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Prince Harry says ignorance no excuse for unconscious bias
Britain’s Prince Harry says it took him many years and the experience of living with his wife, Meghan Markle, to understand how his privileged upbringing shielded him from the reality of unconscious bias.
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Crusade for Voters supports November referendum for casino revenue use
If a casino is ever built in Richmond, should all the tax dollars generated from the gambling center go to modernizing Richmond’s decrepit school buildings?
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Virginia’s voter ID law upheld by federal judge
A federal judge has upheld a 2013 Virginia law requiring prospective voters to show approved photo identification before being allowed to cast ballots.
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Black lawmakers angered over Va. Supreme Court predicament
African-American members of the Virginia General Assembly are seething at Republican leaders for putting them in a predicament over a judicial selection to the Virginia Supreme Court.
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Gray still questions cost of taking statues down
City Councilwoman Kim B. Gray, who is challenging Mayor Levar M. Stoney for the city’s top elected job, said this week that the Associated Press interview with contractor Devon Henry has not changed her view that an investigation is needed into the $1.8 million contract he received to remove the city’s Confederate statues from Monument Avenue and other public property in early July.
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Landlord must sell properties, undergo housing training in HOME settlement
Richmond area landlord Teresa Vetter has agreed to sell her properties and give up leasing apartments for five years to end a lawsuit accusing her of discrimination against families with children and people with disabilities.
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New police precinct building set for East End
A new First Police Precinct will be built on the parking lot of the Richmond City Justice Center in the 6th Council District, according to information shared with City Council this week.
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Report shows solutions to end child poverty
It is a national moral disgrace that there are 14.7 million poor children, including 6.5 million extremely poor children, in the United States of America — one of the world’s richest nations. It also is unnecessary, costly and the greatest threat to our future national, economic and military security. Ending Child Poverty Now, a new report released by The Children’s Defense Fund, calls for an end to child poverty with a 60 percent reduction immediately. It shows solutions to end child poverty in our nation already exist.
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End surprise medical bills
Congress needs to take action to end surprise medical bills. These are the bills patients receive when they unknowingly go outside of their insurance network for care, without realizing their insurance will not cover them.
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$200M loss spurs City Council to revise real estate tax abatement program
For at least two decades, Richmond has primed the redevelopment pump by allowing individuals and companies that improve aging houses, apartment buildings and commercial properties to pay reduced property taxes over 10 years without any restrictions.
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Kaepernick draws fire again — this time over Nike ad
Controversy continues to surround former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick two years after he first took a knee during the national anthem to protest the oppression of people of color and continuing police brutality against African-Americans.
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Arthur Ashe Center agreement reached
A potential roadblock for the projected $2.4 billion Diamond District development appears to have been cleared, the Free Press has learned, though questions remain on other aspects.
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Fight over Richmond Christian Center property on South Side continues
Henrico County-based Mountain of Blessings Christian Center still wants to acquire the property of the bankrupt Richmond Christian Center in South Richmond. In a suit filed this month, Mountain of Blessings is requesting that U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Keith L. Phillips either enforce an order he signed in December authorizing Mountain of Blessing’s purchase of the RCC property in the 200 block of Cowardin Avenue or order RCC to pay Mountain of Blessings at least $2.7 million in damages.
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FTC hindering Black economic achievement, by Julianne Malveaux
The Biden administration has been pushing hard for credit for its significant economic successes. Coining the phrase “Bidenomics,” the term is meant to direct attention toward the administration’s striking successful economic agenda.
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Jackson Ward residents continue to hear plans, explore ideas for historic neighborhood’s future
The latest proposal to reunite the former “Harlem of the South” was unveiled to Jackson Ward residents and government stakeholders at the Hippodrome Theater on June 29. All were eager to hear and discuss updates for the Reconnect Jackson Ward Project.
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Game time!
Super Bowl 51 is Sunday
Get out the wings and chips and dip. It’s Super Bowl 51 on Sunday. Here’s a preview of the big football game that is known as much for the halftime show and creative commercials as the action on the field.
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Work to begin in Jackson Ward on Fay Towers replacement
Heavy machinery will soon start moving into a block of Jackson Ward where 154 apartments are to rise over the next year or so, according to Orlando C. Artze, interim director of the Richmond Redevelopment and Housing Authority.
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“Santa with Soul” at Black History Museum
“Santa with Soul” is bringing his magical cheer to the Black History Museum and Cultural Center of Virginia this weekend.
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With tears, megachurch pastor defends $200K Lamborghini gift to wife
The new pastor of a South Carolina megachurch gave his wife a $200,000 Lamborghini SUV for their eighth anniversary earlier this month, and he’s been getting heat on social media for it ever since.
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No game
Where is LeBron James when we need him? This week, while Mr. James was in Ohio announcing the opening of his new, multimillion-dollar I PROMISE School in conjunction with the Akron Public Schools, Richmond Public Schools officials were busy dissecting the cheating scandal at Carver Elementary School and trying to prevent the sad turn of affairs from becoming a national public relations nightmare.
