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System failure
RPS loses thousands of laptops
Richmond Public Schools wasted millions of federal support dollars buying 20,000 extra Chromebook laptop computers it didn’t need after going virtual during the pandemic, an internal audit has found.
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Jury indicts Buffalo shooting suspect on terrorism charge
A grand jury on Wednesday charged the white 18-year-old accused of fatally shooting 10 Black people at a Buffalo supermarket with domestic terrorism motivated by hate and 10 counts of first degree murder.
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Youngkin snubs lawmakers’ efforts to support tenants
Landlords have always held the upper hand when it comes to evicting people. Republican Gov. Glenn A. Youngkin is keeping it that way, according to advocates for tenants.
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Pinkett Smith talks hair loss ‘shame,’ outcome of Oscars slap
Jada Pinkett Smith turned her husband’s Oscar-night blowup into a teachable moment about alopecia areata, the hair loss disorder affecting her and millions of others that, in some cases, can impact a person’s sense of identity.
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Virginia’s pandemic benefit program to issue school meals to limited households
Virginia students who were absent from school from September to October last year due to COVID-19 can now receive free school meals.
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City council extends tax deadline, provides winning formula for babies
Richmond residents have gained a 60-day extension on the deadline to pay vehicle taxes and the city license fee on vehicles, and hundreds of Richmond mothers frantically seeking to buy baby formula will gain significant help through a new initiative.
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VSU baseball players to join Tri-City squad
Virginia State University will be well represented in this sum- mer’s Tri-City Chili Peppers, a collegiate squad that competes in the Coastal Plain League.
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’Collective Rage’ features 5 Betties
Richmond Triangle Players will close its 2021-22 season with “Collective Rage: A Play in 5 Betties,” which has been described as “one of Broadway’s wildest and wackiest comedies.”
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Much has changed, much remains in newsrooms
The news business is consumed by constant disrup- tors and interruptions. So much so that non-breaking news often gets tossed aside. I should know. Twice in the past two weeks an announcement about me coming aboard as managing editor for the Richmond Free Press was kicked to the curb in favor of major, breaking news. As it should be. No one wants to read about journalists when mass shootings, gun violence and a deadly pandemic continue to wreak havoc locally and throughout the country. Add to that soaring gas prices, babies lacking basics, and a trip to the grocery store akin to a five-course dinner or luxury hotel stay. When such tragedies occur and wallets are hijacked, journalists should be covering them rather than focusing on themselves. This week the news has been a little less jarring, providing time for me to reflect on my new role in a city that I moved to in 1981. Back then, I accepted an offer to work at Richmond’s afternoon daily newspaper, intrigued that the City Council was predominantly Black, which indicated to me that the city was progressive. While that remains a matter of debate among many, I will say that having left Richmond in 2011 to teach Black college students in my hometown of Greensboro, N.C., I was elated to return here five years later. I missed my favorite haunts, my home in a quiet neighborhood, my fun-loving, quirky friends, my church, my sorority and my museums. Upon returning, I continued to teach at various uni- versities but experienced profound joy as a substitute teacher in Henrico County. I completed a book about Black women journalists. I also started a nonprofit me- dia organization and spent several years as a freelance reporter and editor for publications that included the Richmond Free Press. My first few days as the Free Press managing editor were chaotic to say the least. Having just returned from a restful vacation in Hilton Head, S.C. and Savannah, Ga. — you know, the city that Hyundai just chose over Virginia’s Pittsylvania County to spend $5.5 billion and hire more than 8,000 workers — I was tossed into a sea of local, state and national news that I’d not experienced since ...last February. That was when, for two weeks, I served as the Free Press guest editor in the absence of the newspaper’s former managing editor. That also was when, during Black History Month, Virginia’s newly inaugurated governor caused a furor with his condemnation of critical race theory and had folks fired up about a “tip line” to snitch on classroom teachers who dared to teach the truth about American history and slavery. The furor almost made the Ralph Northam 2019 black face debacle appear quaint. (Note to Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin who made his fortune at one of the world’s most influential private equity firms: Don’t you think that time spent dissing teachers could have been better spent helping Pittsylvania County, decimated for more than a decade by furniture industry losses, secure that $5.5 billion Hyundai deal?) Before my recent re-entry into the newsroom, it had been nearly 25 years since I was a full time newspaper employee. Although much has changed since then, many aspects of the industry remain. The decline of daily newspapers began with buyouts and mergers in the early 1990s, around the same time that the Richmond Free Press was born. The dissolution of newsrooms continues today in the form of tight budgets, lean staffs, 24/7 hour news cycles and decreased circulation. Although the Free Press is a weekly newspaper, our mission is similar to that of daily print publications and online outlets. Still in the game, we are deadline driven, truth seekers and zealous about serving Richmond and surrounding communities. We are a Black-owned news- paper and revel in our reputation for providing relevant information for and about Richmond’s Black commu- nity. We also delight in knowing that our newspapers, more often than not, are consumed by many non-Black readers, too. Our staff is small, but mighty. A cadre of talented freelance reporters and photographers stand ready to support us when needed and we are proud of their presence. I remain honored and humbled (and somewhat speech- less) by an invitation from Jean P. Boone, Richmond Free Press president and publisher, to lead the Free Press. In accepting my new role, I am the second editor to do so since the death of Richmond Free Press Founder Raymond H. Boone. Never did I envision being in this position once occupied by a man whose backbone was made of steel, whose mind was sharper than any sword, and whose heart was good as gold. Thank you, Mr. and Mrs. Boone for allowing me — a woman who penned her first newspaper article for a Black newspaper, The Carolina Peacemaker, as a col- lege student in 1977 — to lead your life’s passion and tireless work in its continuing journey. It is my hope and prayer that you, dear readers and new readers, will continue this journey with us.
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Governor: Texas gunman said he was going to ‘shoot up school’
The gunman who massacred 19 children and two teachers at an elementary school in Texas warned in online messages sent minutes before the attack that he had shot his grandmother and was going to shoot up a school, the governor said Wednesday.
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VUU, VSU join public schools to retain Black and Latino male teachers
Richmond Public Schools’ RVA Men Teach program has partnered with Virginia Union and Virginia State universities to create a Teacher Residency program for male minority teachers.
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Memorial Day service at Fort Harrison Cemetery
The Richmond National Battlefield Park, in cooperation with the National Cemetery Administration, will host a Memorial Day program and wreath-laying ceremony 12 p.m. Monday, May 30, at the Fort Harrison National Cemetery, 8620 Varina Road. The event is free and open to the public.
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How do we end the carnage?
Barely had we absorbed the anger, shock and sorrow that gripped us following the Tops Friendly Markets store massacre in Buffalo, N.Y., before we heard the horrifying news that another mass shooting had occurred in Uvalde, Texas.
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‘Like every other day’
10 lives lost on a trip to the store
They were caregivers and protectors and helpers, running an errand or doing a favor or finishing out a shift, when their paths crossed with a young man driven by racism and hatred and baseless conspiracy theories.
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Richmond Ambulance Authority sounds funding alarm
A sea of red ink. That is what the Richmond Ambulance Authority warns it is facing.
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City cuts tax bills on vehicles 20 percent
The value of used vehicles has soared, but the rising prices will have far less impact on the yearly tax that Richmond residents are required to pay on their cars and trucks.
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This 1918, seven-passenger touring car produced by Kline Motor Car Company was part of the fleet owned by A.D. Price, a prosperous Black businessman and …
Published on May 12, 2022
