Award-winning columnist, writer, speaker and editor
CHARLOTTE, NC — People are still on both sides of the same-sex marriage debate, despite the Supreme Court’s ruling last week. WCCB Political Contributor Mary C. Curtis is in to talk about the deeper impact this ruling could have on NC and some of the existing laws.
CHARLESTON, SC — WCCB Political Contributor Mary C. Curtis in Charleston for the funeral for Rev. Clementa Pinckney. Hear her comments on how the events of Charleston have impacted the nation both politically and personally.
When legendary Broadway producer David Merrick revived the flagging box-office and pizzazz for his long-running musical “Hello, Dolly!” by casting Pearl Bailey to play the lead character originated by Carol Channing and, with Cab Calloway, lead an all-black cast, he was thinking bottom line. It is, after all, show business.
Being 1967 America, in the middle of civil rights change, there were arguments among those of every color on whether the production — with no mention of racism and prejudice – was a retrograde throwback to segregation or a breath of fresh air. Of course, since the default in America was “white,” the same discussions never happened with Channing’s all-white cast.
But what finally counted was the overwhelming response from audiences, who just wanted to be entertained. The show drew not only traditional (read white) theater-goers but also people of color, thrilled to pay the price of a Broadway ticket to see something at once different and familiar. It worked for my mother, who dragged her young daughter (actually, we were co-conspirators) on a train from Baltimore to New York to see “Dolly!” and other shows, igniting a taste for Broadway and a desire to seek out theater that was more multi-colored than the nickname “Great White Way” would indicate.
In 2015, Broadway is taking renewed notice in how to present entertaining, sometimes challenging fare and keep a diverse, global audience interested. That might mean singer Brandy taking a turn in the long-running “Chicago” or NeNe Leakes of “Real Housewives” coming on board in the final month as the wicked stepmother in the multiracial cast of the now-closed “Cinderella,” one with KeKe Palmer, an African-American princess, in the starring role.
CHARLOTTE, NC — The killings of 9 people at Emanuel AME Church in Charleston has once again sparked a national debate on the issue of race.
A big issue in that debate… the Confederate Flag. A symbol of Southern pride and heritage to some, a symbol of racism and hate to others.
WCCB Political Contributor Mary C. Curtis is in the studio to discuss how the issue of race is now also a political issue.
When it comes to moving past America’s troubling history—written in words and blood—and its struggle to achieve goals of racial equality, young people have the answers, adults have rationalized. The next generations will be better, more accepting of a diverse society because they are already living it, right? Well, no.
Dylann Roof, the young man who has confessed to conflicting carnage and trauma in a Charleston, S.C., church, was just 21. The barely legal man, who joined a prayer meeting for nearly an hour before methodically executing the young and the old, is a skinny kid with a goofy bowl haircut whose body looked lost in baggy prison clothes. Being part of a generation that attended integrated schools— including the high school he attended—and Facebook-friending a rainbow nation did not make him desire a multiracial utopia. Just the opposite, in fact.
CHARLOTTE, NC — Charlotte has picked a new police chief to replace Chief Rodney Monroe, but it looks like a rough summer is ahead for him. WCCB Political Contributor Mary C. Curtis is in the studio to talk about the challenges that face Kerr Putney and Charlotte.
CHARLOTTE, NC — We have been talking for months about the Civil Liberties Ordinance in Charlotte that is aimed at preventing tensions between police and citizens. Now that it has passed, our Political Contributor Mary C. Curtis is in the studio to discuss the ordinance, it’s significance, and what comes next.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A 1 cent property tax increase is just one of the items on the table to fix Charlotte’s $22 million shortfall. WCCB Charlotte Political Contributor Mary C. Curtis sits down with Rising’s Kristine Zell to do number crunching and weighs the options ahead of the city’s budget adoption.
Have you noticed First Lady Michelle Obama seems to be everywhere lately? Could this be part of a bigger plan for her to run for political office later on? Rev. Sharpton talks to Allison Samuels and Mary C. Curtis for more.
When she served as a Union spy during the Civil War or returned time after time to lead enslaved people to freedom over trails she herself had blazed, Harriet Tubman operated in stealth. Today she is the center of attention and debate. That’s what happens when an African American icon is chosen to replace a president on the $20 bill in a country that is still struggling to resolve issues of race, gender, and privilege.
