Despite the fact that multiple City Council members continue to insist that Duke is a boon to Durham (specifically, Mark-Anthony Middleton and Leonardo Williams), Duke University's leadership have continued to show their true colors to the people of Durham. Back in 2019, Duke killed a project known simply as the 'Durham-Orange Light Rail' which would have created incredibly fast, cheap, public, and direct transport all across the Triangle. The light rail project would have returned an estimated $5 billion in GPD alongside 50,000 jobs for 20 years for every $1 billion invested. It would have paved the way for around 12,000 commuters to get to worker in a safer and more environmentally conscious way. But Duke killed the project. They did this by refusing to give up land which was crucial for the project to continue. Their reasons are flaky at best and a clear means of economic oppression handed down by Duke's President at worst.

Duke owns Durham. Not only do they have major political influence, they also physically own over ten percent of the land within the borders of the City of Durham.