🌊 In This Week’s Edition
1. Pausing The Dive
2. Who’s Looking Out for Trans North Carolinians?
3. Around the Region
4. Around the State
Pausing the Dive
If you’re reading this, I’m out on maternity leave (or will be any day now). It’s my third rodeo, but first time working for an organization that’s providing me 12 weeks of paid leave–a privilege for which I’m deeply grateful. That said, given ongoing uncertain economic conditions, it also means The Assembly leadership has decided to put The Dive on pause during my absence.
You’ll still see some stories relevant to the Cape Fear region in your inbox in the coming weeks, though not full editions of The Dive. We’ve got some great stuff in the hopper, and remain committed to elevating deeply reported Wilmington-area stories to our growing statewide audience.
If you’re a local reader, we hope you’ll plug into The Assembly’s unrivaled statewide reporting network in the meantime. If you’re already receiving our statewide newsletter, we appreciate your support.
Thanks for reading The Dive and, perhaps more importantly, caring enough to be an engaged community member. See y’all on the flip side.
–Johanna F. Still
While Johanna is on leave, feel free to send high-stakes Wilmington-area news tips to scoops@theassemblync.com.
Thanks for reading The Dive, a weekly newsletter written by Wilmington editor Johanna F. Still and WHQR’s Benjamin Schachtman. Reach us with tips or ideas at wilmington@theassemblync.com.
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Last week, WUNC had Johanna F. Still on as a guest of Due South to talk about the North Carolina businesses happy about Trump’s tariff plans.
Listen here.
One week after Donald Trump’s second inauguration, Kate went to Planned Parenthood in Wilmington for her quarterly checkup. She usually had the lobby to herself. But that day, she had trouble finding a seat.
“There were, like, twice as many people in the waiting room,” said Kate, a 25-year-old trans woman who, like most transgender North Carolinians quoted in this story, asked to use a pseudonym due to fear of persecution. “Everyone was trying to get their prescriptions and refills before any new legislation went into effect.”
Approximately 80,000 of North Carolina’s 10.5 million residents are transgender, according to an estimate from UCLA’s Williams Institute. And following Trump’s re-election, Kate is one of the thousands of trans people nationwide scrambling to get their affairs in order: changing the gender marker on her IDs, stockpiling hormones, even brushing up on self-defense.
Amid federal efforts to undermine trans rights and limit health care, many state governments have stepped up to the plate.
North Carolina, a state once defined by its stance on transgender rights, has not. Nine years ago, the state passed House Bill 2, which required people to use the bathroom corresponding with their gender assigned at birth. The state faced nationwide backlash for doing so, including an economic boycott that analysts estimate cost the state between $450 million and $630 million in investment.
But many trans North Carolinians say they have not felt the same popular support in response to the recent federal actions this time around.
Now, Kate doesn’t really feel like anyone stands between her and the federal government. “In the past, you could rely on other people to back up our cause,” she told The Assembly. “But I feel like at this point, it’s kind of like we just have to do everything ourselves.”
For The Assembly, WHQR’s Nikolai Mather reports on what’s next for North Carolina’s trans population.
Nine Years After HB2, Trans North Carolinians Wonder Who Is Looking Out For Them
The so-called Bathroom Bill sparked an outpouring of protest. But an unprecedented wave of state and federal attacks on trans health care and rights has failed to generate the same kind of response.
Read this newsletter online or contact The Dive team with tips and feedback at wilmington@theassemblync.com.
Around the Region
Hungry for Housing: New Hanover County’s affordable housing availability has suffered “dramatic losses” in recent years, consultants recently told county leaders. WHQR reports that consultants suggested strategies to raise wages to confront the imbalanced local economy.
C-Suite Sweep: After Pender County Commissioners fired their new manager for alleged inexperience last month, the interim manager fired the county’s staff attorney last week, Port City Daily reports.
Around the State
Griffin Concedes to Riggs, Ending Six-Month Fight Over NC Supreme Court Race
The concession comes two days after a federal judge ordered the State Board of Elections to certify the 734-vote win for Riggs.
Rising Tides and Raising Houses
As sea level rises, 79 percent of properties in Beaufort are at risk of flooding. Residents of coastal communities must adapt or relocate.
Rooted in the Land, Ready for the Future
A new generation of tribal scientists and storytellers is rebuilding ties between land and water, and preparing for what comes next.