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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.
W&M dedicates memorial to those who were enslaved by the university
William & Mary, the nation’s second oldest institution of higher education, dedicated a brick memorial last Saturday that honors people who were enslaved by the university.
State executioner who turned against the death penalty dies at 67
For 17 years, Jerry Bronson Givens carried out death sentences as Virginia’s chief executioner. The Richmond native then spent the rest of his life crusading against the death penalty.
David C. Driskell, noted artist, art historian, curator and collector, dies at 88
David C. Driskell, one of the nation’s most influential African-American artists and a leading authority on black art, has died. He was 88.
Commencement 2023
VCU, VUU, VSU graduates celebrate diligence, hard work and promising futures
Mo Alie-Cox, who constantly brought excitement to Virginia Commonwealth University as a standout basketball player, brought that same energy during VCU’s graduation ceremonies on Saturday at the Greater Richmond Convention Center.
Gov. Northam announces plan to boost education spending
Just days after a major march in Richmond calling for more state dollars for public education, Gov. Ralph S. Northam announced Tuesday that his next proposed budget will include $268.7 million in additional school funding, including increased spending for new school construction, at-risk students and money to boost teachers’ pay.
No fear of KKK
Charlottesville leaders, including clergy and NAACP, plan positive activities for Saturday in response to Klan protest
Charlottesville residents refuse to buckle under fear in the face of a Ku Klux Klan rally planned for Saturday in a public park.
Report forecasts millions would lose health insurance under Trumpcare
Fears that the Republican plan to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare, would wipe out health insurance for millions of mostly low-income people appear to be highly accurate.
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.
Gov. Northam calls for elimination of state tax on groceries
Virginians would pay a smaller tax on groceries and receive an income tax rebate of up to $500 under outgoing Gov. Ralph S. Northam’s budget proposal rolled out on Tuesday.
Payback? Questions raised about charges against Sen. Lucas
State Sen. Louise Lucas of Portsmouth, a key power broker and one of the highest ranking African-Americans in the General Assembly, has been charged with conspiracy to damage a Confederate monument during protests in Portsmouth that also led to a demonstrator being critically injured when the statue was knocked down.
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.
New Episcopal Church leader has Richmond link
The first African-American to be elected as the U.S. Episcopal Church’s presiding bishop has ties to Richmond. The Rt. Rev. Michael Curry, 62, bishop of the Diocese of North Carolina, was elected the church’s 27th presiding bishop last Saturday at the denomination’s general conference in Salt Lake City.
President Obama inspires Class of 2020, adroitly criticizes current leaders for mishandling pandemic crisis
Hours after former President Obama delivered two measured and inspiring na- tional commencement speeches to the Class of 2020 college and high school graduates last Saturday, social media lit up with comments of “Great speech, Mr. Obama. We miss you!” and “That’s what a president should be like. November 2020 can’t get here soon enough.”
Recent court rulings strike down discriminatory voting laws in several states
In a heated election year, federal and state courts are rejecting Republican-backed voting restrictions after finding their sole purpose is to limit voting by African-Americans, Latinos, the poor and other minority groups that lean Democratic. In rulings last Friday that could pave the way for bigger turnouts on Election Day, courts struck down such laws in the key election states of North Carolina, Kansas and Wisconsin.
Obama cheered
President Obama took aim on Tuesday at Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump and accused critics of playing into the hands of the Islamic State in a speech meant to cement his legacy and set a positive tone for his final year in office. Delivering his last annual State of the Union speech to Congress as president, he called for leaders to “fix” U.S. politics and criticized candidates such as Mr. Trump for using anti-Muslim rhetoric that betrayed American values.
Loss of a legend
Julian Bond, warrior in the struggle for equality, dies at 75
Through the relentless struggles of the Civil Rights Movement, Julian Bond always kept his sense of humor. His steady demeanor helped him persist despite the inevitable difficulties involved, his wife recalled. Mr. Bond “never took his eyes off the prize — and that was always racial equality,” his wife, Pamela Horowitz, said Sunday. “He always ... in that hard struggle kept a sense of humor, and I think that’s what allowed him to do that work for so long — his whole life really,” his wife added.
Trump scraps program protecting young undocumented immigrants
President Trump on Tuesday scrapped an Obama era program that protects from deportation immigrants brought illegally into the United States as children, delaying implementation until March and giving a gridlocked Congress six months to decide the fate of almost 800,000 young people.
House Democrats set to boycott Trump inauguration on Friday
Donald Trump made his name with opulent hotels and a dramatic reality TV show. But his inauguration on Friday, Jan. 20, as the nation’s 45th president is shaping up as a more understated affair, with big names in entertainment staying away. Also staying away are more than 50 Congressional Democrats who plan to boycott in protest of the New York
That’s the ticket
Hillary Clinton shatters glass ceiling with historic presidential nod
Hillary Rodham Clinton swept into history Tuesday as Democrats, eager to present a face of unity to a national television audience, chose her to be the party’s standard-bearer in the Nov. 8 presidential election.
