Story
Brad Daugherty makes history in Daytona race
In case you weren’t watching, a Black man won the Daytona 500. And it wasn’t Bubba Wallace, NASCAR’s most prominent Black driver.
Story
Louis Gossett Jr., the first Black man to win a supporting actor Oscar, dies at age 87
Louis Gossett Jr., the first Black man to win a supporting actor Oscar and an Emmy winner for his role in the seminal TV miniseries “Roots,” has died. He was 87.
Story
The Muslim world isn’t silent
I received a call a few days after the Paris terrorist attacks from a relative. She was, quite understandably, deeply unsettled by the attack. She asked me why it was that the Muslim community was so silent about jihadist attacks. I told her that they were — and are — not silent at all. In fact, there were — immediate — statements of condemnation of these attacks from a wide range of organizations and religious leaders in the Arab and Muslim worlds, ranging from the Free Syrian Army to the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, that denounced the heinous attacks. My relative then asked me why she and so many other people had not heard word one about this?
Story
Ingram family carries on musical tradition
The Rev. Almeta Ingram-Miller said there was never any doubt that the renowned Ingramettes family gospel group would continue to perform after mother and founder Maggie Ingram died last June.
Story
49ers quarterback under fire for sitting during national anthem
NFL Quarterback Colin Kaepernick of the San Francisco 49ers refused to stand for the national anthem before a preseason game last Friday, drawing boos from some fans and criticism on social media, but his team said they backed his right to protest.
Story
Readers urge support for workers in voting Nov. 8
I have spent the last 39 years of my life working. I have worked in the private sector, in the public sector, in non-union facilities and union shops. And I have seen the difference a collective bargaining agreement makes. Even in a right-to-work state like Virginia, workers can choose to form a union in their workplace if a simple majority of their co-workers agree.
Story
Smokey Robinson receives Gershwin Prize
An emotional and humbled Smokey Robinson received the Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song last week at a soul-stirring concert at DAR Constitution Hall in Washington.
Story
Earth, Wind & Fire founder Maurice White dies at 74
Maurice White, the founder of R&B funk band Earth, Wind & Fire, died at his Los Angeles home Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016, publicist Mark Young said. Mr. White had been battling Parkinson’s disease since 1992. He was 74.
Story
Richmond School Board race tightens as candidate drops out
One of the five people seeking election to Richmond’s 3rd District School Board seat has dropped out. Businessman Kevin A. Starlings confirmed to the Free Press that he has ended his campaign. “I need to focus more on my family,” the 31-year-old said last Friday in explaining his decision to quit his second bid for the office. He declined to elaborate.
Story
Olympic speedskater credits success to God’s blessings
U.S. speedskater Maame Biney, 18, has a smile that can light up any room, a giggle that has charmed Olympic audiences and a joy that her coaches say has carried her so far in her athletic career at such a young age.
Story
Kings Dominion changes name of roller coaster
Kings Dominion amusement park is changing the name of a roller coaster named after the war whoop of a Confederate soldier.
Story
Confederate monuments are ‘artifacts of collective pain’
Re Letter to the Editor “Confederate monuments speak truth to power,” Free Press Feb. 27-29 edition:
Story
Slavery, history and distortions
Letters to the editor
Re Column, “Distortions of our history,” Free Press May 30-June 1 edition: In her column, Julianne Malveaux herself distorts the history of slavery when she said: “Let’s make it plain: Europeans went to the African continents (sic), kidnapped people (sometimes with African acquiescence), brought them to the Western Hemisphere and sold us.”
Story
Pope Francis’ symbolic gesture raises hope for peace in South Sudan
Pope Francis knelt and kissed the feet of South Sudan’s rival leaders last week, in an unprecedented act of humbleness to encourage them to strengthen the African country’s faltering peace process.
Story
Earth Day: A sense of wonder, by Bobby Whitescarver
My wife and I are cattle farmers in Virginia’s legendary Shenandoah Valley. Early in our marriage, Jeanne gave me a nickname: “Walk Slow, Stand Around.” Yep, that’s me. Sure, it’s funny. And it’s true. But I’m not lazy; I just wonder a lot.
Story
$275K for VSU interim president
Dr. Pamela V. (for Valleria) Hammond is ready to jump into her new role as interim president of struggling Virginia State University.
Story
Better wages for low-wage workers at tipping point, by Clarence Page
As our pre-pandemic way of life struggles to make a come- back—which I, for one, am rooting for it to do—one tradition that I greet with mixed emotions is my personal subsidy to low-wage workers. I’m talking about tipping.
Story
Bernard Shaw, CNN’s 1st chief anchor, dies at 82
Bernard Shaw, former CNN anchor and a pioneering Black journalist remembered for his blunt question at a presidential debate and calmly reporting the beginning of the Gulf War in 1991 from Baghdad as it was under attack, has died. He was 82.
Story
76ers’ Doc Rivers merges Black history lessons into camp
Doc Rivers is at ease using his platform as an NBA coach to fight bigotry and racial injustice, campaign for politicians he believes in and advocate for social change on themes ranging from poverty to police brutality. Sometimes, his speeches sound like they were delivered by someone running for office. Might the 60-year-old Coach Rivers, the son of a Chicago police officer, someday stump for change as an actual politician?
Story
‘Best gift ever’
Henrico mother receives the gift of life – a liver transplant – from 21-year-old son
Thanks to receiving from her oldest son what she calls “the best gift ever,” Tashawn D. Jones, 41, is enjoying an especially bright holiday season.
