The Charlotte Observer

By Melba Newsome February 11, 2021 Every day when Oscar Barrett picked up his three young children from his mother’s house, his first question was “how was school today?” Most times he received shrugs or non-committal and disinterested responses like “fine” and “OK.” Anything beyond that came from 10 year-old…

By Liz Rothaus January 27, 2021 In the early months of the pandemic last year, information and unanswered questions about the new coronavirus were coming from everywhere. “COVID seemed like this big, scary monster,” said Chris Rudisill, director of the Charlotte Journalism Collaborative. The collaborative, or CJC, is a consortium…

November 13, 2020 Un grupo de medios de comunicación locales busca destacar las historias de la comunidad mediante un novedoso formato: cómic o novela gráfica en inglés y español. Charlotte Journalism Collaborative (CJC) lanzó un proyecto llamado “Pandemic” que cuenta historias locales y reales sobre cómo el COVID-19 afecta a la…

By Jonathan Limehouse November 13, 2020 The Covid-19 pandemic influenced so many stories from various news outlets around Charlotte that the Charlotte Journalism Collaborative and BOOM Charlotte have partnered to create an eight-chapter graphic novel titled “The Pandemic: Stories of Covid-19.” Each chapter pairs a local journalist with a local…

By Melba Newsome November 12, 2020 In 1981, Martha Brown moved to Charlotte from rural Rutherford County to escape an abusive relationship. In the nearly 40 years since then, Brown has had more than her share of personal and health misfortunes but always managed to keep herself afloat with a…

By Lauren Lindstrom and Danielle Chemtob October 10, 2020 Funding requests to redevelop a historically Black community that has fallen into disrepair have been rejected by city and nonprofit leaders again, putting at risk efforts to preserve affordable housing and potentially displacing its residents. Brookhill Village, near Charlotte’s rapidly growing…

By Hannah Smoot September 18, 2020 Like a “lonely summer camp.” A guest patient takes us inside Charlotte’s COVID-19 quarantine hotel. It’s easy to see something’s changed at the Econo Lodge near the Charlotte Douglas International Airport. Just off Interstate 85, not far from the Waffle House, the parking lot…

By Lauren Lindstrom The Charlotte Observer SEATTLE Susan Zeman and Bob Downing immediately found a lot to love about their two-bedroom townhouse in Seattle’s Columbia City neighborhood. They loved that they could stay in the same community where they’d lived for years and formed close ties. She loved that they…

By Lauren Lindstrom The Charlotte Observer Charis Blackmon doesn’t have to look further than the ground beneath her feet to see change happening in Enderly Park. The West Side Community Land Trust, where Blackmon is executive director, bought the Tuckaseegee Road plot last year for $16,000 as the future site…