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VSU, NSU bands featured in documentary
In honor of Black History Month, the Pepsi National Battle of the Bands (NBOTB) announced the debut of “The Legacy of HBCU Marching Bands,” a documentary film that pays tribute to the heritage and legacy of marching bands at historically black colleges and universities. The film will air on WTVR CBS6 at 9 p.m.,Sunday, Feb. 18.
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An hour can save a life
More diverse blood donors needed amid emergency shortage nationwide
National Blood Donor Month might have ended Jan. 31, but ongoing shortages in Virginia and nationally mean that the need for donors remains critical.
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Personality: Shawna Chapman
Spotlight on America’s United States Mrs. Mid-Atlantic 2024
Growing up in Petersburg, Shawna Chapman never believed pageants were open to women like her, whose background includes dropping out of high school and experiencing periods of homelessness.
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Mahomes, Purdy in NFL spotlight
Meet the “odd couple” of Super Bowl quarterbacks. Greatness, from the get-go, was predicted for Kansas City’s Patrick Mahomes, not so for San Francisco’s Brock Purdy, the longest of the longshots.
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Love Stories
The Free Press proudly presents its annual Valentine’s Day feature that shares the Love Stories of five Richmond area couples.
The line into the bookstore wrapped around the building. Angela had been standing in line for nearly an hour. Out of nowhere comes this bow-legged guy wearing a cowboy hat, suede coat, a tank top and Timberland boots…in AUGUST.
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A record number of Americans can’t afford rent
Single mom Caitlyn Colbert watched as rent for her two-bedroom apartment doubled, then tripled and then quadrupled over a decade in Denver — to $3,374 from $750 last year.
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Virginia Democrats sending gun control bills to a skeptical Gov. Youngkin
Dozens of pieces of gun-related legislation that advocates say will bolster public safety are winding their way through Virginia’s Democratic-controlled General Assembly, including a measure that would halt the sale of certain semiautomatic firearms.
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Richardson gets new hearing in controversial case
A man who was cleared in the murder of a police officer, but has served decades in prison, has another chance to seek his release.
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Standing up
“It was February 1, 1960. They didn’t need menus. Their order was simple. A doughnut and coffee, with cream on the side."
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Free community testing for COVID-19 continues
The Richmond and Henrico County health districts are offering testing at the following locations:
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Prisoners in the U.S. are part of a hidden workforce linked to hundreds of popular food brands
A hidden path to America’s dinner tables begins here, at an unlikely source — a former Southern slave plantation that is now the country’s largest maximum-security prison.
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Setting record straight on Black History, by Ben Jealous
With the start of Black History Month, I brace myself for the mis-telling of Black History yet again.
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Black wealth remains elusive, by Charlene Crowell
For America, Black History Month brings opportunities to revisit our nation’s lessons, achievements, and unfulfilled promises, capturing our attention as well as our hopes. Yet nothing hits home harder than the painful reminders of how so much of Black America continues to struggle financially, despite an economy that reports low unemployment, a robust stock market, and low inflation.
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Family of Black girls handcuffed by Colorado police, held at gunpoint reach $1.9M settlement
The four Black girls lay facedown in a parking lot, crying “no” and “mommy” as a police officer who had pointed her gun at them then bent down to handcuff two of their wrists. The youngest wore a pink tiara as she held onto her teenage cousin’s hand.
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Justice Department proposes major changes to address disparities in state crime victim funds
The Justice Department proposed changes Monday to rules governing state-run programs that provide financial assistance to violent crime victims in order to address racial disparities and curb the number of subjective denials of compensation.
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NFL broke color line in 1946
Sunday night’s Super Bowl will showcase two franchises with Black players making up some 65% of their rosters.
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VUU’s future tied to Caine
In what has been a rebuilding season for Virginia Union University basketball, Joshua Caine is a cornerstone.
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In Memoriam: Tributes pour in for host, activist Joe Madison
Tributes poured in following the death of Joe Madison, the talk show host, activist and philanthropist known as “The Black Eagle.” After a lengthy bout with prostate cancer, the popular SiriusXM host died on Wednesday, Jan. 31, 2024. He was 74.
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Meals tax concerns continue
Andreas D. Addison is calling on City Hall to refund all of the money in taxes, penalties, and fees that restaurants and other businesses have been forced to pay because of the city’s “bad customer service.”