Today in North Carolina, our pursuit of freedom, humanity, and justice for all are at stake. That is why I will persist in rising up and speaking out on your behalf in the fight for our basic human rights.
In my lifetime, we as a nation have rejoiced in many achievements. The Brown v. Board of Education decision led to the desegregation of public schools. Rosa Parks sat down in the white section of the bus, sparking a 13-month bus boycott that resulted in desegregation of public transportation. In 1964 the Civil Rights Act was signed into law, and in 1965 the Voting Rights Act was enacted to prohibit racial discrimination in voting.
By 1973 women finally gained control over their own bodies and reproductive rights with the Roe v. Wade decision. Scientific advancements led to the 1985 discovery of the first hole in the ozone layer, which was caused by pollution; that discovery led to the Montreal Protocol of 1987.
The election of Barack Obama as the first African American president of the United States in 2008, and his reelection in 2012, signified a tremendous change in American society and politics. In 2015 we achieved marriage equality, giving due respect to the LGBTQ+ community. Then in 2020 Kamala Harris became the first woman to win election as vice president of the United States.
My term in office as Representative for NC House District 50 began in 2023, and in the first year of the biennium, I witnessed the passage of legislation, by the will of the majority party, that has set North Carolina back seventy (70) years.
• public schools are in a crisis, while $618 million was appropriated for private school vouchers;
• voting rights, particularly for African Americans, are under threat as changes in election laws easily could lead to voter intimidation;
• the right to representation is almost nonexistent due to extreme gerrymandering of districts;
• women have been stripped of our rights by laws severely limiting abortions and reproductive health care; and
• delicate ecosystems are at risk due to a farm bill that fails to protect North Carolina’s wetlands.
That said, we did have some gains in 2023, including Medicaid expansion for more than 600,000 North Carolinians who previously had no access to affordable health care.
Looking to the future, we must reverse this backward trend and instead advance. Our right to vote, for example, came with too much pain and suffering, too much bloodshed, and too much sacrifice for us to allow anyone to disenfranchise us now. We must set the stage for the evolution of our state for a foreseeable future.
I enjoy my role as your representative, and I am inspired by my experiences with you. Together, we must strive to protect and defend our democracy. Again, I remain steadfast in the fight for our basic human rights.
— Renée Price
Education has the potential to break down barriers between people of different cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds, and to build bridges of cross-cultural understanding.
I believe our state legislature has a responsibility to help fulfill the promise of a sound, basic education by investing in our students, school facilities, early childhood education, public school teachers and staff, and community colleges.
People across Orange and Caswell Counties want and need access to career-oriented jobs, opportunities for entrepreneurship, and inclusion in the economic wealth of this state and nation.
As a member of the NC House, I will work to break down barriers and open doors to universal broadband, affordable housing, and multimodal transportation.
The criminal justice system throughout North Carolina, and the United States, is in dire need of reform. Many of our laws, policies and procedures are founded on racial discrimination, gender prejudice, Jim Crow sentiments, and punishment for poverty.
As your District 50 Representative, I will communicate and collaborate with colleagues and community members to help us understand and address our personal biases. We must assure justice in our criminal justice system.
Climate change is real and while it is inevitable, we can work to reduce our impact on our natural environment and to mitigate the adverse effects of global warming.
We must be prepared to address the ethical, legal and political issues related to climate change, and as your representative in the NC House I will be prepared to do so in a way that respects all people and preserves the earth for future generations.
Our foremothers and forefathers fought, bled, and died in the valiant effort to claim the right to vote for themselves and for us. In no way can we let their efforts be in vain.
As the District 50 Representative in the NC House, I will rise up, speak out, and, as the late John Lewis said, “get in good trouble” to protect and assure our right to vote and our right for representation.
Let’s make sure that every vote is counted.
In our modern world, healthcare and human services should be a basic human right.
When elected to the NC House, I will focus on coordinating with our county and municipal governments to prevent evictions, assist elderly households in need, and end homelessness. My aim is to assure that our women, men and children in Caswell and Orange Counties have the fundamental health and human services they need to thrive and be well.