2025 NASW-NC Legislative Session Update: 2025 Advocacy Day Register Today!

In this week's update:

• 2025 Advocacy Day Register Today!
• NASW-NC Advocacy 101 Webinar in preparation of Advocacy Day
• NASW-NC's 2025 Legislative Agenda Priorities Webinar
• Governor Stein issues Executive Order Protecting Women’s Reproductive Freedom & Privacy
• NC Supreme Court Virtual Town Hall

2025 ADVOCACY DAY -REGISTER TODAY! 

NASW-NC's 2025 Advocacy Day is WEDNESDAY, MARCH 5, 2025 in Downtown Raleigh! We will have a new location for morning orientation (sessions between 9AM-12PM) this year due to the NC History Museum being closed for renovation.  

Read More Here: 2025 ADVOCACY DAY

New Location: Church on Morgan

136 E Morgan St, Raleigh, NC 27601

Church on Morgan's meeting space is like an auditorium, not with religious symbolism of any kind.  

This event is FREE and open to all. We have limited space for this event and want as many people to attend as possible. Please only register if you are certain you can attend.

An OPTIONAL contribution is available during the online registration process. NASW-NC is proud to make the North Carolina Social Work Advocacy Day free for all. We welcome your contribution to this event. All contributions will be donated to social work students from across the state to aid in their travel to Raleigh. Please consider contributing to this effort to help connect the social work profession to those who represent us and our communities at the North Carolina General Assembly.

Each participant will register for ONE session: 
Session 1 begins at 9:00 am 
Session 2 begins at 10:30 am 
* We ask that those close to the Raleigh area register for Session 1 to allow for those traveling from far to attend Session 2.

Space is limited so be sure to register TODAY: https://www.naswnc.org/event/2025SocialWorkAdvocacyDay

NASW-NC Advocacy 101 Webinar in preparation for Advocacy Day 
 

In preparation for the 2025 North Carolina Social Work Advocacy Day on March 5, 2025 in Raleigh, join members of the NASW-NC Legislative Committee for this free, live webinar as we discuss the 2025 NASW-NC Legislative Agenda.  During the event, we will discuss each NASW-NC Legislative Agenda item and cover Advocacy 101 for Social Workers to learn the skills you need to educate government leaders about policy issues that are important to you and reflect the causes you care about.

This event is free and open for everyone (even if you are not able to attend Advocacy Day), attendees will receive 1 hour of CE for free. A link to the live webinar will be distributed to registrants before the meeting date. This webinar will be recorded to view later.

Date: February 12, 2025
Time: 12PM-1PM
Location: Virtual 

FREE|1CE Hour 

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER

NASW-NC's 2025 Legislative Agenda Priorities Webinar

Join NASW-NC's Director of Advocacy & Policy for an overview of our 2025 NC General Assembly Legislative Agenda, as well as what to expect during the Legislative Long Session. This webinar is free and open to NASW-NC members & non-members. 1 hour CE provided. You can read the 2025 NASW-NC Legislative Agenda here. 

Date: January 30, 2025
Time: 12PM-1PM
Location: Virtual 

FREE|1CE Hour 

Click Here to Register. 

Governor Stein issues Executive Order Protecting Women’s Reproductive Freedom & Privacy

Today in Charlotte, Governor Josh Stein announced an executive order reaffirming his commitment to protect women’s reproductive freedom. The executive order directs cabinet agencies to safeguard medical privacy, ensures women receive accurate information about their pregnancies, and protects doctors providing lawful reproductive health care.

“Our state has seen alarming attacks on women’s reproductive rights over the past few years, and I remain committed to doing everything in my power to protect women’s freedoms and their privacy,” said Governor Josh Stein. “I am directing my cabinet agencies to take specific action to protect women and health care providers from extreme anti-reproductive freedom laws.”

Governor Josh Stein’s executive order contains several main provisions: 

• Directing cabinet agencies to pursue opportunities to protect medical professionals providing lawful reproductive health care services and patients obtaining lawful reproductive health care services in North Carolina.
• Directing cabinet agencies not to cooperate with efforts to impose penalties, including investigation or prosecution, on medical professionals providing lawful reproductive health care services or patients obtaining lawful reproductive health care.
• Directing cabinet agencies to protect women’s medical privacy by reviewing and, if necessary, revising policies about the records and data they collect related to a woman’s reproductive health care
• Directing DHHS to provide information about the differences between healthcare providers and other entities that offer services to pregnant women—including differences in available services and applicable patient privacy laws—on their printed and online materials.
• Directing DHHS to take appropriate and feasible measures to ensure North Carolinians have reliable, consistent access to safe and legal reproductive health care medications and birth control.

Click here to read the executive order. 

Send a thank you to Governor Stein here: https://governor.nc.gov/contact/contact-governor-stein

NC Supreme Court Virtual Town Hall

Multiple recounts and careful election audits have confirmed Justice Allison Riggs won the most votes to keep her seat on our state’s highest court. But rather than concede, her opponent is asking the state Supreme Court to undermine the will of 60,000 voters, with young people and Black voters challenged at higher rates.

We're calling on all voters to get in formation! Join Common Cause North Carolina, Democracy North Carolina, and other coalition partners for a virtual town hall on Thursday, January 23, from 6:30pm-7:30pm on Zoom to learn more about this case, hear from impacted voters, and find out what you can do next. 

To check whether you're on Griffins' challenged voters list and add your name to the list of North Carolinians demanding the NC Supreme Court reject this challenge, go to demnc.co/griffin.

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER FOR TOWN HALL

Sponsored by: Common Cause North Carolina, NC NAACP, Emancipate NC, NC For The People, Democracy North Carolina, ACLU of North Carolina

NASW-NC PACE formally endorsed Justice Allison Riggs in the 2024 General Election. 

Thank you to the members of NASW-NC for supporting the advocacy work we do. We would not be able to advocate for the social work profession or social justice issues in North Carolina without a robust and engaged NASW membership. If you are a social worker and not a member, we ask that you join NASW today. Our voice is louder with your membership.

Learn more about NASW-NC membership here.

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