A National Field Journalism Series · March On PAC × NNPA / Black Press USA
The State
We’re In.
Field journalism documenting the communities shaping the future of American democracy
The State We’re In was born in the wake of the Supreme Court’s Louisiana v. Callais decision — a turning point that knocked down the Voting Rights Act’s final remaining major pillar. We are a national field journalism series from March On PAC and NNPA / Black Press USA that sends veteran Black journalists into the communities living the defining civic, economic, and political fights of our time — and tells the story all the way through.
This is not a 2026 midterm project. It is long-term infrastructure — built to spotlight organizers and sustain power through 2028 and beyond.
The Series
Democracy doesn’t happen
in Washington. It happens
in communities.
Every release explores how local leaders, organizers, elected officials, and everyday people are responding to the defining issues shaping their communities — from voting rights and affordability to healthcare, labor, education, and economic opportunity.
The State We’re In documents not only the challenges facing democracy, but the people building it every day.
Who benefits. Who pays. Who gets a say?
Chapters
State by state.
Issue by issue.
Each chapter of the series follows a state or an issue — building a living, national archive of how communities are responding, organizing, and leading the way forward.
Meet The Contributors
A growing bench of independent journalists.
The State We’re In is built to work with established independent journalists from across the country. Each chapter brings new contributors closest to the communities being covered — with more announced as the series expands.
Reporting the first chapter — The State We’re In: Tennessee — from statehouses, city councils, churches, and barber shops across Memphis and Nashville.
View her work on BlackPressUSA
More contributors joining with each chapter. Are you an independent journalist covering democracy, civic power, or community organizing? Get in touch.
The Research Foundation
Grounded in rigorous, community-rooted research.
The reporting is informed by the Black Opps Project, a landmark research initiative commissioned by a coalition of eight civil rights and civic organizations, including March On PAC, the NAACP, and the National Coalition on Black Civic Participation, and led by HIT Strategies.
That research feeds directly into how our journalists identify stories, understand community context, and frame the issues that matter most to Black voters on the ground.
It is one of several inputs that makes The State We’re In something corporate and political media cannot replicate: journalism that is deeply reported, community-informed, and built on real data about what Black communities are experiencing, thinking, and fighting for.
Get Involved
Help Shape What Comes Next.
Whether you’re an organizer, a partner outlet, a foundation, an elected official, or a community leader with a story that needs to be told — there are many ways to be part of this.
Reach The Team.
Drop a note and we’ll route it to the right person.
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