When an anti-gay bomb shattered the peace in Atlanta, was the far Right’s new “leaderless resistance to blame? Originally published in Out. EVEN THOUGH IT WAS ONLY 9:45 P.M., early for a Friday night in Atlanta, the Otherside Lounge was already cranking up February 21. One hundred and fifty women and men had settled into […]
The Real State Takeover
Lobbyists are brandishing a new weapon at local governments: preemption. Originally published in The Nation. WHEN OFFICIALS IN TULSA, OKLAHOMA, were planning the 1996 State Fair, they decided to play it safe and ban concealed weapons. With more than 1 million people drinking beer and getting rowdy over eleven days and nights, they reasoned, allowing guns […]
Scam Schools
Thinking of learning a new job skill? Beware of phony colleges that promise great careers but leave graduates with worthless certificates and staggering debt. Originally published in Good Housekeeping. BRANDI E. CANICK, 28, LIVES WITH HER HUSBAND, a welder, in an apartment in Kearns, Utah. Three years ago when she decided her job at a dry cleaner […]
Murder on the Mountain
The double slaying of lesbian hikers along the Appalachian Trail remains unsolved. Beyond the murder mystery is the tragic story of two women in love. Originally published in Out. THE FOREST TRAIL THAT BEGINS at the highest point on Virginia’s Skyline Drive and drops quickly away from civilization seems an unlikely site for a double murder. As […]
Helms’ Last Stand?
The Senate’s most renowned right-winger faces a new day in the Tar Heel state. Originally published in The Nation. FIFTEEN PEOPLE WERE WAITING when Harvey Gantt showed up at the Whitaker Mill Senior Center in Raleigh, North Carolina. In a small lounge room with straight-back chairs and a bulletin board full of photos, the Democratic U.S. Senate […]
No Ways Tired
Click here for “No Ways Tired,” Southern Exposure, Summer 1996. Opens as a PDF.
No, Jesse, No
Is Senator Helms Gay Public Enemy No. 1? Originally published in Out. IT’S EARLY ON A TUESDAY afternoon, and a pack of reporters has clustered on the second floor of the U.S. Capitol building. With the Balkan conflict reaching a critical juncture, the national media are looking for some punchy sound bites from the top Republican senators […]
Statesmanship vs. Helmsmanship
How the senator from North Carolina holds the world hostage Originally published in The Nation. NOT TOO LONG AGO, JESSE FRIEDMAN, the deputy director of the American Institute for Free Labor Development, and several Nicaraguan union leaders came up with an idea to help low-income workers in that country: a home-improvement loan fund, from which union members […]
Statehouses Drop the Other Shoe
Originally published in The Nation. WHEN THE REPUBLICANS TOOK OVER the North Carolina Statehouse last January, Frances Cummings seemed a fitting choice to head the subcommittee on public education. As president of the North Carolina Association of Educators, she had lobbied for higher teacher pay and better funding for rural schools. She also spoke from experience: For […]
Bad Chemistry
Visions and fissions at the North Carolina School of Science and Math Originally published in Indy Week. WHEN THE N.C. SCHOOL OF SCIENCE AND MATHEMATICS opened its doors in 1980, it was more than a high school for hotshots. It was considered a bold experiment, an affirmation of North Carolina’s commitment to high-tech education. Here was […]
