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A 10-Year-Old Pointed a Finger Gun. The Principal Kicked Him Out of His Tennessee School for a Year.

A 2023 state law requires a yearlong expulsion for any student who threatens mass violence on school property. But some students have been kicked out even when school officials determined that the threat was not credible.

Reporting From the South

ProPublica’s seven-person reporting unit, based in Atlanta, covers North Carolina, South Carolina, Alabama, Georgia and Tennessee. The region plays a pivotal role in national issues including political representation, racial equity and environmental justice.

Segregation Academies

In a Town Full of Segregation Academies, One Black Family Grapples With the Best School Choice for Their Daughter

Schools in Macon, Georgia, are still largely segregated. Zo’e Johnson’s family is torn over whether they can afford for her to stay at her mostly white private school — and whether the cost makes sense.

Segregation Academies

Cookie & Zo’e: A Georgia Family Wrestles With School Choice 60 Years After the Start of Desegregation

In a new ProPublica short documentary, Samaria “Cookie” Mitcham Bailey and her great-granddaughter Zo’e Johnson reflect on their experiences in a town where schools are still largely segregated.

Election Deniers Secretly Pushed Rule That Would Make It Easier to Delay Certification of Georgia’s Election Results

On Monday, the GOP-controlled State Election Board is poised to adopt the rule, which would potentially allow county officials, including one who secretly backed the rule, to throw the election results of the swing state into chaos this fall.

Local Reporting Network Partners

ProPublica is supporting local and regional newsrooms as they work on important investigative projects affecting their communities. Some of our past and present partners in the region:

MLK50: Justice Through Journalism
Memphis, Tennessee
Mountain State Spotlight
West Virginia
Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal
Tupelo, Mississippi
Sun Herald
Biloxi, Mississippi
AL.com
Birmingham, Alabama
The Palm Beach Post
Palm Beach, Florida
Miami Herald
Miami, Florida
Richmond Times-Dispatch
Richmond, Virginia

Decrepit Pipes Put Jackson, Mississippi, on the Edge of Catastrophe. State Regulators Didn’t Act.

For years, Jackson residents endured periods of low water pressure, potentially unsafe drinking water or no water at all. All the while, state inspectors found few problems with the failing pipes that caused those problems.

In Rural Tennessee, Domestic Violence Victims Face Barriers to Getting Justice. One County Has Transformed Its Approach.

Despite being a rural area that’s steeped in gun culture, Scott County has emerged as a model for the state in trying to prevent domestic violence from escalating.

Developers Halt Louisiana Grain Elevator Project That Would Disrupt Black Historic Sites

The grain terminal was the subject of a May 2022 ProPublica investigation that revealed how a whistleblower’s findings had been buried.

Cybersecurity Researcher Discovers Yet Another Flaw in Georgia’s Voter Cancellation Portal

The flaw would have allowed anyone to submit a voter registration cancellation request for any Georgian using their name, date of birth and county of residence — information that is easily discoverable online.

Marjorie Taylor Greene’s and Brad Raffensperger’s Voter Registrations Targeted in Georgia’s New Online Portal

Days after Georgia Democrats warned that the state’s new online portal for canceling voter registrations could be abused, officials have confirmed misuse attempts — including efforts to cancel the registrations of prominent Republicans.

Data Centers Demand a Massive Amount of Energy. Here’s How Some States Are Tackling the Industry’s Impact.

As the draw on the grid from these computer warehouses undergoes explosive growth, states that offer tax exemptions to support the industry are considering whether their approach still makes sense.

New Louisiana Law Serves as a Warning to Bystanders Who Film Police: Stay Away or Face Arrest

Louisiana is the fourth state to enact a so-called police buffer law, which allows officers to order people to keep their distance. Journalists say the law will make it harder to document when police use excessive force.

A Judge Ruled a Louisiana Prison’s Health Care System Has Failed Inmates for Decades. A Federal Law Could Block Reforms.

The Prison Litigation Reform Act was passed to curtail the number of lawsuits filed by inmates over conditions behind bars. It has kept courts from forcing Louisiana to overhaul the medical system in its largest prison.

Conservatives Go to War — Against Each Other — Over School Vouchers

School choice advocates are intent on expanding the availability of vouchers to fund private education at the expense of public schools, but rural residents of these targeted states are putting up some of the strongest resistance.

These Researchers Study the Legacy of the Segregation Academies They Grew Up Around

Three young academics in Alabama are examining these mostly white private schools through the lenses of economics, education and history to better understand the persistent division of schools in the South.

North Carolina Supreme Court Secretly Squashed Discipline of Two GOP Judges Who Admitted to Violating Judicial Code

The decisions came despite the Judicial Standards Commission’s recommendations to publicly reprimand the judges, and these are likely the only times in more than a decade in which the court didn’t follow the commission’s guidance.

Former Foster Youth Are Eligible for Federal Housing Aid. Georgia Isn’t Helping Them Get It.

A 5-year-old program to help young people aging out of foster care offers millions of dollars in rent support. Some states have tapped hundreds of vouchers. Georgia has received just eight.

How an Alabama Town Staved Off School Resegregation

In the 1970s, Black students organized protests and a boycott that cost local white businesses money. Today, many families who could afford private school still choose Thomasville’s public schools.

This Mississippi Hospital Transfers Some Patients to Jail to Await Mental Health Treatment

Baptist Memorial Hospital-DeSoto doesn’t have a psychiatric unit, so it sends patients elsewhere for mental health treatment. When publicly funded facilities are full, some patients go to jail to wait for help. One doctor said that’s “unthinkable.”

How Residents in a Rural Alabama County Are Confronting the Lasting Harm of Segregation Academies

In Wilcox County, Alabama, many people say they want to bridge racial divides created by their segregated schools. But they must face a long and painful history.

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Most Read

    Trump Assassination Attempt Laid Bare Long-standing Vulnerabilities in the Secret Service

    A Spotlight PA, ProPublica and Butler Eagle investigation found the process for securing campaign events was susceptible to attack for years.

    Why It’s So Hard to Find a Therapist Who Takes Insurance

    Those who need therapy often have to pay out of pocket or go without care, even if they have health insurance. Hundreds of mental health providers told us they fled networks because insurers made their jobs impossible and their lives miserable.

    Armed and Underground: Inside the Turbulent, Secret World of an American Militia

    Rounding up migrants. Lists of “friendly” sheriffs. Debating political assassinations. Internal messages reveal AP3's journey from Jan. 6 through the tumultuous lead-up to the 2024 election. One member predicts: “It’ll be decided at the ammo box.”

    A 10-Year-Old Pointed a Finger Gun. The Principal Kicked Him Out of His Tennessee School for a Year.

    A 2023 state law requires a yearlong expulsion for any student who threatens mass violence on school property. But some students have been kicked out even when school officials determined that the threat was not credible.

    A Closer Look

    Trump Built a National Debt So Big That It’ll Weigh Down the Economy for Years

    The “King of Debt” promised to reduce the national debt — then his tax cuts made it surge. Add in the pandemic, and he oversaw the third-biggest deficit increase of any president.