Self-care is your crown
Each week the Reckon Women newsletter includes a column from women in the South, in collaboration with See Jane Write. Click here to join the [...]
The execution that did not happen: How Alabama’s Christian Nationalism unwittingly saved Willie Smith’s life
The morning after Willie Smith was not executed by the state of Alabama, his attorney Spencer Hahn shared a video he said encapsulated his reaction [...]
Black Joy: How Mardi Gras good times rolled – through snow, sleet and ice
I said burr! It’s cold in here. There must be some Black Joy in the atmosphere! Alright, let’s chill with the “Bring It On” vibes. [...]
Medical cannabis in Mississippi: Here’s where things stand
Last Friday, the Mississippi state Senate approved a medical cannabis bill, SB 2765, during a 1 a.m. vote. But, doesn't Mississippi already have a medical [...]
So you’re vaccinated. What will you do next?
As the COVID-19 vaccination becomes more readily available to Southerners, more questions arise. We asked our Reckon followers about their plans after getting their vaccines, [...]
Howard University: A long tradition of producing historic ‘firsts’
https://youtu.be/CPotk5qx3sw HBCUs celebrated on January 20, 2021, as Kamala Harris became the first Black and South Asian American woman to serve at Vice President of [...]
If Kamala was your daughter: South Asian and Jamaican moms stan the new VP
January 20, 2021 will go down in history as the day former U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris begins her term as U.S. vice president, the first [...]
How an Electoral College objection 150 years ago ushered in Jim Crow
Has Congress ever effectively challenged the Electoral College? Just once. And it ushered in the Jim Crow era. Here's the story about how Congress turned [...]
Kwoya Fagin Maples talks poetry, trauma and the craft of writing with See Jane Write
Kwoya Fagin Maples is a poet, writer and a University of Alabama professor from Charleston, South Carolina. In her poetry collection, “Mend,” she explores [...]
Black Women and their Perennial Political Power
Many of the races on the ballot in the South in 2020 could be decided by Black women. This voting bloc has been a force in the political world for [...]
"If you are the parent of a transgender child that is 19 or under and you live in the state of Alabama, your child lives in the state of Alabama, get out," Marie Willa, who posted on TikTok as MissWilla, pleaded.
Parents of trans kids urged to flee Alabama for ‘somewhere safe’ as total ban on trans youth healthcare passes
Young trans people and their families living in Alabama have been warned to “run” after the state banned gender-affirming care for minors.
uk.news.yahoo.com
‘We are with you’: Congressional delegation spotlights Amazon union push https://www.al.com/business/2021/03/we-are-with-you-congressional-delegation-spotlights-amazon-union-push.html
The pandemic "she-cession" could bolster efforts to help women workers in Alabama. https://trib.al/dK9kz1a
In the mid-1800s in Montgomery, Dr. J. Marion Sims conducted experimental surgeries on about 11 enslaved women. None of them gave consent to be operated on. None of them received anesthesia. https://www.al.com/news/2021/03/sculptor-honoring-enslaved-women-used-in-alabama-gynecological-experiments-visiting-la.html
For @ProPublica: After an unprecedented number of attacks and threats toward election workers, Georgia's seen next to no arrests and little response from lawmakers to protect them—despite this year's focus on "election security." https://www.propublica.org/article/after-a-wave-of-violent-threats-against-election-workers-georgia-sees-few-arrests
Why I’m teaching Black history all year long
Each week the Reckon Women newsletter includes a column from women in the South, in collaboration with See Jane Write. Click here to join the [...]
Howard University: A long tradition of producing historic ‘firsts’
https://youtu.be/CPotk5qx3sw HBCUs celebrated on January 20, 2021, as Kamala Harris became the first Black and South Asian American woman to serve at Vice President of [...]
Self-care is your crown
Each week the Reckon Women newsletter includes a column from women in the South, in collaboration with See Jane Write. Click here to join the [...]
The execution that did not happen: How Alabama’s Christian Nationalism unwittingly saved Willie Smith’s life
The morning after Willie Smith was not executed by the state of Alabama, his attorney Spencer Hahn shared a video he said encapsulated his reaction [...]
Black Joy: How Mardi Gras good times rolled – through snow, sleet and ice
I said burr! It’s cold in here. There must be some Black Joy in the atmosphere! Alright, let’s chill with the “Bring It On” vibes. [...]
Medical cannabis in Mississippi: Here’s where things stand
Last Friday, the Mississippi state Senate approved a medical cannabis bill, SB 2765, during a 1 a.m. vote. But, doesn't Mississippi already have a medical [...]
So you’re vaccinated. What will you do next?
As the COVID-19 vaccination becomes more readily available to Southerners, more questions arise. We asked our Reckon followers about their plans after getting their vaccines, [...]
Purity culture and the perception of singleness
Each week the Reckon Women newsletter includes a column from women in the South, in collaboration with See Jane Write. Click here to join the [...]
Black Joy: Girl Scouts patch up a hole in the telling of Black history
When your school lacks Black history, give us…..Girl Scout cookies? Not exactly, but y’all should really support Girl Scouts of North-Central Alabama because one of [...]
Workplace pregnancy protections proposed by Alabama lawmakers
Alabama lawmakers are eyeing several proposals that could have significant impact on the rights of pregnant people and, specifically, pregnant workers. Here’s a quick look at the proposed bills: Pregnant workers [...]
Taking a stand for love next Valentine’s Day
Each week the Reckon Women newsletter includes a column from women in the South, in collaboration with See Jane Write. Click here to join the [...]
Sweeping Black maternal health reforms proposed in Congress
African American moms could get better health care under a series of proposals recently introduced in Congress. This week, the congressional Black Maternal Health Caucus [...]
Tuskegee to COVID: A Black doctor on medical racism and overcoming vaccine skepticism
You might have heard of the Tuskegee experiment. It was initially pitched as a six-month study of Black men with syphilis who, in exchange for [...]
Virginia could become first Southern state to ‘legalize’ cannabis
Virginia could become the first state in the South to decriminalize adult use of cannabis. Two bills legalizing adult possession of cannabis and creating a [...]
How Alabama activists pushed a major bank to cut ties with a private prison firm
When Cara McClure met with Regions Bank executives on Jan. 26 in Birmingham, she felt inspired to tell them a story illustrating how a bank [...]
The Black joy in Black History Month
Happy “Move, I’m Black” month, y’all! While our melanin magic shines year-round, it’s that time of the year when we flex our Blackness extra hard [...]
Southern states pushing anti-abortion bills despite Biden’s vow to protect Roe
President Joe Biden has promised to codify Roe V. Wade on the 48th anniversary of its passing, but states across the South show no signs [...]
Dry January: I gave up alcohol and took up cheesecake
Alcohol is sort of like a social utility. We use it to make friends, to ease awkward situations, or to diffuse arguments, say. It’s ever [...]
Southern states, high in STI and teen births rates, eye sex-ed changes
Sex ed is on the mind of legislators across the South. Florida, Alabama and Mississippi are considering bills that could bring major changes to the type [...]
To keep or not to keep: on things that spark joy
Each week the Reckon Women newsletter includes a column from women in the South, in collaboration with See Jane Write. Click here to join the [...]
How queer Southerners find community through social media
“People kind of look at it like ‘queer’ and ‘Southern’ are on opposite ends of the same spectrum. They are not. They are wildly different. One is a social community and one is your family and heritage.”
For these Southern Republicans, the future of conservatism isn’t on Fox News
Mississippi native Mandy Gunasekara scoffs at the notion that the GOP is in disarray. In fact, Republicans are more energized than ever, said the veteran Republican strategist Gunasekara, [...]
Be ‘kool’ and embrace Black joy
What were you known for in elementary school? Were you known as the weird one? The cool cat? Teacher’s pet? The teacher’s turmoil? Whoever you [...]
‘If I want settled, I have to choose settled. It starts in my heart’
Each week the Reckon Women newsletter includes a column from women in the South, in collaboration with See Jane Write. Click here to join the [...]
Pandemic got you numb? Therapists have a word for it: Compassion fatigue
We've lived through too many "unprecedented events" in 2020 and now, in 2021. Feeling numb? There's a term for it, and Reckon spoke to the expert who coined it.
Reckon with us: Our fellowship offers a paid master’s degree and full-time job opportunity
How would you like to earn a paid master’s degree while working at one of the hottest media companies in the country? Reckon and Advance Local Media are [...]
QAnon, Pizzagate and the Deep State: How to talk to the conspiracy theorists you love
Does it feel like the last 12 years have been thoroughly dominated by conspiracy theories? We’ve had President Barack Obama’s birth certificate conspiracy, Pizzagate, QAnon [...]
The inauguration of Black Joy
Biden who? Oh, that’s right. President Joe Biden was inaugurated on Wednesday, but the parade of Black magic stole the show historically, fashionably, poetically. Alla that! It spilled into our homes as Black and [...]
If Kamala was your daughter: South Asian and Jamaican moms stan the new VP
January 20, 2021 will go down in history as the day former U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris begins her term as U.S. vice president, the first [...]
From life-mate to playmate: how Alzheimer’s transformed my marriage
Each week the Reckon Women newsletter includes a column from women in the South, in collaboration with See Jane Write. Click here to join the [...]
Ga. factory worker, fired after miscarriage scare, sues ex-employer over attendance policy
Seven days after Georgia mom Kaytiara McAlister learned she was pregnant, that pregnancy cost her job, according to a new federal lawsuit.. McAlister claims she was fired from her job at a manufacturing center [...]
Rev. James Woodall: Georgia isn’t blue. It’s Black
The same day two Democratic senators secured their U.S. Senate seats, the Georgia NAACP tweeted: Georgia is not blue. It’s Black. Black ballots helped President-elect Joe Biden [...]
‘Dry January’ isn’t just a challenge, it’s about taking back control
Coronavirus has severely limited the amount of time we can spend around other people. But it hasn’t all been good news. It’s also turned us [...]
The legacy of Black Joy
The first two weeks of 2021 have felt like a whole month to me. But I managed to catch a theme despite the chaos this week, and that is: What is [...]
The ‘hate buffet’: Why designating hate groups is harder than ever
As the country continues to reflect on the deadly armed riot at the U.S. Capitol building last week, an event that stirred anger throughout the [...]
Reframing purity culture, step by step
Each week the Reckon Women newsletter includes a column from women in the South, in collaboration with See Jane Write. Click here to join the [...]
Gabrielle Perry: Progressing criminal justice reform for Black women
Gabrielle Perry found some of the nicest women she has ever met within the pink-walled holding cells of East Baton Rouge Parish Prison in January 2014. Then 21, the Louisiana native was arrested for committing payroll [...]
Was the attack on Congress un-American? Yes and no, historians say
In the minutes after pro-Trump rioters breached the halls of Congress, members of Congress and other elected officials took to social media to express their [...]
Rep. Mo Brooks has sponsored just one bill that became law. What else has he done in Congress?
U.S. Rep. Mo Brooks has sponsored just one bill that made it into law during his decade in Congress: the renaming of a U.S. Post [...]
Capitol riot: The 48 hours that echoed generations of Southern conflict
Hours after Mississippi legislators took the final step of removing a Confederate emblem from their state banner, a violent white mob waved the rebel flag [...]
‘Do it scared’: 8 tips by a Southern Black yogi to get you together
So, let’s be real for a moment. Did seeing white fragility on full display at the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday distract you from your goals this year? No judgment if [...]
Medical cannabis proposals blaze across the South
Three more Southern states could soon create medical cannabis programs. State legislators in Alabama, Kentucky and South Carolina have filed or pre-filed bills establishing such programs. [...]
Ain’t nothing too big for Black Joy
I’ll be honest with y’all. I didn't know how to open this week’s Black Joy. I've considered multiple angles. Like, should I start this off [...]
‘This is exhausting’: Therapists speak up about the pandemic, the weight they carry
Thousands of Americans have tried out therapy in the wake of 2020. Mental health awareness is up, but therapists are slammed.
Georgia officials on the U.S. Capitol breach
This is how Georgia officials responded to the mob raid at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
Louisiana officials on the U.S. Capitol breach
This is how Louisiana officials responded to the mob raid at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
Mississippi officials on the U.S. Capitol breach
This is how Mississippi officials responded to the mob raid at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
Prominent Alabamians on the U.S. Capitol breach
This is how Alabama officials responded to the mob raid at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
Arkansas officials on the U.S. Capitol breach
This is how Arkansas officials responded to the mob raid at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
Florida officials on the U.S. Capitol breach
This is how Florida officials responded to the mob raid at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
Kentucky officials on the U.S. Capitol breach
This is how Kentucky officials responded to the mob raid at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
Tennessee officials on the U.S. Capitol breach
This is how Tennessee officials responded to the mob raid at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
Which lives matter? Police response to Capitol mob and BLM vastly different
On Jan. 6, 2021, the routine effort from the U.S. Congress to certify the 2020 presidential election turned into an afternoon filled with chaos, death [...]
Feeling some type of way? Contact your lawmaker
Education. Taxes. Healthcare. Zoning ordinances. Roads. Benefits. Your elected officials make a lot of decisions that affect your life at the local, state and federal [...]
Electoral College showdown: How Southern Congress members voted on confirming Biden’s win
The vote of whether to confirm the Electoral College's 2020 election results happen on Jan. 6, 2020. Here's how it went.
Noah Harris: How to give people a reason to stay in Mississippi
Like his home state, Mississippi native Noah Harris caught attention in November when he became the first Black man to be elected to serve as Harvard University’s student body president. The 20-year-old junior and government major and his [...]
How an Electoral College objection 150 years ago ushered in Jim Crow
Has Congress ever effectively challenged the Electoral College? Just once. And it ushered in the Jim Crow era. Here's the story about how Congress turned [...]
Southern therapists on preparing for colder, darker days
Self-care doesn't have to cost $39.99 plus tax. It can be as simple as intentional breathing and taking a walk.
Some voted Trump, some backed Biden. What are their hopes for the future?
Both President Trump and the Biden/Harris campaign touted coalitions of voters supporting their campaigns. There were Climate Voters for Biden. Sportsmen for Trump. Latinos for [...]
11 Twitter handles to guide you through the Georgia U.S. Senate runoffs
Notwithstanding a tight race or maybe a last-minute phone call from the outgoing U.S. president, the good people of Georgia will find out in the [...]
New year, same Black Joy
On the last day of 2020, I read jokes on social media going around about black-eyed peas. A tried-and-true tradition was turned into a cautionary [...]
Reckon’s top 10 stories of 2020
You might have noticed that Reckon started to look a little different this year. The biggest reason is because we're listening more closely to our [...]
New documentary highlights a year in the South we’d love to forget, but shouldn’t
The short film is now streaming on Youtube, and you can read more about the process of filming here.
A look back at Reckon Women Voices essays that will inspire you to write your own
Each week the Reckon Women newsletter includes a column from women in the South, in collaboration with See Jane Write. Click here to join the [...]
Why it matters that Alabama’s children of color will soon be the majority
Children of color will soon be the majority of children in Alabama, and people of color will make up the majority of the state’s workforce in a decade, according to [...]
Mimi Cole: The South’s lovely becoming through healing
With 2020 coming to a close, Mimi Cole can sense a deep healing coming for the South. She has watched the South shift and change as [...]
Kwoya Fagin Maples talks poetry, trauma and the craft of writing with See Jane Write
Kwoya Fagin Maples is a poet, writer and a University of Alabama professor from Charleston, South Carolina. In her poetry collection, “Mend,” she explores [...]
How to Have a Perfectly Imperfect Christmas
Each week the Reckon Women newsletter includes a column from a woman in the South, in collaboration with See Jane Write. Click here to sign up [...]
How this Covid nurse hoping to get pregnant made her decision about taking the coronavirus vaccine
In the days and months ahead, millions of Americans will be asked if they want the coronavirus vaccine, a mixture of mostly unpronounceable ingredients that [...]
The Reckon List 2021: These people are fighting to build the future South
Chokwe Lumumba, the late mayor of Jackson, Miss., used to say, "To change America, you have to change the South." That's been true since the [...]
At this COVID-19 unit, things were getting better. Now, its nurses fear a ‘tsunami’ is coming
Working in a hospital COVID-19 unit right now feels a little like being in a disaster flick, said Jake Perkins. A 24-year-old registered nurse in a medical intensive care unit at UAB, he’s caring for [...]
Black Joy: Black women, future Olympian winning during pandemic
Reach deeeep into the depths of your memory and see if you can recall when you were asked this question: What do you want to be when you grow up? Do [...]
Why I No Longer Celebrate Christmas
Each week the Reckon Women newsletter includes a column from a woman in the South, in collaboration with See Jane Write. Click here to sign [...]
New cannabis trade group hopes to ‘revolutionize’ Mississippi economy
Mississippi now has a trade association to provide information and support to those hoping to participate in the state’s soon-to-be medical marijuana program. The newly formed Mississippi Cannabis [...]
Mississippi teacher shortage fueled by student loan crisis, report shows
Over the last seven years, Mississippi’s public education system has seen a sharp decline in the number of students graduating from in-state teaching programs and [...]
Amber Scales: Help Black women create a new South
While growing up in Georgia, Amber Scales learned that politics wasn’t so much about red and blue parties: it’s about the people and the movements that are making sure everyone is represented and heard. Her lessons came from watching what she calls “community [...]
Unjustifiable Chapter Six: Point 14
It was a decade after Black civil rights leaders had gathered in Birmingham to make 14 points to their white peers in Birmingham, to demand acknowledgement that Black people were still treated as second class citizens.
The Black joy of Black excellence
Turn to your neighbor and say: “Your black excellence is magic.” Notice I said “your” Black excellence, which doesn’t have to be this big, golden star achievement. You [...]
Purity culture followed me into marriage. Here’s why I wish it didn’t.
I wore a purity ring until my wedding day. On my wedding night, I was so nervous and scared I broke out in hives, [...]
Congress could decriminalize marijuana, but that won’t make it legal everywhere
Recently, the U.S. House of Representatives approved a bill that decriminalizes cannabis on the federal level. The bill will now go to the Senate, where [...]
10 HBCU grads making boss moves in the South
By Abbey Crain Reckon staff writer The 2020 election gave HBCU graduates a chance to shine, bringing to the forefront the fruits of historically Black [...]
Looking for better sex education? Try these resources
If you read our series on purity culture and sex education in the South and you’re hoping to make sex education better for your children and community, [...]
These people are making sex education better in the South
Toy Rollins knew she had to find some way to talk to her two older daughters about sex after she learned her children’s Atlanta-area charter [...]
After my dad quit his job, I received the best Christmas gift ever
Each week the Reckon Women newsletter includes a column from a woman in the South, in collaboration with See Jane Write. Click here to sign [...]
Purity culture can impact long-term sexual health
This story is part of a series about purity culture, sex education and the role of family, faith and communities in addressing the lasting [...]
Experts say purity culture teaches boys an unrealistic view of sexuality
The gender roles assigned to men via purity culture further perpetuate sexual dissatisfaction and unrealistic relationship expectations, sex educators say. While a large portion [...]
David and Devin: Creating a Southern, Black, queer renaissance
The South has always been the stage of many forms of the country’s progress. Theatre creatives Devin Franklin and David Parker want more nuanced Black, queer narratives in the spotlight. Between finishing classes at [...]
Student loan debt hits Black students hardest. Is help on the way?
James Craig, a 31-year-old Black man from Prichard, in South Alabama, has a complicated history with education. His father wouldn’t allow him to attend the [...]
‘Come to church, we have the best sex:’ Christian leaders rethink purity culture messaging
This story is part of a series about purity culture, sex education and the role of family, faith and communities in addressing the lasting [...]
A conversation with Joshua Harris on “I Kissed Dating Goodbye”
This story is part of a series about purity culture, sex education and the role of family, faith and communities in addressing the lasting [...]
Purity culture: How sex was taught to a generation of Southerners
This story is part of a series about purity culture, sex education and the role of family, faith and communities in addressing the lasting [...]
Biden will extend student loan forbearance to Sept. 30. Here’s what you need to know.
In one of his first actions as president, newly sworn President Joe Biden will ask the Education Department to extend the student loan forbearance to [...]
Unjustifiable Chapter 5: Who is George Sands?
Who is Officer George Sands? The Birmingham police officer had amassed more than a dozen complaints before fatally shooting Bonita Carter.
Steven McIntyre: Serving up southern progress on a plate
Steve McIntyre is making a career of whipping up poetry on a plate. The 27-year-old Mobile, Ala., native gives his French-style fine dining training southern flare at Birmingham’s Eat [...]
Black Joy: Finding healing, meaning and solutions through art
It’s time to move our beautiful bodies with your weekly dose of Black Joy. Kicking things off with a video of Rachel Simonne performing an empowering, black-fist raising dance she dedicated to the Black Lives Matter movement.
Sustainable fashion continues Alabama sock entrepreneur’s family business
Reckon Women partnered with seven women-owned small businesses and creators whose stories illustrate the grit, innovation and creativity we admire, and together we curated holiday [...]
How I applied my PR strategies to survive my own life crises
Each week the Reckon Women newsletter includes a column from a woman in the South, in collaboration with See Jane Write. Click here to sign up [...]
OPINION | It’s time to address the trauma of adoption
Contributed By Mila Konomos and Rebecca Seung-Bickley Another November has passed us by. For those not already aware, November is designated as National Adoption Awareness [...]
Women-owned printmaking studio creates space for Alabama artists to make a statement
Reckon Women partnered with seven women-owned small businesses and creators whose stories illustrate the grit, innovation and creativity we admire, and together we curated holiday [...]
Unjustifiable Chapter Four: Catching the devil on all sides
Just sixteen years after Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. marched through Birmingham, the election of 1979 would prove pivotal for Black residents exercising their voting power.
5 ways to shop smarter this holiday season
The holidays are here, which means you’re already getting holiday catalogs in the mail and seeing holiday sale commercials on TV. It’s tempting to pull out that department [...]
Kat Files: Stop sleeping on Black southern talent
Birminghamian Kat Files doesn’t appreciate people side-eyeing Black creatives from the South. It’s a problem 28-year-old Files has bumped into multiple times as a professional dancer, model, and actress in [...]
All I want for Christmas is Black Joy
It’s beginning to look a lot like a Black Joy Christmas. Please, tell me you sung that. Ok, the tempo may be a little off, but you get the [...]
8 women activists minding the gap in the South
The South is home to the most diverse people, landscapes and culture in the country. We have so much to be proud of. But our [...]
Jacqueline McMillan finds healing in wood-carving after losing limbs to sepsis
Reckon Women partnered with seven women-owned small businesses and creators whose stories illustrate the grit, innovation and creativity we admire, and together we curated holiday [...]
Learning to live in the present even in a pandemic
Each week the Reckon Women newsletter includes a column from a woman in the South, in collaboration with See Jane Write. Click here to [...]
Unjustifiable Chapter Three: ‘The Shoebox’
From 1909 to today we can now identify more than 500 shootings by police.
Skipping Friendsgiving: Why so many are passing on the tradition this year
Friendsgiving decision: Some say cancel everything. Some say it's worth the risk. Everyone is struggling.
Reckon Women curations: Unique gifts featuring Alabama makers
Throughout the year, we meet Alabama women almost everywhere who help us see the world differently, who write their own narratives and who craft [...]
Jamie Lowe: The consequences of stereotypes
With a knack for listening and passion for both people and politics, Opelika’s Jamie Lowe may remind you of Barack Obama – if the former president had a southern twang. It’s a comparison the [...]
Black Joy: Believe in your own dopeness – and pass the (vegan) mac and cheese
Words of affirmation. Physical touch. Quality time. Acts of service. Receiving gifts. Those are the five love languages according to Gary Chapman who literally wrote the book [...]
Southern states lead U.S. in preterm births
The South leads the nation in babies born too early, according to a new report from the March of Dimes, a national organization that [...]
Making a name for myself as a Shunnarah
Each week the Reckon Women newsletter includes a column from a woman in the South, in collaboration with See Jane Write. Click here to [...]
South leads U.S. in young people living with parents
Young people are bearing the weight of the financial crisis caused by COVID-19 and will continue to suffer from the financial fallout for years to [...]
Fitz Webb: Building a more LGBTQ-inclusive South
Fitz Webb didn’t see a lot of people who looked like them while growing up in Georgia. But Webb, who uses the pronouns they, them [...]
Maternal mortality panel finds 70 percent of Alabama pregnancy deaths preventable; urges Medicaid expansion
Nearly 70 percent of pregnancy-related deaths of Alabama women were preventable in 2016, according to the state’s first report on maternal mortality since officials began collecting data last year. The report [...]
Unjustifiable Chapter Two: Anger and Action
Protest began to swell in Birmingham began to swell the night Bonita Carter was killed, and it grew larger and larger in the days that followed.
Alexus Cumbie: ‘We can’t leave anyone behind’
Welcome to the first edition of Young, Southern and Black, a series by Reckon that lends the microphone to Black southerners under 30 who are [...]
How do young Black people see the future of the South?
While growing up in Alabama, I was warned often: If you want to grow, get out of the South. For a minute there I daydreamed about snatching up [...]
Biden eyes student loan relief as Southerners bear $330 billion debt burden
There could be relief on the horizon for the millions of people with student loan debt across the country and in the southeast. Recently, the [...]
Unjustifiable Chapter One: ‘It was a girl in the car’
Episode One of “Unjustifiable” reconstructs the shooting of Bonita Carter, moment by moment and step by step, from the vantage points of onlookers, participants, store workers, witnesses and police.
Black Joy: Kamala’s success prompts twirling, dancing in the streets
Dear Black family, we showed out this week! From praising Black women who have spent years slaying voter suppression (I already got you covered with a list of [...]
How to build wealth from basically nothing
If you’ve been following the Money Talks series, you know it addressed some of the ways wealth is unequally distribution in America. Now, we want [...]
Speak up for women’s health all year long
Each week the Reckon Women newsletter includes a column from a woman in the South, in collaboration with See Jane Write. Click here to [...]
8 Black women fighting for voting rights in the South
Georgia quickly became a meme during election week as mail in ballots slowly flipped the state blue for the first time in 1992. Social [...]
Mississippi’s medical marijuana law: What you need to know
Mississippi voters chose to create a medical marijuana program. Now that the initiative has received the voters’ seal of approval, what happens next? The now-approved Initiative [...]
How this Alabama couple bought a house for $8,000 cash
During the first walkthrough of their new home, Eddie and Katie Burkhalter looked around at piles of garbage, drug paraphernalia and graffiti-scrawled walls noting the previous tenants’ drug of choice. [...]
Unjustifiable: How an overlooked moment in Birmingham history charted a path to 2020
Reckon Radio presents: “Unjustifiable,” an investigative series from Pulitzer-prize winning columnist John Archibald and Roy S. Johnson examining an overlooked moment of civil rights history in the heart of the South.
Young Southerners leaned Democratic — until they hit their 30s
The conventional wisdom in the U.S. is the younger the voter the more likely they are to cast a ballot for Democrats. If you’re older, [...]
Black Joy: Strolling to the polls, Black firsts and curing election exhaustion
Whew, y’all. We made it. I don’t care if you’ve cried all week long, if your anxiety is high-key, on 10, or you're acting as [...]
What is a ‘cured’ ballot? How could they affect the election?
Elections in Georgia, Arizona and Nevada may come down to a few thousand ballots. As election managers and county boards of registrars scan and count [...]
The South leads nation in new business applications
Even as the coronavirus pandemic continues to cause economic uncertainty throughout the country, people are starting new businesses in record numbers, with most new applications [...]
The threads of privilege are all over me
Each week the Reckon Women newsletter includes a column from an Alabama woman, in collaboration with See Jane Write. Click here to sign up [...]
Mississippi has medical marijuana: What does that mean for the rest of the South?
Mississippi voted on Tuesday to create a medical marijuana program, becoming the 35th state in America to legalize marijuana for medical use. Now that one [...]
Black Women and their Perennial Political Power
Many of the races on the ballot in the South in 2020 could be decided by Black women. This voting bloc has been a force in the political world for [...]
Reckoners respond: Who are you honoring with your vote?
We asked the Reckon audience who they were honoring with their 2020 vote. Here's how they responded.
Ala. sorority revvs up to overcome rural transportation shortages
As tens of millions of Americans descend on polling stations all over the country Tuesday, a determined group of volunteers will be helping thousands of [...]
Meet some of the people fighting for your right to vote
Feelin' anxious about tomorrow's vote? We feel ya. Here are a few non-partisan voter organizations working to make your vote count.
Southerners share their post-election hopes, fears and visions
On the eve of the election, we decided to ask people around the South three questions: What’s something you hope happens next year? What’s something you hope never happens again? What does the South look like in four years?
Where are Alabama’s elected Republican women?
Republican women are a key GOP voting bloc. Why do so few of them successfully run for legislative and statewide offices?
The Gender Wealth Gap
The women’s wealth gap is not the same as the women’s wage gap, but it may be a better measure of the financial health of [...]
Black Joy: Blacktober reanimates mostly white world with fun and Black culture
It’s time for a little Moon prism power (with a sprinkle of melanin magic)! Welcome back to Black Joy, a series by Reckon’s Black Magic [...]
How a Southern military community is converting to a renewable economy
In an Alabama city teeming with engineers and STEM talent, some are leaving the defense economy for the green one, creating an industry that's good for the environment and for workers.
Under 45 and running for high office in the South
Millennial participation in politics is growing. The Millennial Action Project, which tracks millennial participation in politics, estimates from 2018 to 2020, there has been a [...]
Meet the Arkansas mom, grad student and political candidate who’s now a TikTok hit
Kelly Krout, a stay-at-home mother running for office in Arkansas, is going viral on TikTok.
Finding my new normal after cancer
Each week the Reckon Women newsletter includes a column from a woman in the South, in collaboration with See Jane Write. Click here to sign up [...]
Aimée Castenell: The campaigns after the campaign
Fun fact: The election that's coming up, the one that has us kind of missing the zany local car salesman whose low-budget TV commercials have [...]
‘Rushed and undemocratic’: Hundreds of Ala. women decry Ivey’s support of Amy Coney Barrett
More than 800 Alabama women cosigned a letter this week, denouncing Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey’s support of what they called the “rushed and undemocratic” [...]
These Southerners risked everything to launch small businesses mid-pandemic
Not long after losing their jobs to the economic turmoil caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, Jacksonville residents Carlos Gil and Reggie Williams found themselves drinking [...]
