Free Republic

RALEIGH -- Companies seeking state contracts would have to examine their pasts under a bill approved by a House committee Wednesday. The measure would require companies to determine whether they profited from the 19th-century slave trade in the United States. Democratic Reps. Earl Jones of Greensboro and Larry Womble of Winston-Salem championed the bill. If it became law, companies would have to submit an affidavit stating their research findings but would not have to take specific steps if they should find they profited from slavery.

Cyndy Stewart said she was shocked when her son showed her a symbol that "sanctions intolerance" in his SAIL High School yearbook. The page included a Confederate flag and the phrases: "Long Live General Lee. Redneck and Proud!! The South Will Rise!!" Stewart said it's "defeating and condescending" to students of color and sends a bad message to all students regardless of race.She and another parent asked the School Board on Tuesday to create stricter policies on offensive materials in student publications."It's 50 years after Brown v. Board of Education," said Stewart, who teaches school in Georgia. "It doesn't make...