Personality: Sylvia Clute
Spotlight on The Alliance for Unitive Justice president
When former trial attorney Sylvia Clute read the book “A Course in Miracles” in 1987, her concept of justice shifted.
Willard Bailey Classic
Panthers return for first home game of season
Bye bye cramped bus seat. Hello Hovey Field. Finally, the road-weary, yet road-conquering Virginia Union University Panthers will merely have to stroll across Lombardy Street to play a football game. Now 3-0 after three long bus rides, Coach Alvin Parker’s squad will play host to Fayetteville State 6 p.m. Saturday under the Hovey lights. It also will serve as the Willard Bailey Classic, honoring the former (and still avid supporter) who posted a 157-73-6 record in two stints of duty, 1971-1983 and 1995-03.
‘Walk Through Fire’
Sheila Johnson’s memoir explores love, loss and triumph
For four days and three nights in mid-August, Sheila Crump Johnson, cofounder of Black Entertainment Television and CEO of Salamander Hotels & Resorts, hosted hundreds of guests at her 340-acre Salamander Resort and Spa near Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains.
Winter shelter’s opening may be delayed
A planned 150-bed winter shelter for Richmond’s homeless population may not open until Dec. 1, or well after freezing temperatures could hit the city, it has been learned.
RRHA gets REAL about reducing gun violence
A crime-reduction initiative that Mayor Levar M. Stoney has spurned apparently will come to Richmond after all. The city’s housing authority is partnering with the nonprofit REAL LIFE to implement the same initiative in Richmond that is credited with dramatically cutting shootings and violent crime in Hopewell.
Early voting begins Sept. 22
The next election is the General Election on Tuesday, Nov. 7, and early voting for this election begins tomorrow and ends Nov. 4.
VCU names Faye Belgrave as vice president, chief diversity officer
Faye Belgrave, Ph.D., a respected scholar, author and equity advocate, has been named vice president and chief diversity officer at Virginia Commonwealth University, effective Oct. 23.
Richmond employees gain new benefits
In a bid to ramp up retention of current workers and recruiting of new workers to fill hundreds of vacancies, City Hall plans to improve benefits offered to employees in the area of workforce training and home purchase assistance. Topping the list is a new partnership between the city government and Reynolds Community College’s Community College Workforce Alliance.
RPS approves changes in selection process for three high schools
In an effort to enable more underprivileged students to attend Maggie L. Walker Governor’s School, Richmond Community High School and Open High, the Richmond School Board approved changes for admissions to those schools on Monday.
RPS names new leadership at McClenney and Overby-Sheppard elementaries
Richmond Public Schools recently announced two new interim principals.
Free community testing for COVID-19 continues
The Richmond and Henrico County health districts are offering testing at the following locations:
Family of Irvo Otieno agrees to $8.5M settlement
The family of a man who died while handcuffed and pinned to the floor for about 11 minutes as he was being admitted to a Virginia psychiatric hospital has reached an $8.5 million settlement with the state and the county and sheriff whose deputies were involved in restraining him. A judge approved the out-of-court wrongful death settlement Tuesday, according to an agreement filed in Henrico County Circuit Court.
New agreement appears to move forward Diamond District, stadium
A breakthrough in negotiations has put the $2.4 billion Diamond District deal back on track, the Free Press has learned.
Virginia Organizing challenges Youngkin’s voting rights move
The Charlottesville-based grassroots group Virginia Organizing plans to lead a public march and protest in Richmond at 10:30 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 23, to protest Republican Gov. Glenn A. Youngkin’s rollback of the virtually automatic restoration of voting rights for released felons, it has been announced
Report details City jail stabbing
The dangers at the Richmond City Justice Center were re-emphasized Monday when one prisoner repeatedly stabbed another in the head around 6 a.m. Monday as breakfast was being served, according to internal reports the Free Press obtained.
Community festival with a focus on health
VCU’s Massey Cancer is throwing an open-to-everyone family-friendly carnival from 1 to 4 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 23, at the Siegel Center, 1200 W. Broad St.
Justice and accountability needed in Irvo Otieno’s death
Yesterday’s announcement about a settlement being reached in the case of Irvo Otieno, a 28-year-old Black man who died while being restrained at a Virginia psychiatric hospital, elevates discussions about the need for mental health and policing reforms.
Vote early and make your voice heard
As the upcoming Nov. 7 elections in Virginia draw near, it is essential that every eligible citizen exercise his or her right to vote.
Hardball game of politics, by Clarence Page
Like numerous other folks who did not support Mitt Romney’s election when he was challenging then-President Barack Obama in 2012, I think he looks a lot better to me now than he did then — and not just because he decided to retire from the Senate.
Saving planet matter of choice, by Ben Jealous
There’s a phrase you hear from business schools to board rooms that comes from L. John Doerr, a legendary investor who backed Google, Amazon and Intuit: Measure what matters. Those words certainly jumped to mind this summer as leaders from Washington to London sent signals that protecting a safe, livable planet hardly matters because it’s not worth accounting for accurately and honestly.
