
Average White Band headlines this year’s 2nd Street Festival
Beloved festival celebrates 35 years in Historic Jackson Ward
The 2nd Street Festival will marks its 35th anniversary when it returns Oct. 7-8 to historic Jackson Ward.

The air up there
A GRTC bus makes a splash at the intersections of Broad Street and CommonwealthAvenue after a torrential downpour in Richmond and surrounding areas on July 8. Such rainfall, causing flash flood warnings, is caused by warm air masses that can hold much more moisture than cooler ones, leading to a longer, heavier rainfall.

Jury decides 2014 document found in Aretha Franklin’s couch is a valid will
A document handwritten by singer Aretha Franklin and found in her couch after her 2018 death is a valid Michigan will, a jury said Tuesday, a critical turn in a dispute that has turned her sons against each other.

Bright Minds RVA to enlighten teens with chess
The Bright Minds RVA Chess Classes and Tournament for Richmond area teens will take place Aug. 7 through 17 at the Black History Museum and Cultural Center of Virginia, 122 W. Leigh St.

Clarence Thomas hates Black people, by Julianne Malveaux
As a child in Pinpoint, Ga., Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas was hazed by his classmates with the moniker “America’s Blackest Child.”

Erica Abrams Locklear, Kidada Williams lead Library of Virginia author talks
The Library of Virginia’s Carole Weinstein Author Series continues this summer with free talks from experts on regional culture and history.

A lifetime of racism makes Alzheimer’s disease more common in Black Americans
Constance Guthrie is not dead yet, but her daughter has begun to plan her funeral.

Alzheimer’s drug Leqembi has FDA approval now
That means Medicare will pay for it
U.S. officials granted full approval to a closely watched Alzheimer’s drug in late June, clearing the way for Medicare and other insurance plans to begin covering the treatment for people with the brain-robbing disease.

Early voting’s pivot as Youngkin’s pawn
Why are Republicans like Gov. Glenn A. Youngkin suddenly supportive of early voting and same-day registration after spending the past legislative session fruitlessly seeking to get rid of those options?

Lady Soul’s legacy
Many of us have experienced family feuds upon the death of a loved one. Often, before the dearly departed’s body “is cold,” as they say, fights, both physical and verbal, occur.

Pence is wrong about inequity in education, by Marc Morial
“Decades of research indicate that racism undergirds our public institutions and shapes various aspects of our contemporary society, including public policies. These policies, in turn, shape local school practices that impact the day to day experiences of students in classrooms. Even as schools are shaped by broader trends of racial inequality, they serve to maintain – or in rare cases disrupt – racial inequality for students and families.” – The Inequality Project, Columbia University.

Gun buyback programs are ‘waste of time’
Jeremy Lazarus is correct when he reported that gun buy-back programs do not work; they do nothing to stop gun violence.

Justices teach when the Supreme Court isn’t in session
The job doubles as all-expenses-paid trip
For decades, the University of Hawaii law school has marketed its Jurist-In-Residence program to the Supreme Court as an all-expenses-paid getaway, with the upside of considerable “down time” in paradise.

Cuban stars come out to shine
Baseball is extremely popu- lar among young Black athletes in Cuba. That was obvious during the July 11 Major League All-Star Baseball Game in Seattle in which there were 25 international players in this year’s game.

VCU Rams’ Asare makes Team Canada
Mary-Anna Asare plays basketball for VCU but will represent Canada July15-23 in the FIBAU-19 Women’s World Cup in Madrid.

Olympic champion Caster Semenya wins human rights testosterone case
Champion runner Caster Semenya won a potentially landmark legal decision for sports on Tuesday when the European Court of Human Rights decided she was discriminated against by rules in track and field that force her to medically reduce her natural hormone levels to compete in major competitions.

Christine King Farris, the last living sibling of Martin Luther King Jr., dies at 95
Christine King Farris, the last living sibling of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., died Thursday, June 29, 2023, at age 95.

Free workshop for clearing records
The Richmond Commonwealth’s Attorneys office, Nolef Turns, Justice Forward Virginia and the Richmond Public Law Library will present a free informational workshop on expungement from 1 to 3 p.m., Saturday, July 15, at the Richmond Public Library, 101 E. Franklin St.

School Board considers safety plan after shooting
The Richmond School Board is considering a multimillion dollar plan to ensure safety and security following a fatal shooting after Huguenot High School’s graduation in Monroe Park last month. Two people were killed and five others were wounded. The Care & Safety Plan was presented this week during the board’s regular meeting.