Stop the violence
The deadly violence by police against African-Americans and other people of color continues unabated. The latest victim, 37-year-old Alton Sterling, was killed Tuesday outside a convenience store in Baton Rouge, La. As the graphic video shows, he had been wrestled to the ground and restrained by one police officer when another shot him five times at point blank range in his chest and back.
Exhaling
Democratic presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton must be exhaling today after learning she’s off the hook criminally for her imprudent way of handling emails containing classified materials.
‘We are The Wilsons!’
Singer Ciara has one-two stepped down the aisle with NFL player Russell Wilson. The couple both posted the same photo Wednesday on Twitter and Instagram showing Ciara in a wedding gown and the Richmond native in a tuxedo with the caption, “We are The Wilsons!”
C.A.V.E. to hold march, community day at Essex Village
After the shooting death of 12-year-old Amiyah Moses last year six days before Christmas, several Richmond area youth sports league coaches pledged to help curb violence in the city and surrounding areas by leading awareness marches.
Free oral history workshop at Black History Museum
Historian Lauranett L. Lee has devoted her life to uncovering the lost stories of African-American women and men to help spotlight their contributions both locally and nationally. Now Dr. Lee wants to inspire people to preserve their own family histories to expand appreciation and knowledge of where they come from.
Muralists coming to town for latest project
Richmond is about to get more murals. Beginning next week, at least 10 muralists from across the world will paint distinctive works on the exterior walls of now bare buildings — with the permission of the owners, of course. The artists are expected to start work Wednesday, July 13, and wrap up 11 days later, on Sunday, July 24, it has been announced.
History makers celebrate Fourth
Judge Damon J. Keith’s annual Independence Day picnic in Hanover County turned into a celebration of history Monday. The senior judge on the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals who lives in Detroit returns each year to his late wife’s family home in Virginia to celebrate his July 4 birthday.
By invitation only
New members to join Academy after 2nd all-white Oscars draws criticism
After suffering severe criticism for having a second straight year of all-white acting nominees for the Academy Awards, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has invited 683 new members to join the organization. The academy says its invitees are 46 percent female, 41 percent minority and represent 59 countries.
Officials hope President Obama’s ‘My Brother’s Keeper’ program will remain under next administration
President Obama has seven months left in office. One of the leaders of one of his key initiatives is hard at work ensuring the president’s legacy will continue after he leaves the White House.
Richmonder Jackie Bradley selected to MLB All-Star team
Richmond native Jackie Bradley Jr. is officially a Major League Baseball All-Star. The 26-year-old outfielder for the Boston Red Sox will be an American League starter at the 87th annual MLB All-Star Game on July 12 at San Diego’s Petco Park.
VSU’s Pittman receives NCAA Degree Completion Award
Virginia State University scholar-athlete Wynterra Pittman has received the 2016 NCAA Division II Degree Completion Award.
Hanover standout Cayman Richardson to play ball at U.Va.
Cayman Richardson is going from one of the top high school baseball programs in Virginia to one of the top college programs in America.
Rev. Marshall H. Garrett, 73, Christian education minister at Moore Street Missionary Baptist Church
The Rev. Marshall Henderson Garrett, minister of Christian education at Moore Street Missionary Baptist Church, was widely known for his loving and caring spirit.
Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel, ‘conscience of the world,’ dies at 87
Elie Wiesel, the Holocaust survivor and Nobel Peace Prize winner whose memories of persecution and teachings on tolerance made him one of the world’s most revered moral voices, has died at 87. “My husband was a fighter,” Marion Wiesel said in a statement. “He fought for the memory of the 6 million Jews who perished in the Holocaust, and he fought for Israel. He waged countless battles for innocent victims regardless of ethnicity or creed.”
Youths learning to turn faith into action
Twenty kids marched around a multipurpose room at Duke Memorial United Methodist Church on a recent Thursday, following the path of a cardboard highway that a day earlier they discovered had divided the city’s neighborhoods and altered their vision for the community.
Personality: Jeree M. Thomas
Spotlight on inaugural winner of the youth justice Emerging Leader Award
Jeree Thomas believes in doing whatever she can to help her clients live more successful lives. The attorney with the JustChildren program of the Legal Aid Justice Center in Richmond provides counsel for children and represents them at special education and public benefits hearings.
Judge Roger Gregory makes history again
The son of humble tobacco factory workers is about to reach a new pinnacle in his legal career. On July 9, Judge Roger L. Gregory will become the chief judge of the powerful 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond.
Free Press wins national award
For the second consecutive year, the Richmond Free Press has been recognized with a national award for editorial writing. The Free Press received the Robert S. Abbott Best Editorial Award at the National Newspaper Publishers Association’s annual convention in Houston.
58: Number of candidates certified to run for mayor, City Council and School Board
Richmond voters will have plenty of choices for mayor, City Council and the School Board in the November election, when they also will be helping to elect a president, vice president and member of Congress. The three-member Richmond Electoral Board last week certified 58 candidates to run for city offices. The list would have been longer, but 15 potential candidates were disqualified for failure to meet filing requirements, the city Voter Registrar’s Office reported.
Slew of candidates translated into flood of work
The 73 candidates who filed to run for Richmond office submitted 1,835 pages of petitions with 25,060 signatures of purportedly registered voters, according to city Voter Registrar Kirk Showalter. Every one of the signatures had to be checked against the state database of registered voters to ensure they were valid, Ms. Showalter said.
