Blog

I attended a funeral last week, which was a strange experience for me, because it is the first one I have ever attended. I did not know the person who passed as well as I would have liked to, but … Continued

by Kayla DeHoniesto, 2019 Jackson Center Summer Fellow As I walked out of the Amity Station Community Meeting, on my second day of this fellowship, I could not process the thoughts and emotions running through my head. I could sense … Continued

Many locals will proudly tell newcomers that Chapel Hill, North Carolina, was the first majority-white town in the South to elect a Black mayor. The year was 1969. Though many told him it was too soon after desegregation and the … Continued

What is the Northside Festival? It’s not an information fair.  It’s not an amusement park.  It’s not a market.  Nothing’s for sale.  Everything’s free—and everybody’s free.  Nobody can afford what anyone else can’t and everybody’s everybody.   The Northside Festival … Continued

Stories. What are the stories we tell? What are the stories that nourish us? What are the stories that remind us of who we are? What we stand for? What generations have stood for? Shared over a meal. Sung in … Continued

Ronnie Bynum remembers what it was like to be one of the first black students at Carrboro Elementary. At an evening event in late November, Ronnie told an audience of students, teachers, and parents in the Carrboro Elementary school auditorium … Continued

By Trey Walk, Jackson Center Northside Neighborhood Initiative (NNI) Intern Ms. Clem Self speaks to CHCCS principals during a Freedom Tour, 9 October 9 2018 This October, a group of twenty principals from local schools visited the Marian Cheek Jackson Center … Continued

 November 2018 Dear Friends: The Marian Cheek Jackson Center Neighborhoods are the building blocks of civic life and ours are growing stronger by the day. What does a strong neighborhood look like? A few snaps: Our Community Compass Group … Continued

Adante, Preman, and Tia welcomed their Northside neighbors Adante To me, hosting the porch party was my official introduction to the neighborhood. Though my housemates and I met a few of my neighbors in passing and in previous neighborhood gatherings, … Continued

By Mike Ogle Mary Anngady was a girl the last time the Confederacy lost Chapel Hill. She lived in quarters behind the Davis house with a dozen enslaved people, including her mother and four brothers. Franklin Davis, owner of so … Continued

I felt a small amount of anxiety the day before hosting the June stop of the Porch Revival Tour at my house.  Almost everything was in place. The budget for the event determined, supplies calmly resting on my porch, and … Continued