Groovin' at the 2nd Street Festival/Hundreds of people old and young came out last Saturday and Sunday for the 33rd Annual 2nd Street Festival, where music and entertainment flowed from three stages and vendors offered food, arts and other wares to festival-goers. It was the first time since the pandemic struck in 2020 that the festival returned to Jackson Ward, where streets were blocked off to traffic for the festivities. Richmond saxophonist J. Plunky Branch takes the stage as Saturday’s headliner with Plunky & Oneness, a local favorite.

Groovin' at the 2nd Street Festival/Hundreds of people old and young came out last Saturday and Sunday for the 33rd Annual 2nd Street Festival, where music and entertainment flowed from three stages and vendors offered food, arts and other wares to festival-goers. It was the first time since the pandemic struck in 2020 that the festival returned to Jackson Ward, where streets were blocked off to traffic for the festivities.

Riding along with Dad-Tre Powell of Richmond grew up attending the annual 2nd Street Festival in Jackson Ward. Last Saturday, he was passing along the tradition to his children, Levi Powell, 4, left, and Olivia Powell, 5, who were enjoying the treats as much as the music.

Groovin' at the 2nd Street Festival/Hundreds of people old and young came out last Saturday and Sunday for the 33rd Annual 2nd Street Festival, where music and entertainment flowed from three stages and vendors offered food, arts and other wares to festival-goers. It was the first time since the pandemic struck in 2020 that the festival returned to Jackson Ward, where streets were blocked off to traffic for the festivities. At the Waverly R. Crawley Main Stage, Dontrae Booker of Richmond, left, and Alice Brown of Henrico groove to the sounds of DJ Drake and MC Choco.

Groovin' at the 2nd Street Festival/Alfred C. Liggins III, chief executive officer of the Silver Spring-based Urban One, and his mother, Cathy Hughes, founder and chairperson of Urban One, talk from the main stage about public support for their company’s planned $565 million ONE Casino + Resort project in South Richmond that is up for city voter approval on the Nov. 2 ballot. Urban One was one of the many partner organizations sponsoring the festival, which was presented by Venture Richmond, a Downtown booster nonprofit.

Groovin' at the 2nd Street Festival/Hundreds of people old and young came out last Saturday and Sunday for the 33rd Annual 2nd Street Festival, where music and entertainment flowed from three stages and vendors offered food, arts and other wares to festival-goers. It was the first time since the pandemic struck in 2020 that the festival returned to Jackson Ward, where streets were blocked off to traffic for the festivities.

Groovin' at the 2nd Street Festival/Debra Dean & The Key West Band drew an appreciative crowd of adults and youngsters, including Lola-Ruth Faniel, 4, and Henry Tidwell, 2, who moved close to the Joe Kennedy Jr. Jazz Stage to enjoy the sounds.

Cityscape-Slices of life and scenes in Richmond/Richmond muralist Hamilton Glass created this new tribute to legendary Richmond journalist John Mitchell Jr. and the spirited Richmond Planet newspaper through which he battled lynching, segregation and Black oppression and promoted racial pride from 1884 until his death in 1929. Born enslaved, the “fighting editor” also started and ran a bank in Richmond and represented the Black community at City Hall as an elected member of the government. Significantly, this artistic homage is located miles from the historically Black Jackson Ward neighborhood in which Mr. Mitchell lived and worked. Location: The 1200 block of Myers Street, a short connector between Leigh Street and Arthur Ashe Boulevard on the doorstep of Scott’s Addition. The building is home to Tilt Creative + Production Studios, whose front door faces the boulevard.

Marching to beat the bans-Hundreds of women and their advocates, including Kristin Rodriguez, 40, took to the streets last Saturday for the Bans Off Our Bodies RVA rally and march to show their support for a woman’s right to make her own decisions when it comes to abortion. The Richmond rally was one of scores held across the country last weekend in advance of the U.S. Supreme Court’s new session that began Monday in which a case challenging abortion rights will be heard. That case, out of Mississippi, is expected to be argued Dec. 1, and has the potential to overturn Roe v. Wade, the landmark 1973 case that guaranteed women the constitutional protection of being able to choose to have an abortion without excessive government restriction. Texas recently passed a law that also would ban abortion after six weeks, a timeframe when many women don’t know whether they are pregnant. In Richmond, speakers urged people to work to protect women’s reproductive freedom. The rally was held at Diversity Richmond, followed by a march down Sherwood Avenue to Hermitage Road. Ida Allen, who led chants with the bullhorn during the march, was a lead coordinator of the event.

Marching to beat the bans-Hundreds of women and their advocates, including Kristin Rodriguez, 40, took to the streets last Saturday for the Bans Off Our Bodies RVA rally and march to show their support for a woman’s right to make her own decisions when it comes to abortion. The Richmond rally was one of scores held across the country last weekend in advance of the U.S. Supreme Court’s new session that began Monday in which a case challenging abortion rights will be heard. That case, out of Mississippi, is expected to be argued Dec. 1, and has the potential to overturn Roe v. Wade, the landmark 1973 case that guaranteed women the constitutional protection of being able to choose to have an abortion without excessive government restriction. Texas recently passed a law that also would ban abortion after six weeks, a timeframe when many women don’t know whether they are pregnant. In Richmond, speakers urged people to work to protect women’s reproductive freedom. The rally was held at Diversity Richmond, followed by a march down Sherwood Avenue to Hermitage Road. Ida Allen, who led chants with the bullhorn during the march, was a lead coordinator of the event.

A cosmos in the West End

Blessing of the Animals-The Rev. Marlene E. Forest blesses Chico, a miniature schnauzer, during a Blessing of the Animals ceremony last Saturday at St. Philip’s Episcopal Church on Hanes Avenue in North Side. Several families brought their dogs to the outdoor ceremony. With Chico is Jordan Williams, while Jay Greene brought his 13-year-old yellow Labrador retriever, Oscar. In addition to the blessing, each pet received a gift. People also brought offerings of pet food and cat litter to be donated to Richmond Animal Care & Control.