Charleston Currents – 2016

Archive for September, 2016

HISTORY: The Post and Courier

S.C. Encyclopedia | Published in Charleston, the Post and Courier is the oldest daily newspaper in South Carolina. The publication’s lineage can be traced through three newspapers. The oldest, the Charleston Courier, began publication on January 10, 1803. It was founded by Massachusetts native Aaron Smith Willington and several partners. The newspaper opposed nullification in the 1830s and secession in the 1850s, ensuring that it would remain in conflict with its chief rival, the pro-states’-rights Charleston Mercury. The Charleston Courier advocated secession in 1860 but counseled moderation during the Civil War. The newspaper was seized by William T. Sherman’s army at the close of the war and was briefly published by two Union war correspondents. In November 1865 control of the paper was turned over to Charleston native Thomas Y. Simons under the auspices of A. S. Willington & Co.

by Special to Charleston Currents · 09/12/2016 · Comments are Disabled · Features, S.C. Encyclopedia

FOCUS: Two dozen authors to be at Saturday’s Black Ink book festival

By Stephen Hoffius, special to Charleston Currents | More than 25 African-American authors will gather at Burke High School on Sept. 17 to take part in Black Ink: A Charleston African-American Book Festival. The event will take place from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. and is free and open to the public.

Marcus Amaker, recently named the first poet laureate of the City of Charleston, is the keynote speaker. He’s excited about the festival: “Charleston could use more events that celebrate the literary arts.” He is the author of seven books, the most recent of which, Mantra, is also an app, featuring audio, video, and new poems. Marcus’s poems have been featured on the PBS Newshour, the Huffington Post, several journals, and poetry collections.

by Charleston Currents · 09/12/2016 · Comments are Disabled · Focus, Good news

BRACK: High court should keep holding state accountable on education

By Andy Brack, editor and publisher | Boy, the S.C. legislature’s lawyers have some gall.

In a state where public education has been underfunded by about $4 billion since 2010, lawyers for the General Assembly and Gov. Nikki Haley essentially say they’ve done enough to comply with a state Supreme Court order to do more for poor school districts.

Yeah, right. More than two decades ago, a handful of poor school districts brought suit against the state seeking more equitable education funding. Referred to as the Abbeville case, the lawsuit wound its way through a too-slow judicial process until late 2015 when the state Supreme Court finally ordered the General Assembly and school districts come up with a way to pay for the state’s failure to provide adequate public education opportunities, especially in poor, rural districts. The court said it would provide oversight on the case until the state got its act together.

by Andy Brack · 09/12/2016 · Comments are Disabled · Andy Brack, Views

PALMETTO POEM: Charleston childhood montage

By Jacqueline Johnson

Your garden is as wild as one
of Bearden’s conjure women’s.
Lush with collards, roses, lilies,
hydrangea, figs and japonica.
One summer found me walking
concrete, dusty path to your front steps.

by Palmetto Poem · 09/12/2016 · 3 comments · Features, Palmetto Poem

PHOTO ESSAY: Visiting a city in the south of France

Australian photojournalist Bill Hawker spent a recent week in Perpignan, France, attending Visa Pour L’Image, an international festival of photojournalism. While in the city, which is the capital of the Pyrenees-Orientals department in the south of France, he snapped this photo (above) of a woman kneeling in prayer inside the Eglise Saint Mathieu. It reflected, he said, a much quieter side to Perpignan than experienced throughout most of the week.

by Charleston Currents · 09/12/2016 · Comments are Disabled · Photo Essay, Photos

GOOD NEWS: From a show on banned books to a great season and more

Local models are featured in a new show called “Banned Books,” which opened Sept. 8 at PULP Gallery and Bookstore, 535 King St., Charleston. The show, which runs through Oct. 30, is by Kimberly Butler and features “stunning black and white photography featuring books that have been targets of censorship. Also featured: Kurt Vonnegut’s works on paper. Also in Good News: Charleston RiverDogs end great season; start of West Ashley Farmers Market; Trident Tech’s grants; and the Living Green Fest.

by Charleston Currents · 09/12/2016 · Comments are Disabled · Good news, News briefs

MYSTERY: Marsh scene

Marsh scenes do something magical to calm your soul. Have you ever seen this view? If so, where is it? Send your best guess to: editor@charlestoncurrents.com — and make sure to include the name of the town in which you live.

by Andy Brack · 09/12/2016 · Comments are Disabled · Mystery Photo, Photos

CALENDAR, Sept. 5+: A week full of Hairspray, food, film and turtles

Lots on tap for the coming couple of weeks including Hairspray (the musical comedy), Charleston Restaurant Week, “Liberty and Slavery” film, Turtle Trek 5K and more.

by Charleston Currents · 09/05/2016 · Comments are Disabled · calendar

FEEDBACK: Readers enjoy Hollings’ wit, colorful language

J.J. Anderson, Charleston: “I really enjoyed this article. The phrase, “You don’t know from sic’ em,” I suspect to be a shortened version of the phrase, “You don’t know sic’ em from come here,” referencing the command to a dog to get after someone or something. A command used to release a dog to attack and the “come here” portion is hopefully self-explanatory. ” Letters also from three other readers.

by Charleston Currents · 09/05/2016 · Comments are Disabled · Feedback

REVIEW: A Head Full of Ghosts

Reviewed by Maggie Mohr: “A Head Full of Ghosts,” by Paul Tremlblay: The Barretts are a family of four who live in suburban New England. When 14-year-old Marjorie begins to display signs of acute schizophrenia and resulting medical treatment is ineffective, the family turns to a local Catholic priest for help.

by Charleston Currents · 09/05/2016 · Comments are Disabled · Features, Reviews