Why ending the federal eviction ban could send shockwaves to renters in the South
For Southerners who struggled to pay rent during the recession, a recent federal court ruling could have a devastating effect in a region of the [...]
Medical marijuana: Alabama OKs it, but not for menopause and PMS
Medical cannabis just cleared a big hurdle in Alabama, drawing the state closer to approving its use for Alabamians with chronic conditions. The state House [...]
I like my queerness southern fried
Each week the Honey newsletter includes a column from women and LGBTQ folks in the South, in collaboration with See Jane Write. We’re always looking [...]
How one small town Arkansas mayor wants to keep young workers and grow jobs
Bald Knob, a wisp of a city in central Arkansas, is slowly coming out of the economic turmoil brought on by the Covid-19 pandemic. The [...]
Meet the South’s new cannabis activists
Legal cannabis is finally coming to the South. But the legislators across the South now debating cannabis decriminalization for adult and medical use didn't just have a [...]
Fred Hampton’s deep Southern ties
Many American schools usually keep their Black History curriculum on the Civil Rights Movement narrowed to just a handful of people. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Rosa Parks — of course — John Lewis and [...]
Howard University: A long tradition of producing historic ‘firsts’
HBCUs celebrated on January 20, 2021, as Kamala Harris became the first Black and South Asian American woman to serve at Vice President of the [...]
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 [...]
New Biden plan would provide health insurance to 58,000 in Alabama, White House says. https://trib.al/fu3hBt7
"Every time I’m faced with a naysayer or a judgmental comment, I push my shoulders back, hold my head high, and strut right on by, serving the conundrum of my Black Queerness up to them Southern-style," Birmingham's Joi Miner writes.
Read her essay:
https://trib.al/abkWtl4
"All of the organizations that I found on Google were geared towards white lesbians. There was nowhere for a Black unicorn to socialize with other Black unicorns, it seemed."
Giddy seeing Joi Miner's beautiful face in @reckonsouth today. ❤️
https://reckonsouth.com/i-like-my-queerness-southern-fried/
“In New Orleans, food is a central part of socialization,” said the Rev. Jay Augustine. “That allowed us to break down many social barriers and presumptions that are quite frankly part of the social experience of living in ... the South.”
https://trib.al/CJjwQqE
“Unfortunately, we’re receiving reports of tenants receiving eviction notices or having their cases conclude with eviction before rental assistance reaches them," said Alieza Durana, an @EvictionLab spokesperson.
Why ending the federal eviction ban could send shockwaves to renters in the South
For Southerners facing eviction, a recent federal court ruling could have a devastating effect in a region of the country where eviction rates are alr...
trib.al
This East Tennessee school changed the world. Here’s how.
The Highlander Folk School is sacred ground in the South. Ash-Lee Woodard Henderson shares its story on the Reckon Interview.
Medical marijuana: Alabama OKs it, but not for menopause and PMS
Medical cannabis just cleared a big hurdle in Alabama, drawing the state closer to approving its use for Alabamians with chronic conditions. The state House [...]
I like my queerness southern fried
Each week the Honey newsletter includes a column from women and LGBTQ folks in the South, in collaboration with See Jane Write. We’re always looking [...]
How one small town Arkansas mayor wants to keep young workers and grow jobs
Bald Knob, a wisp of a city in central Arkansas, is slowly coming out of the economic turmoil brought on by the Covid-19 pandemic. The [...]
Meet the South’s new cannabis activists
Legal cannabis is finally coming to the South. But the legislators across the South now debating cannabis decriminalization for adult and medical use didn't just have a [...]
More diverse, higher poverty: What babies tell us about the future South
In states across the Deep South, children of color make up about half of the child population. And those children are now two to three times more likely to live in [...]
If you are silent in the face of injustice, can you remain a good person?
John Archibald and Dr. Wayne Flynt the Reckon Interview to discuss Archibald's new memoir, "Shaking the Gates of Hell."
Pollution injustice plagues the South. Its deadliness is revealed in new reports
Just a week after President Joe Biden promised to lower greenhouse gas emissions by 50%, a move that he hopes will create more green jobs [...]
Meet the Montgomery native who got a Beyoncé-funded scholarship to diversify the jewelry industry
You might not think of fashion and social justice as related. Audriana Osbourne may change your mind about that. The 24-year-old Montgomery, Ala., native is [...]
Mission Reconcile helps Southern churches dismantle racism through food, fellowship
What do you get when you mix great Southern food, Jesus and anti-racism work? The New-Orleans based nonprofit Mission Reconcile. Mission Reconcile works to create racial [...]
On weathering seasons of change after the pandemic
Just over a year ago, I had just finished filling out my schedule for the month of April when all of my plans went astray. The pandemic hadn’t really affected my daily life up to that point. I continued to do my regular job in person since we did parts for the railroad and I worked in an office alone anyway.
Confederate-named buildings persist on Southern campuses
In the 11 months since George Floyd was murdered, a moment that galvanized Black Lives Matter and similar movements throughout the country, powerful institutions were [...]
Minnie Bruce Pratt on being targeted by anti-LGBTQ laws in North Carolina
This week on the Reckon Interview, Minnie Bruce Pratt describes what it’s like to be targeted by anti-LGBTQ laws.
Black Adventure Crew inspiring families to reconnect with nature
A north Alabama family of five is encouraging more Black explorers to take up space outdoors as they trek through trails and mountains of the [...]
A George Floyd protest leader on the Chauvin verdict, protecting her peace and the joy of roller skating
Tiffany Trotter was a teenager when she helped lead historic protests in the aftermath George Floyd’s murder. In the 11 months since, she gave a [...]
Rachel Pearson of Engage: Reading, watching, listening on women’s economic security, policy
Rachel Pearson founded women’s economic policy organization Engage, www.engagewomen.org, after working for years in Washington, D.C., and growing frustrated at the lack of bipartisanship in [...]
The choice between art and violence in the stories of the South: Minari was an opportunity for Asians in the South to tell their stories. The Atlanta shootings changed that.
Minari, through its brilliant storytelling and cinematography, paid attention to the nuances of a Korean immigrant story in the South.
Emily Joy Allison: Reading, watching, and acting on purity culture
America and the evangelical church is wrestling with the ramifications of purity culture: a teaching that tells people they should not have any sexual contact [...]
Fear and hope: The Alabama Amazon plant unionizing effort through a worker’s eyes
Last summer, Amazon worker Darryl Richardson was fed up with how he and his colleagues were being treated at work. Every part of their day [...]
For Tennessee lawmaker, Black Maternal Health Week is personal
In 2019, less than a year after London Lamar was elected to the Tennessee House of Representatives, she suffered a devastating late-term pregnancy loss. Lamar herself nearly lost her [...]
Elizabeth Spiers on her Southern roots, the ‘Bubble’ and the future of media
How did a woman from small town Alabama become a key player in New York media? It’s part of a long tradition of Southern expats playing a role in shaping the national conversation.
North Carolina lawmakers propose Black maternal health legislation
A group of North Carolina legislators filed their own “Momnibus” act this month, a collection of state-level bills meant to address Black maternal health and [...]
Fight over Mississippi medical cannabis gets airing in state’s high court
The saga of medical cannabis in Mississippi just won’t end, but we’re one step closer to knowing the fate of the state’s voter-approved medical cannabis [...]
No matter how many degrees I earn, my imposter syndrome never goes away
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 [...]
Beautiful, sacred and powerful: Inside the roller coaster fight for trans kids in Arkansas
When Arkansas became the first state to ban healthcare for transgender youth, Rumba Yambú felt both hurt and hope. A trans organizer, Yambú has spent [...]
In a rural Alabama town, young Southerners have created their own ‘magical community’
Sarah Cole, 32, is relaxing on the front porch swing with her partner, Robert Fitzpatrick, when her phone buzzes. It’s a text from their friend, Tim Higgins, inviting them over. Tim [...]
Biden gun control plan: Why reducing firearms in the South will be tough
President Joe Biden recently signed an executive order that would close a loophole that allows the sale of untraceable guns and accessories, and proposed new [...]
How the Biden infrastructure plan addresses racial disparities
In the 70 years that have passed since the sprawling interstate highway system was built, which destroyed many Black and brown communities throughout the country [...]
This Alabama nonprofit is fighting ‘period poverty’ and restoring dignity to menstruating people
Aiko Pickering, a recent college graduate and Mobile, Ala., native, started Monthly in November 2020 to raise awareness about period poverty and provide menstrual products [...]
How self-care and blogging changed my life
By Cherith Fluker I could start this essay by griping about how terrible 2020 was to me. But that probably wouldn’t grab your attention because [...]
How Jason Kirk is redefining fellowship amid Southerners’ exodus from the church
Vacation Bible School, has built a big community of people who had either let their faith lapse, never had faith to begin with, or were just looking for a religious community during the pandemic.
Arekia Bennett: Reading, watching, listening on voter suppression
Right now, the situation in Georgia involving a freshly signed set of new voting restrictions, Gov. Brian Kemp, the Atlanta Braves, Major League Baseball and [...]
Black Southerners and vaccination rates: Why transportation access is key
The racial inequities of the COVID-19 pandemic have been well documented over the last year. A disproportionate number of African Americans have died from the [...]
Southern Black queer icons you should follow along with Lil Nas X
Black Joy is a weekly round up of how Black people are finding and cultivating joy in their lives in a world that is dedicated [...]
What my first mammogram taught me about sisterhood
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 [...]
Finding therapists, mental health resources that don’t break the bank
Depression alone is a $210.5 billion annual burden on the U.S. economy. For most, healing comes with a large price tag. And with unemployment hitting [...]
Dr. Patience Hodges Claybon: A medical pioneer, advocate for Black med students in Alabama
Born May 24, 1946, Patience Hodges Claybon was a physician and the first African American woman to graduate from the UAB School of Medicine. When [...]
Why payday loan use is up in the pandemic, and how you can avoid them
Payday lenders targeting low-income people is nothing new. The short term, high interest loans, which are often catered to minorities in rural areas, have the [...]
The history of the Lost Cause explains the Big Lie of today
Connor Towne O'Neill explains how the Lost Cause and Nathan Bedford Forrest help explain America in 2021.
Gladys Love Avery Tillett: A N.C. native who encouraged political activism among women
Gladys Love Avery Tillett was an American organizer and activist born in Morgantown, N.C., in 1891. She graduated from the University of North Carolina in [...]
I moved during the pandemic. Will my stimulus check find me?
Despite the Covid-19 pandemic, millions of Americans continued to move around the country in 2020. Aside from packing up your life and throwing it into [...]
How Birmingham’s Thank You Books created community, found success through pandemic
Laura Cotten, Kristen Iskandrian and Elizabeth Goodrich wanted a home for Birmingham’s literary and author community. They were proud of the city’s rich history of [...]
Black Joy: Southern hip hop history and creating your own getaway at home
Ready to jive, y'all? I've known from a very young age that music is a powerful tool. It's not only a medium where we can [...]
Tips on using your stimulus when your funds are already low
Since the most recent Covid stimulus bill was enacted earlier this month, the U.S. government has already provided around 90 million Americans with all or [...]
Black Power Heals: DeJuana Thompson sees travel as a love language
The “Black Power Heals” series exploring how our Southern Black freedom fighters from both past and present found peace and joy. You can click here to [...]
How the hip-hop generation revolutionized the South
The South still got something to say because the South is still trying to reclaim their narrative.
Beverly Wright: She’s spent a lifetime sounding the alarm on environmental racism
Born close to a highly polluted area along the Lower Mississippi River in Louisiana, Dr. Beverly Wright’s childhood experiences helped shape her research on the [...]
Growing Up Asian in Alabama
When I was a child, I grew up seeing essentially no one who looked like me in Alabama. I’m a transracial adoptee, so my family [...]
The Reckon Interview delivers the Southern stories that shape America
The Reckon Interview is for the people who know that Southern stories don’t just shape the South. They shape America.
How Alabamians are rallying to protect trans youth
Not far from Selma's Edmund Pettus Bridge, where Alabama state troopers once attacked voting rights activists, a Black and transgender-led nonprofit is fighting off attacks [...]
Black Joy: Black magic shows out at the Grammys and meditations
Alexa, play “Crown” by Chika It’s my first Black Joy of me being 29 and twenty-fine. I thought walking into the last year of your [...]
Racism and purity culture: Atlanta shootings show how they’re linked
When Angie Hong heard about the purported “sex addiction” of the Atlanta mass shooting suspect and his so-called need to “take out that temptation,” she [...]
Pauli Murray: A civil rights leader, writer and queer trailblazer
Pauli Murray was born in 1910 in Baltimore. Yes, Maryland is considered the South, but stay with us. We want to claim this woman as [...]
Phyllis Hill: Atlanta organizer advocating to end mass incarceration, reduce gun violence
Phyllis Hill was born in 1979 in Hazelhurst, Ga., a small predominantly white city of 5,000 people. Her grandmother, a staunch missionary Baptist and an [...]
Moms and daughters: What Birmingham public servants Crystal and Carole Smitherman learned from each other
Reckon Women’s series on Southern mothers and daughters who share the same profession is part of Reckon’s celebration of Women’s History Month. Crystal Smitherman, 27, is a Birmingham city councilor for District [...]
Combating anti-Asian hate: Here’s a list of resources across the South
The killing of eight people in Atlanta Tuesday, which included six Asian women who worked at massage parlors, has come amid growing discrimination and violence [...]
‘Please don’t leave me alone:’ More than the baby blues
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 [...]
Moms and daughters: What Toyota plant workers Angela and Destini Stewart learned from each other
Reckon Women’s series on Southern mothers and daughters who share the same profession is part of Reckon’s celebration of Women’s History Month. Angela Stewart and her [...]
Moms and daughters: What attorneys Elizabeth and Wesley Smithart learned from each other
Reckon Women’s series on Southern mothers and daughters who share the same profession is part of Reckon’s celebration of Women’s History Month. The first time newly minted attorney Wesley Smithart attended [...]
Black Power Heals: Alice Walker
The “Black Power Heals” series exploring how our Southern Black freedom fighters from both past and present found peace and joy. You can click here to [...]
Black Joy: Piping hot British tea and the power of Black holistic healing
Y’all had fun trying to take down the British royal family? Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s chat with Oprah Winfrey was aired on Sunday and y’aaaallll, the tea was [...]
Ronni Mott: She broke the story about Mississippi’s last attempted execution
Ronni Mott (neé Beate Veronika Frisch) was a reporter and editor in Mississippi. Born in Germany to Austrian parents on July 12, 1956, she was [...]
Black Power Heals: Angela Davis
The “Black Power Heals” series exploring how our Southern Black freedom fighters from both past and present found peace and joy. You can click here to [...]
Future of Mississippi medical cannabis hazy after bill goes down in flames
The hotly debated and evolving Mississippi SB 2765 failed today as the house of representatives failed to take up the bill before today's legislative deadline. [...]
More than cookies: The importance of Girl Scouts in my life
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 Power Heals: Rosa Parks
The "Black Power Heals" series exploring how our Southern Black freedom fighters from both past and present found peace and joy. You can click here [...]
Black Power Heals: Southern self-care is activism
Southern activists have shown how self-care is activism throughout out our nation’s history. Their autobiographies, family memories, poetry and prose detail how Black women found [...]
Black Joy: Rosa Parks’ yoga practice
Black History Month is over, but Black girl magic has strutted into the chat because it is Women’s History Month. I think there is no [...]
Virginia just abolished the death penalty. Is there a path for other Southern states to do the same?
About a decade ago, Virginia Republican state Sen. Bill Stanley made a decision that cost him three years of his political career. He helped kill [...]
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’
HBCUs celebrated on January 20, 2021, as Kamala Harris became the first Black and South Asian American woman to serve at Vice President of the [...]
Will my stimmy be taxed? Nope, but your unemployment might
It’s March, which means tax season is in full swing. Filing your 2020 taxes could get complicated (what else is new about 2020?) Virtually no [...]
Black Joy: We are more than our resilience
Well y’all, we may have reached the end of the Blackity-Blackest month of the year. Our Twitter, Instagram and Tik Tok feeds were awash with [...]
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 [...]
New PPP federal stimulus could boost women, minority businesses. Here are the details
After being shut out of early coronavirus relief, minority business owners are set for a major boost over the next two weeks after President Joe [...]
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?