florida
September 16, 2022 -
On the heels of a 2020 legal settlement with the Georgia city of LaGrange, human rights and immigrant advocates continue their fight against local utility policies in communities across the South that deny service to people who lack Social Security numbers.
August 11, 2022 -
Virginia as well as cities in Florida and North Carolina have rolled out programs that allow people in crisis to get help from mental health professionals instead of police. Advocates hope the efforts will reduce the number of people killed by law enforcement officers.
April 22, 2022 -
Over 100 anti-LGBTQ bills have been introduced in Southern legislatures this year, the latest application of an old Republican strategy to win votes by bullying a vulnerable minority. Facing South recently spoke with LGBTQ advocates in states around the South to find out how they're responding.
April 7, 2022 -
To address the region's shockingly high rate of pregnancy-related deaths, a growing number of Southern states are expanding their Medicaid programs or launching Medicaid pilot initiatives to cover the services of doulas — nonclinical professionals who provide holistic support during all stages of pregnancy.
March 23, 2022 -
Arkansas and Florida are the only Southern states that still allow citizens to place questions on the ballot, but Republican lawmakers there want to erect new barriers to this form of direct democracy.
September 17, 2021 -
Though a lawsuit seeking to restore the voting rights of North Carolinians on probation or parole suffered setbacks in recent court rulings, the broader movement to re-enfranchise people with felony convictions has made gains in Southern states in recent years.
July 1, 2021 -
Over 2 million adults — including over half a million essential workers — fall into the Medicaid coverage gap in states that have refused to expand the program under the Affordable Care Act, and most are people of color living in the South. Congressional Democrats from Georgia and Texas recently unveiled plans to work around GOP-controlled legislatures' refusal to authorize broader Medicaid coverage even when facing a deadly pandemic.
