House subcommittee finds more COVID in meatpacking plants than previously known

A report by the House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis found there were three times as many COVID-19 cases and deaths among workers at the five largest meatpacking companies in the pandemic's first year as previously known. But at a recent hearing on the report, most Republican lawmakers spent their time calling for an investigation into the pandemic's origins. (11/12/2021)

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Black women make historic political gains but remain underrepresented

A new report finds that while they have made dramatic progress in recent decades, Black women are still underrepresented in politics, with the disparities especially stark in Southern states. Next year's elections offer another chance for them to build power. (11/19/2021)

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As voting rights lawsuit looms, Louisiana lawmakers consider adding high court seats

Voting rights groups have challenged election districts for the Louisiana Supreme Court, which counts just one Black justice among its seven members. Legislators want to add new districts to settle the suit, but their most recent attempt broke down over the issue of how many should have majority-Black populations. (11/18/2021)

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VOICES: On strike for safety and respect in Western North Carolina

The workers who went on strike last week at a Bojangles fast food restaurant in the small mountain town of Burnsville say they were motivated to act by management's failure to take COVID-19 seriously. (11/16/2021)

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Census undercounts mean less Medicaid money for most Southern states

The 2020 census undercounted the overall U.S. population by just 0.5%, but much bigger undercounts in Southern states will cost them millions of dollars in federal health care funding for low-income communities, according to a new report from the Urban Institute.

Support Facing South for Giving Tuesday 2021!

As we enter the holiday season, on behalf of the Facing South team I would like to say "thank you!" to you, our readers and supporters.

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Chris Kromm, Publisher

Facing South is published by the Institute for Southern Studies, a nonprofit organization, and donations are tax-deductible. Prefer to donate by mail? Please send your check payable to ISS to Institute for Southern Studies, Attn: Giving Tuesday, P.O. Box 531, Durham, NC 27702. Thanks!

An opening for change at the beleaguered U.S. Postal Service

The term of Ron Bloom, chair of the U.S. Postal Service's Board of Governors, ends on Dec. 8, and hundreds of public-interest organizations are urging President Biden to replace him. They object to his support for Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, a Trump appointee embroiled in numerous controversies over service cuts, financial conflicts of interest, wage theft, and a pattern of questionable campaign contributions at his former North Carolina-based logistics company.