Firebrand constitutional attorney and professor Gene Nichol describes how the Republican-majority NC legislature became a blueprint for dismantling democracy.
"Back in the 1980s, I had the privilege of serving two terms in the Mississippi House of Representatives. I was inspired to seek office because I was embarrassed that my state still had no kindergarten system. My state was in dire need of many progressive reforms. I took the oath, swore to uphold the seriously outdated constitution, and started filing bills to shake up things. None of them passed.
In those days, and for decades before, the State of North Carolina was the unquestioned leader of modern reforms in The South. It was viewed by us and by legislators from other states as the model of a sensible, workable, state government that got things done and tried to take care of its more vulnerable citizens.
Many times, in the middle of a debate, someone said, 'This is what they're doing in North Carolina and it's working.' Or, 'North Carolina passed this law twenty years ago.' These were powerful statements because the state's legislature was serious about education and equality.
Those days are gone. In 2013, hardcore conservative Republicans won big and put together super majorities in both the House and Senate. With a likeminded leader in the Governor's office, they immediately waged war against teachers and schools, the poor, women, elections, the courts, the environment, and those with darker skin.
The changes in North Carolina are shocking and depressing. Gene Nichol was either in the ring or agitating from a front row seat. He knows this sad story because he was there.
The war is still raging. And he's still fighting." -John Grisham
"Gene Nichol has long been a clarion voice on issues of race and poverty in North Carolina. Unbeloved by the powerful and beloved by the disadvantaged, his latest book unsparingly sets forth the politics of what he calls the State legislature's 'Blueprint for the War on Democracy and Equality.' Without fear or favor, Nichol tells the story of a state once known for moderation on issues of race, but that has become ground zero in partisan extremism and the resurgence of racial recidivism in America." -Ted Shaw, Julius Chambers Distinguished Professor, University of North Carolina, former Director-Counsel and President of the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund
