Charleston Currents #14.05 | NOV. 22, 2021
PAT ON THE BACK. Hats off to the Charleston Fire Department, which welcomed a dozen new recruits who graduated from its 10-week program of 350 hours of classwork and training. “We welcome our newest firefighters to the CFD family as they enter the next phase of their career,” Fire Chief Dan Curia said in a press statement. “These recruits entered our program with experience and spent the last 10-weeks with our Training Division to prepare them to work in our community. These recruits will now move to probationary status, spending the next six months honing their skills. I am very proud of their hard work and dedication.” See something you think our readers would enjoy? Snap a shot and send it along. Photo via Charleston Fire Department.
FOCUS: South Carolina’s long ties with Barbados, a new republic
COMMENTARY, Brack: Henhouse redistricting abuses democratic principles
IN THE SPOTLIGHT: S.C. Clips
NEWS BRIEFS: Look for new battle over vouchers, public education dollars
FEEDBACK: Two write about McMaster’s attempt to censor a book
MYSTERY PHOTO: A pretty old thingamajig
CALENDAR: Chanukah in the Square to be celebrated Nov. 28
South Carolina’s long ties with Barbados, a new republic
Via Unsplash.
By Herb Frazier | Barbados will become a republic on Nov. 30 when it removes Queen Elizabeth as the head of state on the 55th anniversary of the nation’s independence from England.
Barbados and Charleston have a historic and cultural tie that dates back to April 1670. Settlers from Barbados established the Carolina colony which grew into modern-day Charleston.
As a parliamentary republic, Barbados will have a ceremonial elected president as head of state. The prime minister remains the head of government.
The move cuts the last vestiges of the colonial umbilical cord with England, said Charleston resident Rhoda Green, Barbados’ honorary consul to South Carolina and founder of the Barbados and the Carolina Legacy Foundation.
Events to celebrate the moment are planned in New York, Atlanta and Miami. Green is planning an event here at the end of the year.
- This story first appeared in the Charleston City Paper. Have a comment? Send to: editor@charlestoncurrents.com.
Henhouse redistricting abuses democratic principles
Via Pixabay.
By Andy Brack, editor and publisher | The fix has been in by members of the S.C. House for a long time. For months, they’ve been actors in a theatrical drama of their own creation to make it look like newly redrawn voting districts are fair.
They’re not. In fact, their laughable work will make South Carolina’s noisy partisan divides worse. Their work is nothing more than a bold build of an electoral map of 124 House districts so more Republicans win and the voting power of Black South Carolinians is dispersed. Their work strives to sow confusion in voting, not improve democracy. They should be ashamed of the way they’re taunting democratic principles of fairness, inclusion and equality.
But they’ll be back in special session Dec. 1 for Act Two — the public process of justifying the inequities and partisan districts they claim are fair.
You should contact your state representative in Columbia today and demand that he or she vote against the laughable plan passed this week by the House Judiciary Committee. And if they end up voting for it, you and your neighbors should let them know they’ll face a spirited reckoning next year in primary and general elections.
In fact, every single member of the South Carolina House of Representatives who votes for these proposed new districts should face a serious challenger in 2022. Let’s use the power that’s left to vote these people fiddling with democracy out of office — all of them who are spitting on competition. Instead of 2022 elections being about Republicans and Democrats, make it about new blood versus incumbents. “Get rid of incumbents” should be the rallying cry of 2022.
If you think redistricting inequities are hyperbole, look at an analysis that highlights how messed up the proposed House districts are:
Precinct splits: Of the 2,000-plus voting precincts in the state, 123 now have split precincts, which means some voters in the precinct vote for one state representative and others for another. Having split precincts creates confusion and time delays at the polls because managers have to steer voters to the correct machine for them to cast ballots. Number of split precincts in the proposed map: 370. Couldn’t the House do better than this?
Partisan districts: The House plan reduced competition by creating additional Republican-leaning districts, from 79 to 84; more Democratic-leaning districts, from 29 to 31, and more majority-minority districts, from 30 to 32. All of this is bad for democracy because it creates a predetermined outcome and guarantees a GOP House. In the current plan, only 16 of 124 districts are considered competitive — meaning either party has a chance to win. In the new plan? Just 9. That means there is a real chance for either party to win in only nine districts. Such a poorly-drawn map is a slap in the face.
Lynn Teague, a vice president with the League of Women Voters of South Carolina, offered this thought on the map being considered by the S.C. House: “The extremely low number of competitive districts – even at a generous plus/minus 5 percent standard – points toward making voters nearly obsolete in general elections for the S.C. House of Representatives.”
Imagine that — elected officials trying to make voters obsolete. Sound like people who want to support autocratic leadership?
Months ago, we described the rigged writing on the wall: “What really needs to happen is the opposite of incumbency protection. To produce a fair reapportionment as envisioned by the U.S. Constitution every 10 years, the chickens [voters] need to be in charge through a redistricting commission that is independent of the legislature. But if you believe that’s going to happen anytime soon, let me sell you a seat on a rocketship.”
Of course, you apparently now can buy seats on rocketships. But you can’t get fair maps in South Carolina. What the S.C. House is doing should make you mad. The way to fight back is to raise Cain now and, if you don’t get what you want in December, raise more Cain at the polls next year. Let’s not allow these foxes to keep guarding their own henhouse.
Andy Brack is editor and publisher of Charleston Currents, and publisher of the Charleston City Paper. Have a comment? Send to: editor@charlestoncurrents.com.
S.C. Clips
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Look for new battle over vouchers, public education dollars
Staff reports | Look for another education battle in 2022 as key Republican leaders push a bill that would siphon public education dollars to private schools under the guise of “education freedom.”
According to Statehouse Report, S.C. Rep. Shannon Erickson, R-Beaufort, recently sent an email through the Palmetto Promise Institute to push H. 3976, a bill she introduced in February to create “education scholarship accounts” for tens of thousands of early reading program or special needs students. Anyone in the proposed program would get about $5,000 a year in an online savings account to use for a student’s education.
A 2020 version of the bill, which proposed a similar mechanism limited to special needs students, was projected to cost up to $456 million a year for about 67,000 eligible students. The new version could dramatically increase the number of participants at a much-increased fiscal impact, Statehouse insiders said.
Erickson didn’t respond to several inquiries. But in the email, she wrote the measure, which included House Speaker Jay Lucas and 62 other mostly GOP members as co-sponsors, “would empower low- and middle-income families with control and choice over their child’s education in a way never before seen in South Carolina. It would position the Palmetto State as a leader in education freedom and set the stage for a student-centered education revolution.”
But advocates at the S.C. Education Association say such rhetoric offers nice-sounding buzzwords that mask a dangerous potential shift to education vouchers that would steer millions of public school dollars away from school districts for private schools.
In other recent news:
Vertical Roots featured on PBS. Charleston-based container hydroponic farm Vertical Roots is featured on the ninth season of the docuseries, START UP, airing on PBS and viewable online here. During the past two years, producer and host Gary Bredow spent a lot of time reflecting on the direction of the show and the types of stories he wanted to tell, and Vertical Roots was one of them.
Bill would give autonomy to Black history commission. If a bill prefiled by state Rep. J.A. Moore, D-Goose Creek, becomes law, the method to make appointments to the S.C. African American Heritage Commission (SCAAHC) would mirror other state boards and commissions. Instead of the S.C. Commission of Archives and History having the authority to decide who sits on SCAAHC the presidents of the state’s seven historically Black colleges and universities would recommend appointments with staggered terms with the approval of the governor.
House, Senate to return Dec. 1, 6 on redistricting. Both chambers of the S.C. General Assembly will return in early December to consider redistricting plans. New maps are required every 10 years by the U.S. Constitution to equalize representation across the state. The House plan, approved 21-2 with two members abstaining, has drawn fire for protecting incumbents and heavily favoring Republicans. The House returns 2 p.m. Dec. 1 to start deliberations, which are expected to continue at 10 a.m. Thursday and Dec. 6. Meanwhile, S.C. senators will meet in a special session at 1 p.m. Dec. 6 to consider a redistricting plan that has been generally praised.
Right whale calf spotted off S.C. coast. The first North Atlantic right whale mother-calf pair of the season has been spotted off the state’s coast.
$88 million Emanuel settlement approved. U.S. District Court Judge Margaret B. Seymour has approved an $88 million settlement to resolve claims brought against the federal government by victims’ families and survivors of the 2015 Emanuel AME Church shooting. The five survivors and the estates for the nine people killed in the attack alleged errors in the FBI’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System allowed the gunman to buy the firearms he used in the mass shooting. More: The Post and Courier, WCIV
Mace proposes measure to decriminalize marijuana. A draft bill unveiled Monday by U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace would eliminate federal prohibitions on cannabis, but stops short of fully legalizing marijuana, instead letting state leaders set rules on their own.
Charleston history commissioners stall on statue request. Charleston’s Commission on History voted Wednesday to wait for more information before it makes a decision on a request from Los Angeles museum curators to borrow the John C. Calhoun statue for an exhibit featuring similar figures that stood as monuments until recent years. Commissioners expressed concerns during the nearly two-hour virtual meeting that the Calhoun monument could be used to put Charleston in a bad light or as part of a politically charged collection.
- Want more headlines every business day that are like this? Visit our friends at SC Clips.
Two write about McMaster’s attempt to censor a book
To the editor:
You are absolutely right about what McMaster is doing. He is jumping on the bandwagon to keep the unthinking masses enraged. It’s a con. He wants to distract from what’s really important by manufacturing outrage over literature.
For someone who never has an original thought, he is leading the lemmings to the cliff and they go willingly.
It is such an embarrassment having McMaster as our state’s leader. Is this going to be his legacy. I’d like to order a copy of this book for every library in the country with a handwritten dedication to McMastrr’s inability to think for himself.
— Michael Kaynard, Charleston, S.C.
To the editor:
Guvnah Foghorn Leghorn McMaster continues to meddle where he’s not wanted.
It has been women’s reproductive organs. He needs to stay out of the uterus unless it is his own. He doesn’t have a medical degree but makes medical decisions.
Now he’s censoring school libraries. He’s not a trained school librarian or English and language arts teacher, but he’s cleaning out pornographic literature in the schools. He continues to push South Carolina deeper back into the Dark Ages. I know this won’t be published, but writing it felt good.
— Elizabeth Jones , Columbia S.C.
Send us your thoughts by email
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A pretty old thingamajig
Here’s something you may never have seen. Can you identify it with a little specificity and tell us what it is and how old it is? Extra points for a brand name. Send your best guess to editor@charlestoncurrents.com. And don’t forget to include your name and the town in which you live. And if you’ve got a clever mystery photo for our readers, send it to the same address (Try to stump us!)
Our previous Mystery Photo
Last week’s mystery, “Peeking through the treetops,” shows the steeple of Central Baptist Church on Radcliffe Street in Charleston. The sharp angle of the photo masks a large well-known “Jesus Saves” painted near the top of the steeple.
Only one local resident, engineer Craig Bennett, correctly guessed the mystery, noting “handsome building, wonderful people.” Also getting it right were three veteran sleuths, Bill Segars of Hartsville; Allan Peel of San Antonio, Texas; and George Graf of Palmyra, Va.
Segars noted, “Central Baptist Church was the first church in Charleston to be designed, built and financed by African Americans. The congregation was organized on June 18, 1891. John P. Hutchinson designed this Carpenter Gothic building that was built by the members of the church for their first service in August of 1893.”
- Send us a mystery: If you have a photo that you believe will stump readers, send it along (but make sure to tell us what it is because it may stump us too!) Send it along to editor@charlestoncurrents.com.
Chanukah in the Square to be celebrated Nov. 28
From the 2017 celebration. Photo provided.
Staff reports | Live entertainment, food stations and children’s activities will be part of the 14th annual Chanukah in the Square, which will be held 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. Nov. 28 at Marion Square in Charleston.
The celebration, the largest annual Jewish event in the state according to a press release, is offered by the College of Charleston Yaschik/Arnold Jewish Studies Program and Chabad of Charleston – Center for Jewish Life have partnered with the City of Charleston’s Office of Cultural Affairs and many other community organizations to host the largest annual Jewish event in the state of South Carolina. It is sponsored by the Norman J. and Gerry Sue Arnold Foundation and the City of Charleston. More info.
Also on the calendar:
Keeping it local: 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Dec. 4, Johns Island County Park, 2662 Mullet Hall Rd., Johns Island. The 8th annual Homegrown Holiday Bazaar will include about 75 vendors from whom you can get all of your holiday shopping, according to the Sea Island Chamber of Commerce. In addition to great gifts, there will be a kiddie train ride, horse rides and a special visitor from the North Pole. Food trucks will be available as well as local craft beer, wine and music.
North Charleston art show: Through Nov. 24, Park Circle Gallery, 4820 Jenkins Ave., North Charleston. Mount Pleasant painter Brad Carroll and Johns Island artist Lee Garrard will be featured in this exhibition of paintings by the City of North Charleston Cultural Arts Department. Admission is free. The gallery is open 10 a.m. to 6 pm. Wednesdays through Fridays and noon to 4 p.m. on Saturdays.
Holiday Festival of Lights: 5:30 p.m. to 10 p.m, through Dec. 31, James Island County Park.. Visitors can drive through the impressive three-mile light spectacle with more than 750 illuminated displays. The festival also includes other holiday activities like train rides, marshmallow roasting, a climbing wall and more. There also will be a Winter Wonderland, which features the area’s largest holiday sand sculpture made from more than 50 tons of sand. You and your family can also explore the shops, an enchanted walking trail and the amazing dancing light display. Tickets It is recommended that visitors purchase tickets in advance online.
Elf the Musical returns: Dec. 1-19, Dock Street Theatre, Charleston. The popular musical, sold out in Charleston in 2019, returns for several holiday performances by actors at Charleston Stage. Based on the 2003 film starring Will Ferrell, the musical tells the story of Buddy the Elf who is transported from Santa’s Workshop to New York City. Click here for times and tickets, which range from $32 for students to $36 to $75 for adults..
Winter Wonderland exhibit. Through March 27, 2022, Lowcountry Image Gallery, The Charleston Museum, 360 Meeting St., Charleston. This exhibit showcases colorized photographs of remarkable snow days captured by residents of Charleston dating to the late 19th and early 20th centuries. More on tickets and hours.
Birds of Prey flight demonstrations: 10:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. on Thursdays and Saturdays, Center for Birds of Prey, 4719 Highway 17. Awendaw. The center has reopened its doors to visitors after closing due to the COvID-19 pandemic, inviting people to once again come and explore the world of raptors through an outdoor program and flight demonstration. Tickets: . $20/adult; $15/children age 3-17.
Bird-watching at Caw Caw. Every Wednesday and Saturday — particularly through the end of February — you can see a plethora of birds at Caw Caw Interpretive Center in Ravenel as they make their way through the Lowcountry. The two-hour regular walks, which start at 8:30 a.m., are through distinct habitats that allow participants to view and discuss a variety of birds, butterflies, and other organisms. Registration is not required. Participants are encouraged to bring their own binoculars. A paid chaperone is required for participants ages 15 and under. Max. 10 participants. Fee: $9; free for Gold Pass holders. Open to all ages. More: Caw Caw Interpretive Center.
- For more events, see this calendar.
Farmers markets
Closing in November
Charleston Farmers Market: 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., every Saturday, Marion Square, 329 Meeting St., Charleston. More. Tentative closing Nov. 27. Holiday market to open temporarily in December.
Closing in December
Holy City Farmers Market: 4 p.m. to 7 p.m., every Wednesday, Holy City Brewing, North Charleston. vendors rotate weekly to provide shoppers with a tiny but mighty shopping experience. vendors will be selling a range of products from specialty foods, home and body care to arts and crafts. More info. Closes Dec. 18 with holiday market.
Open year-round
West Ashley Farmers Market: 3 p.m. to 7 p.m., every Wednesday, Ackerman Park, 55 Sycamore Avenue, Charleston. More.
Sunday Brunch Farmers Market: 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., every Sunday, Charleston Pour House, 1977 Maybank Highway, James Island. While the market is discouraging people from spending too much time hanging out during the market, everyone is invited to shop their local vendors. More info.
Sea Island Farmers Market: 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., every Saturday. Charleston Collegiate Campus, 2024 Academy Rd., Johns Island. More.
Goose Creek Farmers Market: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., every Saturday, 519 N. Goose Creek Blvd., Goose Creek. More.
- If you have any online events, drop us a line (editor@charlestoncurrents.com) and make sure to put “Online event” in the subject line. Similarly, if you’ve got cool ideas for stuff to do while in isolation at home, send them our way.
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