective immediately. All three of these dynamic women are exceedingly accomplished in their areas of expertise and have a great passion for social justice work and will help reinforce the SCSJ’s regional focus and further develop its expansive programming.
SCSJ Celebrates Continued Progress in Winston-Salem Following Dept. of Education Complaint
SCSJ and community partners celebrate a win for students and parents of Ashley Elementary after a panel of the Winston-Salem City Council voted unanimously to recommend the sale of city-owned property that will serve as the site of a new school to replace Ashley Elementary. The recommendation is slated to go before the full City Council for consideration on October 21.
The Southern Coalition Announces Meredith Horton As Deputy Executive Director
Durham, N.C.— The Southern Coalition for Social Justice (SCSJ) is proud to announce that Meredith Horton, a seasoned attorney and accomplished leader in the social justice community, will join the organization as its Deputy Executive Director. Meredith brings to this position more than 15 years of organizing, legal advocacy, program management and grant-making experience on a range of social justice issues. In this new role, Meredith will assume a portfolio of leadership responsibilities that include helping with organizational strategy, staff development, along with budget and operational systems. Her appointment begins October 21.
SCSJ Represents Democracy North Carolina in Amicus Brief Urging State Court to Reject State’s Proposed Remedy Maps
Late Friday, the Southern Coalition for Social Justice submitted an amicus brief on behalf of Democracy North Carolina urging a three-judge state court panel in Common Cause v. Lewis to reject the “remedial” State Senate and House redistricting plans enacted by the General Assembly a little over a week ago. SCSJ and Democracy NC argued that those plans fail to eliminate the partisan bias that led the court to invalidate the prior plans as unconstitutional partisan gerrymanders.
North Carolina Voters Appeal Denial of Request to Put NC Voter ID Requirement on Hold Despite Allegations of Discrimination, Risk of Disenfranchisement
RALEIGH, N.C. – Six North Carolina voters today filed a notice of appeal from a Wake County Superior Court decision denying their request to freeze enforcement of North Carolina’s Voter ID statute until a trial can be held on its constitutionality. A three-judge panel found last Friday that plaintiffs have sufficiently alleged that the voter […]
Voters Strike Back and Win Settlement and Apology in Challenge to Voter Intimidation in Virginia
ALEXANDRIA, VA — Voters subjected to false accusations of felony voter fraud reached a settlement in their lawsuit against J. Christian Adams, a former member of the Pence-Kobach “Voter Fraud” Commission, and his organization, the Public Interest Legal Foundation (PILF). According to the lawsuit, Mr. Adams and PILF unlawfully defamed and conspired to intimidate Virginia […]
U.S. Supreme Court Rules Partisan Gerrymandering is Non-Justiciable
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in North Carolina’s partisan gerrymandering case that federal courts will have no role in reviewing partisan gerrymandering. The 5-4 decision ruling in Rucho v. Common Cause determines that challenges to partisan discrimination in the redistricting process are nonjusticiable and North Carolina’s 2016 congressional plan will remain intact. Allison Riggs, senior voting rights […]
Wake County Litigants Applaud Adoption of Federal Court-Drawn Map for 2020 State House Elections
RALEIGH, N.C. – The North Carolina General Assembly has approved a redistricting plan that reverts four state House Districts in Wake County (HD 36, 37, 40, and 41) to their configuration as they were drawn in 2011. The redraw was required by an order from a three-judge panel in Wake County Superior Court to remedy changes made […]
Equal Justice Works Fellow Joins SCSJ to Support Justice-Involved Voters
The Southern Coalition for Social Justice welcomes Mitchell Brown, an Equal Justice Fellowship sponsored by the Ottinger Foundation. As part of the fellowship, Brown will focus on supporting citizens with felony records across the South who have completed their sentence to restore their right to vote and re-engage with the political process so that they […]
Voting Rights Advocates Call for Federal Oversight of Future Redistricting in Texas
SAN ANTONIO, Texas (May 2, 2019) – In a remedial hearing today in a Texas redistricting case that began in 2011, a three-judge panel heard a request from the Texas NAACP and other plaintiffs to require the state’s future redistricting plans to first be cleared by the U.S. Department of Justice. The brief, which included […]
Voting Rights Groups Object to Rushed Redraw of Precincts by State Elections Board
RALEIGH, N.C. (May 1, 2019) — Voting rights groups are calling on the N.C. State Board of Elections (“State Board”) to stop efforts to redraw the state’s voting precincts by May 31, 2019. The Southern Coalition for Social Justice and Democracy North Carolina sent a letter to the State Board on Tuesday outlining how forcing […]