Behind closed doors and away from public meetings, county election officials across North Carolina were reportedly being pressured to cut early voting hours and sites by an office with no legal authority over those decisions. southerncoalition.org/scsj-urges-s...

SCSJ Urges State Board to Reject Early Voting Cuts Tied to Auditor Pressure Campaign

Behind closed doors and away from public meetings, county election officials across North Carolina were reportedly being pressured to cut early voting hours and sites.

southerncoalition.org

A new piece from Mother Jones tells the story of our client Savanna Batten and the Prairieland defendants. The article examines Savanna’s life as an activist, the July 2025 demonstration, the federal case that followed, and the 50-year sentence she received. www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

How anti-ICE protesters became prisoners in Trump's war on antifa

“We are not terrorists.”

motherjones.com

Asheboro, NC - The movement is building. Our list of participating organizations/cosponsors is growing. Keep reading thread 🧵🧵! 👇👇👇 Sign up here: actionnetwork.org/events/moral... @alamanceresists.bsky.social @camelcityunited.bsky.social @democracync.bsky.social @scsjofficial.bsky.social

Galveston voters are asking a federal court to issue judgment on the 2021 Commissioners Court precincts, which they contend are unconstitutionally discriminatory against Black and Latino residents. southerncoalition.org/galveston-co...

Galveston County Voters Continue Fight Against Unlawful Map

Galveston voters urge a federal court to reject the County’s mootness claim and rule the 2021 precinct map unconstitutional.

southerncoalition.org

After weeks of public outcry, the Granville County Board of Elections will reconvene Wednesday to reconsider an early voting plan that would hinder participation by Black voters. southerncoalition.org/granville-co...

Granville County Has Second Chance to Keep Early Voting Sites Open

After weeks of public outcry, the Granville County Board of Elections will reconvene to reconsider an early voting plan that would disenfranchise Black voters.

southerncoalition.org

Savanna Batten's case has become one of the most closely watched federal prosecutions stemming from a protest against U.S. immigration enforcement. After receiving a 50-year federal sentence, Batten is appealing her conviction. www.channeldraw.org/2026/07/12/s...

Savanna Batten: From an ICE Protest to One of the Most Controversial Federal Trials in Recent U.S. History - ChannelDraw

How an anti-ICE protest became a landmark federal conspiracy case

channeldraw.org

Savanna Batten, one of the Prairieland protesters, received an astonishing sentence last week: 50 years in federal prison for attending a protest and running a book club. Now, she is appealing. southerncoalition.org/50-years-for...

Savanna Batten Appeals 50-Year Sentence for Attending Protest

Prairieland protester Savanna Batten is appealing a 50-year federal prison sentence for attending a protest and running a book club.

southerncoalition.org

A major win in Bladen County!! Bladen County residents turned out in droves this week to defeat a proposal to shrink the Board of Commissioners from nine members to five, a move that would have watered down Black political representation in the community. southerncoalition.org/community-su...

Bladen County Community Successfully Defends Fair Representation

Bladen County residents turned out in droves this week to defeat a proposal to shrink the Board of Commissioners from nine members to five, a move that would have watered down Black political represen...

southerncoalition.org

Southern Coalition for Social Justice (SCSJ) stands with our unsheltered neighbors across North Carolina who are experiencing violence at the hands of local and federal law enforcement through raids, removals, and displacement. southerncoalition.org/scsj-on-the-...

SCSJ On the Criminalization of Poverty

SCSJ stands with our unsheltered neighbors who are experiencing violence at the hands of local and federal law enforcement through raids, removals, and displacement.

southerncoalition.org

BREAKING: The Supreme Court struck down a Louisiana map that fairly represents Black voters, gutting Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act. This devastating attack from the Court majority destroys protections for voters of color across the country.

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan dissenting in Louisiana v. Callais in today's devastating decision for the Voting Rights Act.

Breaking: Supreme Court invalidates second majority-Black congressional district in Louisiana, effectively gutting last remaining part of Voting Rights Act

Southern Coalition for Social Justice (SCSJ) is opposed to the federal government’s aggressive expansion of immigration detention centers, which threatens the safety, stability, and dignity of communities across the South and beyond. Full statement: southerncoalition.org/scsj-stateme...

Statement: ICE Detention Expansion Threatens Southern Communities

Southern Coalition for Social Justice (SCSJ) is opposed to the federal government’s aggressive expansion of immigration detention centers.

southerncoalition.org

We have until TOMORROW to comment on these proposed rules- proposed by our NC STATE board of elections! Our friends at @democracync.bsky.social have this very convenient link with a sample letter! Let it help you personalize your letter! #VoterSuppression #ncpol democracync.org/research/ncs...

NCSBE Proposed Rules on "Presumptive Noncitizens" - Democracy NC

The North Carolina State Board of Elections is quietly finalizing rules that could purge thousands of eligible voters from the rolls. The public comment window closes March 16 and what’s at stake dema...

democracync.org

Community groups and Walnut Cove residents filed a lawsuit today to protect the Dan River corridor's way of life — built around farms, forests, and rural communities — now threatened by the county's approval of a massive, loud, polluting AI data center. southerncoalition.org/community-gr...

Community Files Lawsuit Over Stokes County Data Center Rezoning

Community groups and Walnut Cove area residents filed a lawsuit today in an effort to protect the Dan River corridor from the development of an AI data center.

southerncoalition.org

A recent New York Times article names NC as a prime target for federal election interference. Our Chief Counsel Jeff Loperfido warns that past attempts to invalidate votes could serve as a blueprint for what comes next — but advocates now know how to prepare. www.nytimes.com/2026/03/08/u...

Trump Wants to ‘Take Over’ Elections. These States Are Prime Targets.

nytimes.com

North Carolina communities deserve to live without fear. Operation Charlotte's Web led to federal agents racially profiling, smashing windows, and detaining U.S. citizens without cause — we're standing alongside the five NC residents demanding accountability. www.theassemblync.com/news/politic...

Taking ICE to Court

A new federal lawsuit alleges immigration agents are making wrongful warrantless arrests, including a U.S. citizen who said agents stopped him twice and smashed his truck window.

theassemblync.com

Willy Wender Aceituno, a U.S. citizen, has filed federal damages claims after armed and masked immigration agents in Charlotte shattered his car window, pulled him from his vehicle, and wrongfully detained him — despite having already confirmed his citizenship. southerncoalition.org/u-s-citizen-...

U.S. Citizen Files Federal Claims After Violent Immigration Stop

A U.S. citizen filed federal damages claims after a confrontation in Charlotte late last year where ICE agents violently and wrongfully detained him.

southerncoalition.org

This week we joined a lawsuit on behalf of five individuals — and a class of similarly situated people — to prevent unlawful warrantless immigration arrests across North Carolina by DHS and its agencies, ICE, CBP, and U.S. Border Patrol. southerncoalition.org/five-individ...

Individuals Launch Lawsuit Over Warrantless N.C. Immigration Arrests

A lawsuit was filed today on behalf of five individuals to prevent unlawful warrantless immigration arrests across North Carolina.

southerncoalition.org

Our 2025 Impact Report is here! The year showed the strength of communities across the South who showed up for one another and demanded change. Dive into the stories, wins, and lessons that shaped our work in 2025. southerncoalition.org/resources/20...

2025 Impact Report | Southern Coalition for Social Justice

This impact report captures a year defined by resilience, collective power, and forward momentum.

southerncoalition.org

According to FBI Data, homicide offenses in North Carolina dropped 22.83% from 2024 to 2025. Real public safety comes from evidence-based solutions, not fear-driven policies. southerncoalition.org/justice-syst...

Reframing Public Safety | Southern Coalition for Social Justice

SCSJ’s Reframing Public Safety series explores, interrogates, lifts up, and shares policies and practices that increase public safety and justice for all.

southerncoalition.org

A federal judge has blocked an attempt by Chemours and DuPont to hide documents related to the release of harmful substances into the Cape Fear River. southerncoalition.org/judge-denies...

Judge Denies Companies’ Bid to Hide River Pollution

A federal judge has blocked an attempt by Chemours and DuPont to hide documents related to the release of harmful substances into the Cape Fear River.

southerncoalition.org

A panel of federal judges will not block the North Carolina General Assembly’s latest congressional map, which changes Congressional Districts 1 and 3 and disproportionately impacts Black voters. southerncoalition.org/federal-judg...

Federal Judges Allow Map to Stand Despite Harms to Black Voters

A panel of federal judges will not block the North Carolina General Assembly’s latest congressional map.

southerncoalition.org

Duke Energy wants customers to pay billions for new methane gas plants and pipelines for big tech. Power companies have nothing to lose, but we do. 🚫 Help us rise up against this irresponsible surge of new fossil fuels! https://loom.ly/N8-Ol_g

North Carolina utilities are spending billions on methane gas infrastructure

Billions of dollars of pipelines, power plants, compressor stations and other methane gas infrastructure are at various stages of development across our state.  We can rise up against this irresponsible surge of new fossil fuels that would increase electric bills while damaging public health and our land, air and water.

appvoices.org

North Carolina's H307 Is NOT a Public Safety Plan. Headline-driven law < real solutions. H307 pushes more jail, prison, and executions — but it doesn’t fix what actually makes communities safe: housing, healthcare, and prevention. 🧵

We are joining voters and pro-democracy partners to challenge North Carolina’s retaliatory map that targets Black voters in the Black Belt. North Carolinians deserve fair maps. Learn more: southerncoalition.org/voters-pro-d...

Voters, Pro-Democracy Groups Seek to Stop Retaliatory Redistricting

Individual voters and two pro-democracy groups are challenging the NC General Assembly’s latest congressional map that targets the state’s historic Black belt.

southerncoalition.org

At 14, Brett Abrams was sentenced to life in prison. After 42 years, his case will help secure parole reforms and give people sentenced as kids a real chance to prove their growth and rehabilitation. southerncoalition.org/settlement-r...

Settlement in Abrams Lawsuit, Securing Parole Reforms

SCSJ reached a settlement with the NC Parole Commission, securing changes to how it conducts parole reviews for people sentenced as children in NC.

southerncoalition.org

Challenges to voter rolls impacted millions of voters in recent election cycles—and disproportionately removed people of color. We're working to implement evidence-based solutions that help election administrators and ensure no one is unjustly blocked from voting. Learn more: ucs.org/election-recs

For decades, West Badin’s predominantly African American residents have borne the brunt of this contamination. The former Alcoa smelter, which operated from 1916 until 2010, left hazardous waste buried near homes and local waterways. We're demanding change. southerncoalition.org/scsj-partner...

SCSJ, Partners Push for Changes to Alcoa Business Park Permit Renewal

SCSJ and partners are urging stronger protections in the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit renewal for the former Alcoa Badin Works facility.

southerncoalition.org

🗳️Election Day is just ten weeks from today. We know that too often, eligible voters face undue burdens that make it harder to vote. We’re working with partners and election officials to implement science-backed solutions to improve access to the polls. Learn more at: ucs.org/election-recs