All results / Stories / Free Press staff, wire reports
‘Trumpcare’ health plan would strip insurance from millions
Impressed by President Trump’s campaign promises to make health care more affordable, Mavis Reivis crossed her fingers and voted for him.
Obama wept
His executive order aims to halt gun killings
Wiping back tears as he remembered children killed in a mass shooting, President Obama on Tuesday ordered stricter gun rules that he can impose without Congress and urged American voters to reject pro-gun candidates.
Sidney Poitier suffered from multiple health problems
Academy Award-winning actor Sidney Poitier, who died Jan. 6 at his home in Beverly Hills, Calif., at age 94, suffered from several health issues, according to information listed in his death certificate that was obtained Tuesday by TMZ and several other media outlets.
Delta Air Lines snubs black women physicians
When Tamika Cross tried to help another passenger in distress on a recent Delta Air Lines flight, she said she was dismissed by a flight attendant who doubted that the black woman was actually a physician. Dr. Cross, an OB-GYN based in Houston, chronicled the incident on Facebook on Oct. 9. The post has since gone viral, with more than 15,000 comments, and sparked the Twitter hashtag #whatadoctorlookslike.
6 Virginia tribes set for federal recognition
Six Virginia Indian tribes have secured congressional recognition, ending a nearly two-decade fight for official acknowledgment of their place in U.S. history.
Friends, family say goodbye to Aretha Franklin in marathon funeral
The “Queen of Soul” Aretha Franklin was remembered and celebrated in a star-studded marathon funeral service last Friday that drew laughter, tears and, as with any large family gathering, controversy.
Dr. Wyatt Tee Walker, civil rights icon, chief of staff to Dr. King, dies in Chester
Dr. Wyatt Tee Walker Jr. did all he could to advance civil rights during his long life. He is credited with being the key strategist behind many of the civil rights protests that Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. led in seeking to end the racial injustice of Jim Crow in the 1960s.
It’s not over yet
Just days after the U.S. Senate acquits former President Trump, Congressman Bennie Thompson of Mississippi files a lawsuit to hold him responsible for inciting insurrection at the U.S. Capitol
One thing is for certain, there was no surprise.
Rev. Joseph Lowery, head of SCLC and dean of civil rights veterans, dies at 98
The Rev. Joseph E. Lowery fought to end segregation, lived to see the election of the country’s first African-American president and echoed the call for “justice to roll down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream” in America.
Basquiat work sells for record $110.5M
A little-seen painting by Jean-Michel Basquiat that sold for $19,000 in 1984 soared to an astounding $110.5 million at Sotheby’s auction of contemporary art last week.
Cosby freed
After spending 3 years behind bars for drugging and assaulting a woman in 2004, entertainer Bill Cosby was released from prison on a legal technicality, drawing mixture of public praise and criticism
Pennsylvania’s highest court threw out Bill Cosby’s sexual assault conviction and released him from prison Wednesday in a stunning reversal of fortune for the comedian once known as “America’s Dad.”
House sit-in
Scores of Democratic lawmakers, led by civil rights icon Rep. John Lewis, refuse to leave the U.S. House of Representatives until gun control measures are passed
Democratic lawmakers, using 1960s tactics to press their point, staged an surprise sit-in on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday, demanding the chamber remain in session until the Republican leadership agrees to a vote on gun control legislation.
Remembering MLK
People in Richmond and across the nation pause to reflect on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on the 50th anniversary of his death
On the day Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was killed 50 years ago, tens of thousands of people gathered at small and large events in Richmond and other cities on Wednesday to mourn his death, celebrate his life and rekindle his struggle for economic and social justice.
Harry and Meghan have a royal baby
And his name is Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex whose fairytale wedding last year garnered international headlines, gave birth to a 7 pound 3 ounce boy at 5:26 a.m. Monday.
Colorado young scientist and app creator named Kid of the Year
A 15-year-old Colorado high school student and young scientist who has used artificial intel- ligence and created apps to tackle contaminated drinking water, cyberbullying, opioid addiction and other social problems has been named TIME magazine’s and Nickelodeon’s first Kid of the Year.
VSU grad crowned Miss USA
Deshauna Barber has brains and beauty, and she’s a commander in the Army Reserve to boot. The 2011 Virginia State University graduate now adds another title: Miss USA 2016. Miss Barber, 26, who represented the District of Columbia in Sunday’s pageant at the T-Mobile Arena on the Las Vegas strip, beat contestants from 50 states to win the crown.
Rare Bible that went to moon up for sale
For the collector who has almost everything, there’s still a chance to own a Bible that literally was out of this world.
Pervis Staples, member of famed Staple Singers, dies at 85
Pervis Staples, whose tenor voice complimented his father’s and sisters’ in the legendary gospel group The Staple Singers, was remembered during a funeral service Monday, May 17, as a great singer and a great brother.
$87.6M
Wilson inks contract extension with Seattle Seahawks
Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson has millions of reasons to be wearing one of the biggest smiles in the team’s training camp this week in Renton, Wash.
Serena ranked 28th in world despite loss
Tennis star Serena Williams said the latest chapter in her sports career is “just beginning” after seeing her hopes of a record-equalling 24th Grand Slam title dashed last Saturday in the Wimbledon final.
