Race | PoliticsNC

A lifetime of bogeymen

by Fred Mills | Aug 12, 2021 | History, Politics, Race | 1 comment

Fred Mills is an acclaimed music critic, writer, and editor who grew up in North Carolina. Stop me if you’ve heard this one before. It’s a weekend afternoon during the pre-Beatles ’60s, in Smallville, USA (technically, a tiny cotton mill town [name...

A legacy of ignoring racism led to Trump, not mean liberals

by Thomas Mills | Jul 21, 2019 | Editor's Blog, Race

First, if you don’t understand why the president’s tweets telling four brown-skinned Congresswomen to go back to where they came from and the chants of “Send her back” at the Trump rally are racist, you’re probably racist. If you don’t believe it, don’t worry, you’re...

Dear GOP, listen to Senator Scott

by Thomas Mills | Feb 1, 2019 | Editor's Blog, Race

Dear GOP, When the most one of the most prominent African-Americans in your party tells you that a guy has a disturbing racial history, you ought to listen, not rebuke him. Senator Tim Scott (R-SC) understands the strategy used by Jesse Helms and the Republican Party...

The problem with racists

by Thomas Mills | Oct 25, 2018 | 2018 elections, Editor's Blog, Race

Ahead of the election, racial tension and violence is increasing. And it’s not both sides. It’s one. The Republican Party has used racist dog whistles for decades to motivate a portion of their base. Now, since the rise of Trump, they’re more like referees’ whistles,...

A retrospective: Race and turnout in rural North Carolina

by Thomas Mills | Mar 1, 2018 | Editor's Blog, Race | 1 comment

Reading the Elon Poll reminded me of a story from early in my career. It also reminded me how urban areas differ from rural ones. The story has lessons for people running for office this year, too. Twenty years ago, at the urging of a political friend, the Democratic...

Yes, Roy Moore’s a racist

by Thomas Mills | Oct 5, 2017 | Editor's Blog, Politics, Race | 2 comments

Alabama GOP Senate nominee Roy Moore is a racist. He doesn’t try to hide it though I’m sure he would deny it. He shared blatantly racist memes on a Facebook page that he and his supporters would probably claim are just legitimate opinions. They’re not. They’re meant...