Meet Devna Bose, Charlotte’s reporter for vulnerable communities. Tell us what you want to read.
Dear readers,
Thanks to considerable planning and fundraising by The Charlotte Observer, I am thrilled to start reporting on some of the city’s most pressing and long-standing problems, like poverty and injustice, both of which inevitably intersect with race.
My work will be devoted to uplifting the voices of Charlotte that need it the most — the Black, brown and LGBTQ+ people who have made Charlotte one of the country’s fastest growing cities.
But I also want to write about why such a prosperous city doesn’t have ample opportunity for those very people to grow socioeconomically.
I will not be able to do this without you, Charlotte. I am especially excited to hear from people doing the work on the ground, folks who have experienced injustices and who are advocating for change.
Additionally, I want to listen and learn from the people in the Beatties Ford community — a complex, majority-Black area of Charlotte that has long deserved dogged, meaningful reporting. Marginalized communities have been disproportionately affected by COVID-19. It’s critical that your local newspaper be attuned to the specific challenges this community faces in recovery and hold leaders accountable.
My stories will directly address and contextualize the societal and political problems that negatively impact already vulnerable communities in Charlotte. I want to understand the factors that stoke poverty, inequality, incarceration, racism and discrimination in this city.
This work is fueled by the Observer’s partnership with Report For America. My position is partially funded through that partnership, in addition to support from readers and the N.C. Local News Lab Fund. Individuals, organizations and businesses can help us with required matching funding by donating through RFA at bit.ly/RFAObserver.
I’ve been here for two months now and spent my first few weeks covering the George Floyd protests in Charlotte and the aftermath of a mass shooting on Beatties Ford Road. I have already heard from so many of you, and can’t wait to have conversations with many more Charlotteans this year.
This job feels like coming home. I’m a queer, second-generation Indian immigrant who was raised in Mississippi. The issues I’ll be writing about this year are deeply important to me, and I know are important to you, too. I’m so grateful to have the opportunity to hear from and grow alongside you this year.
Below I’ve listed some specific issues I plan to cover. What else would you like to see on this list?
Race: How has West Charlotte changed over the years and who has been affected?
Housing and poverty: Why are Black, brown and LGBTQ+ youth more likely to experience homelessness and underemployment?
LGBTQ+: How does Charlotte’s Southern queer population thrive and what does the future hold for transgender Charlotteans who help lead the city’s antiracism movements?
Immigration: Neighborhoods in east Charlotte, in particular, are uniquely beautiful with a large immigrant population. Their struggles and victories are as varied as their family and ethnic backgrounds. How can Charlotte best learn from and grow with these communities?
COVID-19: How has this pandemic exacerbated already existing healthcare disparities in the city’s most vulnerable communities?
I’m looking forward to serving you this year, and I’d love to hear from you. Please send your thoughts on what I should be covering and who I should be meeting to dbose@charlotteobserver.com.
This story was originally published August 18, 2020 at 1:05 PM.
