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National clergy group outraged over attempts to block court appointment
Black clergy from across the country are expressing outrage about the Republican-led U.S. Senate’s vow to block any nominee President Obama picks to fill a vacancy on the U.S. Supreme Court, saying it reflects racism and disrespect.
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Priest attacked over aid to refugees
Two members of the conservative Christian Democratic Union political party of German Chancellor Angela Merkel were linked to a spate of verbal racist attacks against an African priest who ministered to refugees fleeing oppressive African regimes.
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School officials make push for more money
Audience members applauded repeatedly as students from Richmond Public Schools delivered stirring remarks, creative musical performances, inspiring spoken word renditions and precision marching exercises at the 2016 State of the Schools Address.
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2016 General Assembly ends with bipartisan consensus on budget, other measures
The 2016 General Assembly session is over — ending last Friday, a day early, on a high note of accomplishment. The hectic 59 days produced a landmark compromise on gun laws and a new state budget providing a dramatic boost in spending on public education and offering pay hikes for state workers and lawmakers.
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Obama picks D.C. jurist
President nominates Judge Merrick Garland for U.S. Supreme Court amid GOP pushback
President Obama nominated veteran appellate court Judge Merrick Garland to the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday, setting up a potentially ferocious political showdown with Senate Republicans who have vowed to block any Obama nominee.
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The U.S. Supreme Court and the elephant in the room
Race remains the unspoken elephant in the room amid the growing controversy over who should replace Justice Antonin Scalia on the U.S. Supreme Court.
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Mexico neighbor not enemy
Presidential campaigns often turn raw. Politicians reach for sound bites that bite. Often they gain by playing on fears, winning by division, not by addition. In 2016, insult has become the coin of the campaign, particularly in the Republican primaries. And too often the enemy singled out has been Mexico and Mexicans.
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Creativity runs in the family
Father-son artists share gifts with the community
Jerome W. Jones Jr. and his son, Jeromyah, share a deep passion for painting. Their works, many featuring portraits of noted people, provides uplift, education and motivation to untold thousands who have viewed them at exhibits and online.
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Lady Panthers play at Barco-Stevens Frida
You can make a powerful case for Virginia Union University’s Kiana Johnson being the best basketball player in the NCAA Division II.
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Justices take on I.C. Norcom Friday in state tournament
John Marshall High School is among the smallest schools in the Virginia High School League’s 3A classification. It also ranks with the state’s 3A elite, at least basketball-wise. Relying on multitasking athletes such as Xavier Trent and Isaiah Anderson, Coach Ty White’s Justices are hopeful of a second state basketball title in three years.
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A look back
Spirit of Maggie Walker’s 1967-68 Green Dragons lives on
One state with two state champions. That’s the way it was in Virginia.
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Hampton U. Pirates favored to win MEAC Tournament
Hampton University has the MEAC’s best basketball record, and arguably the conference’s two best players. Its archrival, Norfolk State University, however, has the last regular season laugh, as well as hometown advantage, heading into this week’s MEAC Tournament at the Norfolk Scope.
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SisterFund giving circle seeks community change
Twenty philanthropically minded women have come together to have a greater impact on giving in the Richmond community.
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Co-founders of Black Lives Matter movement to speak in Richmond
Two founders of the Black Lives Matter movement, Alicia Garza and Opal Tometi, will be speaking in Richmond this month. Ms. Garza is to deliver a lecture 4 p.m. Tuesday, March 22, at the University of Richmond’s Tyler Haynes Commons. Ms. Tometi is scheduled to speak 7 p.m. Thursday, March 31, at Virginia Commonwealth University’s Siegel Center, 1200 W. Broad St., on the topic “#BlackLivesMatter: Hashtag in Action.” Both events are open to the public without charge.
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Bobbi Kristina’s autopsy shows mixture of drugs, alcohol
Bobbi Kristina Brown’s autopsy report contained evidence of recent cocaine use by the daughter of Bobby Brown and the late Whitney Houston before she was found unresponsive in a bathtub in her home last year. But a medical examiner’s office said last Friday it could not establish whether her death after months in a coma was accidental or intentional. Ms. Brown suffered brain damage and died of pneumonia resulting from drug intoxication and her face being immersed in water, the Fulton County Medical Examiner said.
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A song and a prayer
Musician starts campaign linking prayer and healing
One year after he was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, James Johnson Jr., the minister of music at Cedar Street Baptist Church of God in the East End, is releasing a song and initiating a national prayer campaign. Both are called “Agree.”
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Former First Lady Nancy Reagan dies
Nancy Reagan, the former actress who was fiercely protective of her husband, President Ronald Reagan, through a Hollywood career, eight years in the White House, an assassination attempt and his Alzheimer’s disease, died Sunday, March 6, 2016, at her Los Angeles home.
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Petersburg shake-up nets new chief operating officer
Amid crumbling finances, the City of Petersburg has shaken up its government leadership. After firing City Manager William E. Johnson III last week, the seven-member Petersburg City Council handed executive authority to three of its members, including Mayor W. Howard Myers, Ward 5, the city’s titular leader. The shuffle is the City Council’s latest effort to deal with millions of dollars in unpaid bills, a multimillion-dollar revenue shortfall and a malfunctioning water billing system.
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Planned school cuts causing pain
North Side resident Sherri Davis said she is concerned about planned budget cuts that may close schools, crowd classrooms and have parents scrambling to arrange transportation for their children. “It becomes a safety issue when you propose to put more kids in classes,” the mother of two Richmond Public Schools students told the Free Press on Wednesday. “It’s already hard enough for teachers to teach the large numbers of students they have in their classrooms.”
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Rudd’s Trailer Park sold; new owner takes over in April
Ronnie Soffee exchanged hugs and accepted well wishes from residents at Rudd’s Trailer Park early Saturday afternoon. He even shed a few tears as several people stopped by the office of the mobile home park at 2911 Jefferson Davis Highway.
