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City’s last Confederate statue removed
A statue commemorating the death of Confederate Gen. Ambrose Powell (A.P.) Hill was removed on Monday, from Hermitage Road and West Laburnum Avenue where it had stood for 120 years.
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Personality: James V. Duty
Spotlight on board president of Friends Association for Children
Following the end of the Civil War and slavery, the Friends Asylum for Colored Orphans formed in 1871 to aid Central Virginia children and families in need. Today that organization is known as the Friends Association for Children.
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Alphonso H. ‘Al’ Bowers Jr., who fought for construction diversity, dies
Alphonso Hugo “Al” Bowers Jr., a veteran Richmond contractor who was outspoken in promoting Black inclusion in government building projects and promoted construction trades training program for unemployed adults, has died.
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Richmond jail staffing shortage blamed for rise in injured deputies, inmates
In the past four weeks at the Richmond City Justice Center, one deputy had his shoulder dislocated after he was thrown to the ground while trying to stop two prisoners from assaulting another inmate. Another deputy was head-butted by an inmate after refusing to provide the inmate with another prisoner’s food tray, according to information provided to the Free Press. In addition, the Free Press has learned another inmate was stabbed during this period, apparently the fourth this year. And early Monday, the jail reported to Richmond Police the third death of an inmate this year, though the identification was not released. For the second time since late October, an inmate who was transported to the John Marshall Courts Building was found to be carrying a concealed blade, according to information provided to the newspaper.
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ROUNDUP
Virginia’s public health operations will receive a boost across the next five years, courtesy of a $67.5 million grant from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
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After winning 2 court cases, Henrico tenant may face a third
‘I pay my rent like clockwork every month. I don’t know why they won’t let me alone.’
Donald J. Garrett is a rare figure among the sea of Richmond-area residents being hauled into court for eviction proceedings.
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Woman seeks to visit deceased son’s daughter as holidays near
All that 69-year-old Richmonder Yolanda D. Fox wants for Christmas is to see her granddaughter, Mariah.
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Richmond architect wins national award for diversifying profession
AIA Virginia Board Chairman Robert L. Easter will have an unexpected honor to reflect on when he ends his term this week.
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Sen. Warnock’s victory a win for America, by Ben Jealous
If you haven’t watched Sen. Raphael Warnock’s speech on the night of his re-election in Georgia on Dec. 6, stop everything you’re doing, and watch it now. Then tell your kids to watch it. And your neighbors.
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A personal memory speaks to the character of A. Donald McEachin
In the fall of 1996, I, along with LaWanda Lochart, Ermajean Booker and Sara Arthur, were facilitators of the “Law Related Education” program of the Richmond Juvenile Court, an eight-session course for at-risk youths, the successfull attendance of which helped them mitigate any court issues they faced. I found my notes, and I was moderator of session six titled “Constitutional Rights” on Nov. 5, for which I solicited A. Donald McEachin to be “discussion leader” since his law firm had represented youth who were accused of stealing the shirts they were wearing and made to leave the store shirtless, the shirt or shirts only returned grudgingly upon proof of prior purchase as reported in the local press. I thought, what a great advocate for how the court can be your friend.
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‘Homegoing’
Dignitaries and ordinary people pay final tribute to A. Donald McEachin
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Sen. Tim Kaine and Majority Whip for the U.S. House of Representatives James Clyburn were among dozens of dignitaries and distinguished guests who paid tribute to Congressman A. Donald McEachin during his funeral Wednesday at The Saint Paul’s Baptist Church on Creighton Road in Henrico County.
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Warnock wins Georgia runoff against Walker
Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock defeated Republican challenger Herschel Walker in a Georgia runoff election Tuesday, ensuring Democrats an outright majority in the Senate for the rest of President Biden’s current term and capping an underwhelming midterm cycle for the GOP in the last major vote of the year.
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Personality: Shavon M. Ragsdale
Spotlight on Village Against Violence Foundation founder
If it takes a village to raise a child, Shavon M. Ragsdale works to make sure the village is ready, willing and able to protect and support those most in need.
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Street honoring Kirby Carmichael unveiled in Highland Park
Family, friends and admirers of radio personality Kirby Carmichael came out Tuesday for the unveiling of Kirby Carmichael Sr. Street at 1100 Front Street in Highland Park. The site is where the former WANT-AM radio station was housed when Mr. Carmichael, a pioneer of Black radio, was for decades known as the “tall man of soul” as he spun platters first at WANT-AM and then at WRVQ-FM.
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Sheriff’s authority is ‘completely separate from mine as commonwealth’s attorney’
As a longtime reader and supporter of the Free Press, it is disheartening to see the author of this article (Nov. 23-26 edition), Mr. Jeremy Lazarus, so flagrantly violate the journalistic ethics that the Free Press exemplified under the leadership of its founder, the late Raymond Boone.
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Officers who defended Capitol from Trump supporters honored
Law enforcement officers who defended the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, were honored Tuesday with Congressional Gold Medals nearly two years after they fought supporters of then-President Trump in a brutal and bloody attack.
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An evening on Mount Kilimanjaro
When Robert Dortch Jr. was returning to the United States after reaching Uhuru Peak, the highest point of Mount Kilimanjaro, a customs agent at the airport in Tanzania asked him why he’d been visiting the country.
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'Gentle giant’
A. Donald McEachin, hailed as trailblazing figure in Virginia politics, dies
A few weeks before Rep. A. (Aston) Donald McEachin’s Nov. 8 successful bid to maintain his seat in U.S. Congress, he contacted Rev. Ralph Hodge, senior pastor at Richmond’s Second Baptist Church-Southside.
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Jeffries wins historic bid to lead House Dems after Pelosi
House Democrats ushered in a new generation of leaders on Wednesday with Rep. Hakeem Jeffries elected to be the first Black American to head a major political party in Congress at a pivotal time as long-serving Speaker Nancy Pelosi and her team step aside next year.
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Personality: Renee Gaines
Spotlight on board president of Richmond Chapter of Executive Women International
Across multiple roles and several years, Renee Gaines has worked to help bring transformative growth to the city of Richmond.
