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Chatham Life & Style
Genuine Southern Perspective on Arts, Food, and Culture in Central North Carolina
Chatham Life & Style
Genuine Southern Perspective on Arts, Food, and Culture in Central North Carolina
WE HAVE A PODCAST!
The first podcast in our collection is IN A SMALL BOX, a series of informal chats with musicians in various locations, hosted by contributor and musician al Riggs. Plus, a playlist of songs discussed by the artist.
In our premiere episode, Riggs hangs with Mike Taylor (Hiss Golden Messenger) on his Durham back porch.
Small Business Spotlight
KING'S PEPPER
King's Pepper makes an award winning blend of herbs and spices based on a West African recipe. They won a Scovie award in November 2021 for their vegan African Taco kit, which uses black eyed peas to make vegan patties.
This Durham-based, woman-owned business was born in Los Angeles, raised in North Carolina, and can be shipped across the United States.
7 streams cbd
7 Streams CBD has a combined experience of over 20 years in all things natural health, fitness, natural supplements, and personal experience with cannabis-derived products as an aid to health:
CBD-infused:
- sparkling water
- gummies
- softgels
- topical salves & oils
KWEEN KARE COSMETICS
Kween Kare Cosmetics strives to provide each person's skincare products using natural, organic, & non-GMO ingredients.
Stay happy and healthy with our 100% organic and locally-made body care products:
- Skin Care
- Lip Care
- Dental Hygiene
BRIGHT & CLEAR, INC.
Bright and Clear, Inc. services our customers and prospects in many aspects. We service both commercial and residential customers in:
- carpet/upholstery steam cleaning
- VCT-tile cleaning
- hardwood refinishing
- interior/exterior painting
- power-washing
- janitorial cleaning
#BlackLivesMatter
A Message To Our Readers
This is not a time for empty words. This is a time for immediate action.
Journalists and editors continue to twist the experience of black Americans to fit their own pre-programmed narrative: “selective” editing of events and statements, favoring white stories over others, and actively printing and speaking lies about black lives. We are seeing this at both the national and local level every day in the way #BlackLivesMatter protests are re-framed to comfort and reassure the powerful, white, socio-political establishment.
It is the responsibility of all press to hold both ourselves and each other accountable for promoting the truth and nothing but the truth. To do otherwise is reprehensible and unacceptable. We cannot hold law enforcement accountable for their actions if we are unwilling to show what is actually happening.
There are many steps to be taken. And we are centuries behind. Political, legal, and corporate structures must be dismantled and replaced without straight, white, cisgender men at the drawing board. One immediate step is to ensure that black voices are telling black stories. We at Chatham Life & Style have not done enough to amplify these voices. Whether sending only white writers to review the work of black artists, or neglecting to seek out opportunities to engage with black arts and cultural leaders, we have contributed to the apathetic atmosphere in which most media operate.
If you always do what you always did, you’ll always get what you always got. We want to reaffirm and fortify our commitment to a diverse staff by taking immediate action to expand our team.
We have created new paid positions for both guest and regular contributing writers that wish to provide any lifestyle or cultural material. All are invited to submit proposals. We are prioritizing the words and art of black creators in North Carolina for immediate publication.
We seek editorial, interviews, event reporting, critique, photography, video, poetry, etc, from new and/or experienced creators. We are open to any and all ideas for new content and value the input of kids, students, writing teams, and families of writers.
If you are interested in a collaboration, please email chathamlifeandstyle@gmail.com, or message us on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter to share your thoughts and ideas with us. You may also use the Contact Us box below or click the chat button on your screen.
If you work with a black-owned business or organization, please share that information with us so that we may offer you free advertising space on our site.
We also seek dialogue with the community on how our publication can better serve and amplify black voices. Please send us an email or message us via any of the methods above. This is only the first step of many, and this cannot be a stop-gap or a goodwill gesture. This is not a band-aid. We will continue to revise practices and restructure our organization as often as necessary to ensure that we are meeting our commitment to amplifying black voices in North Carolina.
We challenge all other lifestyle and news publications, whether in print or online, to look carefully at their hiring/assignment practices and develop a plan to ensure that black voices are included in every edition under every section.
How can you help?
- Hold local press publicly accountable for the lack of black voices in their staff and lack of black stories in their coverage.
- Read and share press coverage that is truthful, meaningful, and seeks to lift up black lives.
- Shop at black-owned local businesses whenever possible.
- Participate actively in the anti-racism movement. You can find clear, easy ways to help in this document.
- Send us links to streaming arts events organized by black artists.
- Send us information about black-owned businesses that we can help promote on our website.
- Join Chatham Life & Style in making a donation to Emancipate NC’s Freedom Fighter Bond Fund at emancipatenc.org/freedom-fighter-bond-fund
#BlackLivesMatter #BlackTransLivesMatter
Sincerely,
The Staff of Chatham Life & Style
Freedom Fighter Bond Fund
Join Chatham Life & Style in making a donation to Emancipate NC’s Freedom Fighter Bond Fund.
Emancipate NC is dedicated to ending racialized mass incarceration and providing financial and legal support to those facing arrest or legal charges for opposing injustice throughout North Carolina.
