Below, we’ve got the last days of an eastern NC fish fry, a whale siting on Onslow Beach, and coastal NC’s brewing fight over shellfish farms, but first:

Kelsea McLain’s desire to be an abortion clinic escort in North Carolina grew out of her own experience. 

She remembers the people who lined up to harass her as she went inside a clinic for care. 

“I remember getting in and just being really incensed and enraged that they had the audacity to come there and make the people that were there, on the same day as me and going through the same experience, feel so shi**y,” McLain said. “The spark was set.”

McLain, who works for the Triangle Abortion Access Coalition, is one of many people featured in a new documentary on clinic escorts. It’s called “Human Shield.” 

Cardinal & Pine’s Jessica F. Simmons has written an excellent new story on the doc. This is a must-read.

“Human Shield” is an incredible film about the people who volunteer to escort people into and out of abortion clinics. (Photo via “Human Shield”)

Hope everyone’s finding their way around the new C&P website. Let us know if you find any bugs. 

Y’all try to top this one from Onslow Beach near Sneads Ferry, NC. The photo was taken by James Quinn and shared by C&P reader Laurette Leagon.

Got an amazing North Carolina photo? Share it with us.  

Oyster cages at UNCW’s Center for Marine Science dock along the Intracoastal Waterway on Sept. 11, 2025. The research cages are one of just a handful of shellfish operations in New Hanover County, which has had a moratorium on new leases since 2019. (USA Today via Reuters)

Shellfish (and the consumption of them) is a way of life in North Carolina. It’s an industry and a culture. 

But one person’s way of life can be another person’s problem. 

Here’s a new report on the brewing tension in coastal NC around shellfish farms. 

As the Wilmington Star-News reported, shellfish growers are turning to floating cages to grow oysters. It helps them boost their yields, but it’s also an eyesore and a potential boating hazard.

Which is why some local governments are turning to state lawmakers to take action and pass a moratorium on them. Read it here.

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1. Durham mayor Leo Williams talks about supporting a local moratorium on data centers. Cardinal & Pine

“Durham Mayor Leo Williams tells Cardinal & Pine he supports a moratorium on large-scale data centers, and instead hopes to recruit businesses that will “become part of our fabric.”

2. Massive lithium mine in western North Carolina clears major hurdle at the EPA. CBS-17

“If fully extracted and processed, the Appalachian region lithium could replace roughly 328 years of U.S. imports at last year’s consumption levels, according to federal officials.”

3. Two-time NBA champion to graduate from North Carolina college. WBTV

“J.R. Smith enrolled at NC A&T months after winning 2020 NBA Finals with Lakers.”

The Country Fish Fry has closed its doors for the last time. (USA Today via Reuters)

An eastern North Carolina mainstay is going away. 

This week, we learned that Fayetteville’s Country Fish Fry has closed. 

The popular restaurant was founded by Tasos Hasapis in 1991, and it was one seven fish fry restaurants he ran, including locations in Sanford, Siler City, and Pittsboro.

Recently, the restaurant’s owners said it’s “not a decision we ever imagined having to make.” Here’s why they had to. 

Thanks for reading. This newsletter was written by Billy Ball. I’m an NC native and journalist. I tend to lean left on opinion, but I lean no way on facts. Today’s edition includes stories from Jessica F. Simmons and USA Today Network via Reuters Connect. It was edited by Paula Solis.

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