Archives for June 2020

A mercurial Trump foils Charlotte’s best-laid RNC plans, probably

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Well, it seemed like a good idea at the time, especially for a city that wants to be world class. Charlotte would join that list of cities to have hosted both Democratic and Republican national conventions. Its hotels and restaurants and streets would be bustling. Its arena would be filled with crowds, greeting the acceptance speech of repeat GOP standard-bearer Donald Trump, guaranteed grabber of headlines (and other things, as the Access Hollywood video attests).

And the world would be watching.

Well, the world is watching, all right, as what was a somewhat grudging but eventually accommodating relationship has deteriorated into sniping and bickering, with a nasty split on the horizon.

As usual, the catalyst for the acrimony was Trump himself.

Mary C. Curtis: Calls for Police Reform

CHARLOTTE, NC — Calls for police reform continue to grow in the wake of George Floyd’s death in Minneapolis two weeks ago.

WCCB political contributor Mary C. Curtis discusses the changes happening on the local level and across the country.

Dateline Awards for work published, broadcast in 2019 announced online in historic first for SPJ DC Chapter

The ceremony was virtual — no big dinner at the National Press Club. But great news nonetheless: I won the SPJ DC Dateline Award for Online columns for my work at CQ/Roll Call. Announced Tuesday night.

POLITICAL WRAP: CMPD & Chemical Agents; Protest Reaction Worldwide

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Monday night, Charlotte City Council will talk about the use of chemical agents on protesters.

It comes as the SBI is looking into tactics officers used on Tuesday night.

Also, how protests for racial justice across the country are now getting worldwide attention.

Click above for more with WCCB Charlotte Political Contributor Mary C. Curtis.

How Do We Bridge the Political and Racial Divide in America? with Mary C. Curtis

Racial tensions are also stoked again thanks to the untimely death of George Floyd. Which brought to surface the work which still needs to be done to bridge the gap of racial division in the country. How will all these issues play in an election year? How do we heal a broken nation?

Charlotte Talks Local News Roundup: Charlotte Protests, CMPD Response; RNC May Leave Charlotte

Charlotte has faced several days of protests, both peaceful and violent, after the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis last week. The protests have involved clashes with CMPD and many complaints about how the police have handled the protesters, but several police officers hope to have constructive conversation with the protesters. Thousands have hit the streets of Charlotte to protest, from Beatties Ford Road to uptown to Myers Park. We’ll talk through the demonstrations, the protesters, the chaos and the police response.

President Trump and the Republican National Committee are exploring other cities to hold the RNC this year, after Trump said this week that he’d move the convention out of Charlotte. We’ll talk about Gov. Roy Cooper’s negotiations with the RNC about having a safe convention in the midst of the pandemic and what options there still are to hold a part of the convention in the city.

We’ll give the latest on the coronavirus, as officials worry that the protests in Charlotte and the recent Phase 2 opening will result in a spike in COVID-19 cases.

Plus, we’ll have an update on the Mecklenburg County budget, which was approved this week, forcing Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools to raise its minimum wage to $15 an hour. We’ll have more on the discussions at that meeting as well.

Guests:

Erik Spanberg, managing editor at the Charlotte Business Journal

Glenn Burkins, founder and publisher of QCityMetro.com 

Mary C. Curtis, columnist for Rollcall.com and WCCB 

Ann Doss HelmsWFAE education reporter

Systemic racism in America: Who, what, when, why and how

Anger and unrest have spread across the United States over the police killing of yet another unarmed African American. Many protesters are calling for a “healing speech” from U.S. President Donald Trump, tackling racial inequality and police reform head-on. After several nights of the worst unrest in decades, Trump had this message: he is the president of law and order. But will the Trump administration be able to deal with racism at its root cause? How can police brutality in the U.S. be brought to an end? Hear the views of diverse experts from four major cities in the United States.

Chaos is all Trump has, as he hopes ‘law and order’ appeal will work in GOP’s favor

The Queen of Soul sang it clearly. The “Respect” Aretha Franklin was craving — yes, demanding — in that classic is still in short supply for black Americans. More protesters have been arrested than police officers involved in the death of George Floyd, the black Minneapolis man who died after now-former officer Derek Chauvin held his knee on the handcuffed man’s neck for nearly nine minutes while three fellow officers stood by or assisted.

Would there have been protests across the country and the world if Chauvin and his fellow officers had been charged immediately? There is no way to know for sure. But it is clear that the anguished reaction has been about much more than the death of one man, and has been generations in the making.

SPJNE Zoom Series – Branden Hunter & Haisten Willis on Covering George Floyd Protests

The New England PRO Chapter hosted a discussion with Detroit Free Press reporter Branden Hunter and Washington Post freelancer Haisten Willis on covering protests on police brutality in the wake of George Floyd’s killing. Moderated by Roll Call columnist Mary C. Curtis. Filmed on June 4, 2020.

Mary C. Curtis: Pres. Trump Moving RNC From Charlotte

CHARLOTTE, NC — President Donald Trump says the Republican National Convention will be looking for another host for its convention in late August.

Governor Roy Cooper isn’t planning to ease social distancing guidelines for a full-scale convention.

Here’s our political contributor Mary C. Curtis with the latest on the controversy.