
The King holiday reflects our resilience, by Julianne Malveaux
Just four days after Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated on April 4, 1968, the inveterate warrior, Congressman John Conyers Jr. (D-MI), introduced legislation to make his birthday a federal holiday.

Here comes Gen Z, by Svante Myrick
When 25-year-old Maxwell Frost of Florida takes his seat in the U.S. House this month, he will be the nation’s first Gen Z member of Congress. That—in and of itself—is a major milestone and accomplishment.

Putting the ‘con’ in conservative, by Jesse Jackson
George Santos, a 34-year-old Republican congressman-elect, has gained notoriety before even coming to Washington.

Library of Virginia celebrates 200 years
The Library of Virginia will celebrate its bicentennial in 2023 with “200 Years, 200 Stories: An Exhibition,” running free for all from Tuesday, Jan. 24, through Saturday, Oct. 28.

Longtime Richmond educator remembered
Bessie Patricia Carter Brown loved being involved with education, her family said.

Support for Damar Hamlin continues among NFL and fans
Sunday, Jan. 8, marked the first time that the Buffalo Bills took to the football field since Bills’ safety Damar Hamlin suffered cardiac arrest on the field only minutes into their Jan. 2 game against the Cincinnati Bengals.

Richmond Free Press freelance writer, editor Charles H. Taylor III, dies at age 70
From his earliest days to his twilight years, Charles H. Taylor III was a person of excellence and compassion for those who knew, worked with and loved him.

Want a COVID-19 vaccine or booster shot?
The Richmond and Henrico County health districts are offering testing at the following locations.

McCarthy rejected for House speaker with GOP in disarray
House Republicans flailed through a second day of multiple balloting Wednesday, unable to elect their leader Kevin McCarthy as House speaker or come up with a new strategy to end the political chaos that has tarnished the start of their new majority.

Earle P. Taylor, photographer and cultural arts innovator, dies at 94
Beneficiaries of his work included Last Stop Gallery and Pine Camp
Earle Palmer Taylor, a renowned Richmond photographer who ran a nonprofit Shockoe Bottom art gallery for two decades and taught hundreds of people the art of taking and de- veloping pictures at the city’s Pine Camp art center, has died.

Pope Francis praises ‘gentle’ Pope Benedict XVI ahead of funeral
Pope Francis praised Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI’s “acute and gentle thought” as he presided over a packed Wednesday general audience in the Vatican, while thousands of people paid tribute to the former pope on the final day of public viewing in St. Peter’s Basilica.

Maryland artist will create Capitol statue of Barbara Johns
Steven Weitzman, a leading figure American public art, has already sculpted abolitionist Frederick Douglass and former Washington Mayor Marion S. Barry Jr. Now the 71-year-old Maryland-based artist has been chosen to immortalize Black teenage activist Barbara Rose Jones in a bronze statue in the U.S. Capitol.

The ultimate 10
Pelé, Brazil’s mighty king of ‘beautiful game,’ mourned
He was born Edson Arantes do Nascimento but came to be known and admired worldwide as simply “Pelé.”

New book chronicles civil rights advocate Curtis W. Harris Sr.
Seeking racial justice, the late Hopewell minister and mayor walked the frontlines with Martin Luther King Jr.
Born in 1924 during the harsh racial segregation regime, the Rev. Curtis White Harris Sr. rose to become a key figure in the fight for Black equality in Virginia and the country.

City hires attorney Keith D. Greenberg to handle labor relations
Richmond police officers, firefighters and City Hall employees have moved a step closer to having labor unions.

Virginia Union’s MLK Breakfast on Jan. 13
“All Things, Excellence,” is the theme for this year’s 45th Martin Luther King Jr. Community Leaders Celebration. The annual event hosted by Virginia Union University will take place 7:30 a.m. Friday, Jan. 13 at the Downtown Richmond Marriott, 500 E. Broad St.

Foremost wishes for the new year
With the start of 2023, the Richmond Free Press invited select local officials to share their foremost wishes for the new year. Here are their responses:
With the start of 2023, the Richmond Free Press invited select local officials to share their foremost wishes for the new year.

Facts
In closing out 2022, the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) issued facts that which Black Americans and others may find interesting.

What if Mary and Joseph came to today’s Washington?, by Clarence Page
On the second day of Christmas, my true love said to me, “You ought to write about the family that took in the South Korean tourists who were stranded near Buffalo.”

Ready for our ‘Earth shot’, by Ben Jealous
As we greet 2023, I’m feeling more than the typical seasonal optimism. America is primed once again for a historic achievement. Call it our “Earth shot.”