Democratic breakfast to feature UNC’s Gene Nichols
Published 12:00 am Sunday, June 8, 2025
How does a law professor and renowned author and columnist view today’s political events?
The Rowan County Democratic Party’s guest speaker for its Saturday, June 14, breakfast is Gene Nichol. His talk will be titled “A Republican War on Democracy — From Washington and Raleigh.”
A professor of law at UNC Chapel Hill, Nichol has taught courses on the constitution and federal courts and previously served as president of the College of William and Mary and as dean at UNC Chapel Hill and University of Colorado.
He has published articles in the Harvard, Yale, Chicago, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Duke, California and Virginia law reviews and the Supreme Court review. He’s also written for The Nation, the Washington Post, Southern Cultures and Slate Magazine.
Nichol is a regular columnist for Raleigh News and Observer, Charlotte Observer and Durham Herald. His columns also are published in the Salisbury Post.
With a focus on civil rights and discrimination, constitutional law, federal courts and poverty law, he is the author of “Lessons From North Carolina: Race, Religion, Tribe And The Future Of America,” “Indecent Assembly: The North Carolina Legislature’S Blueprint For The War Against Democracy And Equality,” “The Faces Of Poverty In North Carolina: Stories From Our Invisible Citizens” and “Federal Courts.”
In 2018, he was invited by the faculty of the University of Michigan to give the annual Davis, Markert, Nickerson Academic Freedom Lecture and received UNC’s Wettach Award for research excellence. In 2024, he received the North Carolina Justice Center’s Lifetime Champion of Justice honor. Nichol attended Oklahoma State University, receiving a degree in philosophy and playing varsity football. He obtained his J.D. from the University of Texas, graduating Order of the Coif.
The party has invited the public to attend and learn about today’s happenings from the view of a law professor and bring a breakfast item to share at the 10 a.m. potluck breakfast at the Rowan County Democratic Party Headquarters, 1504 W. Innes Street, Salisbury.
