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Reparations movement rising, by Julianne Malveaux
The late Congressman John Conyers Jr., who represented Detroit in Congress from 1965 until 2017, introduced HR 40 — The Commission to Student and Develop Reparation Proposals for African-Americans Act—
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The people deserve the right to decide the fate of the Lee monument pedestal
Re “On the way out: Gov. Ralph S. Northam orders removal of 40-foot granite pedestal that held Confederate Robert E. Lee’s statue on Monument Avenue, and for the land to be turned over to the city,” Dec. 9-11 edition:
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REA wins victory giving city teachers, staff collective bargaining authority
In a nearly unanimous vote, the Richmond School Board voted 8-1 Monday night to approve a resolution giving teachers and other school staff the power to establish a union and collectively negotiate for pay and benefits.
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On the way out
Gov. Ralph S. Northam orders removal of 40-foot granite pedestal that held Confederate Robert E. Lee’s statue on Monument Avenue, and for the land to be turned over to the city
When the giant monument of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee went up 131 years ago, fiery Richmond Planet editor John Mitchell Jr. described it as monument that would hand down to future generations “a legacy of treason and blood.”
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Personality: James Harris Jr.
Spotlight on founder of Men to Heal
James Harris Jr. knows the trials and tribulations of the therapy experience.
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Trammell to introduce collective bargaining ordinance at next City Council meeting
Richmond is poised to consider expanding collective bargaining to city employees.
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More options under consideration for RPS academic calendar
Richmond Public Schools is considering a fourth option in adjusting the academic calendar for the 2022-23 school year.
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Sources: $12.8M city budget error found by outside auditor
Richmond’s outside auditor has uncovered a $12.8 million error that has inflated the amount of surplus the city has reported for several years, the Free Press has been told.
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Youngkin inaugural plans include pricey dinner, music acts
Incoming Gov. Glenn A. Youngkin is planning a celebratory inaugural weekend that will include a mix of high-dollar ticketed events and other functions open to the public, according to a program that also touts an appearance by an unspecified Grammy-winning musical artist.
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NSU wins Boost Mobile HBCU Challenge in Phoenix
Kris Bankston wasn’t named to the preseason All-MEAC team in part because few knew much about him. Now they know.
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Jackson State wins SWAC Championship heads to Celebration Bowl
Jackson State University, riding a nine-game winning streak, is making plans for the Saturday, Dec. 18, Celebration Bowl in Atlanta.
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Let the future begin
We commend the foresight and action of both outgoing Gov. Ralph S. Northam and Richmond Mayor Levar M. Stoney when it comes to the huge stone pedestal left on Monument Avenue after the removal of the statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee.
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Right-wing judges putting women’s health care at risk, by Ben Jealous
The political and legal movement to criminalize abortion in the United States is on the brink of its biggest victory in 50 years. Most at risk are people who already are among the most vulnerable in our country—Black and Brown women and LGBTQ people who will be denied access to potentially life-saving health care.
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Remembering the Montgomery bus boycott, by Marc H. Morial
“There comes a time when people get tired of being trampled over by the iron feet of oppression. There comes a time, my friends, when people get tired of being plunged across the abyss of humiliation, where they experience the bleakness of nagging despair. There comes a time when people get tired of being pushed out of the glittering sunlight of life’s July and left standing amid the piercing chill of an alpine November. There comes a time.” — Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Dec. 5, 1955, address to the first Montgomery Improvement Association Mass Meeting.
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MBDA gets permanent status, by Marc H. Morial
“President Biden has made clear his commitment to not just rebuilding to how things were before COVID-19, but to building back better and more equitably. The Minority Business Development Agency is ready to step into this historic moment and build on its success — because we recognize that America’s road to recovery runs through our minority business community. Making MBDA a statutory Agency provides MBDA with the authorities, workforce and resources needed to help level the playing field on behalf of minority businesses and minority entrepreneurs.”—U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo
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French honor for Josephine Baker stirs conflict over racism
On the surface, it’s a powerful message against racism: A Black woman will, for the first time, join other luminaries interred in France’s Pantheon. But by choosing a U.S.-born figure/entertainer Josephine Baker—critics say France is continuing a long tradition of decrying racism abroad while obscuring it at home.
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VCU Rams have tough time in Battle 4 Atlantis
A rising star freshman and a stifling defense are atop the reasons why Virginia Commonwealth University feels the wind as its back after three tense struggles in the Bahamas.
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Former U.S. Rep. Carrie Meek of Florida being remembered
Former Congresswoman Carrie Meek, who died Sunday, Nov. 28, 2021, is being remembered as a trailblazer, a descendant of a slave who became one of the first Black Floridians elected to Congress since Reconstruction.
