Free community testing for COVID-19 continues
The Richmond and Henrico County health districts are offering testing at the following locations:
VCU Health’s Bridging the Gap program receives $5M grant for community violence intervention initiatives
Bridging the Gap, a VCU Health program geared toward community violence intervention at the bedside and in the community, was among six recipients of a $5 million grant to sustain the work of hospital-based community violence intervention programs (HVIPs) in Virginia.
10 drugs targeted for Medicare price negotiations as Biden pitches cost reductions
President Biden touted the potential cost savings of Medicare’s first-ever price negotiations for widely used prescription drugs on Tuesday as he struggles to convince Americans that he’s improved their lives as he runs for reelection.
National Recovery Month program
A Church Hill restaurant is teaming with Richmond area playwright and author Raymond Goode to mark September as National Recovery Month in the city, it has been announced.
Science Museum’s space exhibit closing
Richmonders interested in space and how astronauts survive it have just a few days to experience it at the Science Museum of Virginia, as the “Space: An Out-of-Gravity Experience” exhibition will end on Labor Day, Monday, Sept. 4.
Oh ye of little faith
Gov. Glenn A. Youngkin and Attorney General Jason S. Miyares both profess to be men of Christian faith, which calls on adherents to be accepting of people no matter their status, resources or appearance. So why do they take such comfort supporting the oppression of transgender people?
Once more, America faces a reckoning, by Rev. Jesse Jackson
This country faces a reckoning. The question is whether we will come together or fall apart, move forward or descend toward a moral abyss. In this time of deep discord, of partisan divide, racial tension, extreme inequality, the outcome is far from certain. As fraught as this time is, however, it is not unique. We have faced such moments before.
Who gets to play?, by Julianne Malveaux
As summer winds down, and folks start rushing back to school or work, the memories of their vacations perhaps sustain them when, after Labor Day, the business of fall quickly engulfs them. There’s that Gershwin song from Porgy & Bess, “Sum- mertime and the Living is Easy,” record- ed more than 25,000 times with artists as diverse as Ella Fitzgerald and Willie Nelson. There’s that no-caring vibe that so many exude. Summer feels like, “Let’s go out to play.” Which begs the question: Who gets to play? In the European Union, workers get 20 days a year for vacation. Stores are nearly deserted in Paris this August because people have time off! In contrast, the average worker gets just 11 days of vacation in the United States. If they’ve worked in corporate America, the average worker gets just one week and has to work for up to five years before getting even two weeks. Many think educators get the summer off, and some faculty have the summer for research and preparation. But many K-12 teachers are paid so little that summer is when many of them get their side hustle on. Some teachers are driving for ride- share companies such as Uber and Lyft. Others have lined up consulting, tutoring, or other assignments. The other day, I had a ride with a math teacher who said his salary was too low to sustain his family. During Julianne Malveaux the summer, he clocks 12-hour days into ride-sharing. He’s one of the millions who don’t get to come out to play. Then there are the people who cobble a living working two or three part-time jobs. More than 8 million people have multiple jobs. Who knows what kind of juggling they are doing? Do any of their jobs provide them with vacations? When do they unplug? Reflect? Spend time with family or simply get to exhale? Just like everything else in our society, leisure is unevenly distributed. Those with more means and more access have more opportunities to play. Those who are simply surviving don’t have playtime, reflection time, or other downtime. The European Union edict that everyone, regardless of where they sit on the economic totem pole, gets 20 days a year off is an egalitarian recognition of the human right to relax. We in the United States are not as far along. Instead of rewarding labor with time off, we exploit workers in as many ways as possible, extracting surplus value from their work. There is little data on leisure, so most of my thoughts are in- terpretations and extrapolations. But as I listen to people wax rhapsodic about their vacations, their “happy places,” the wind and the sun and the beaches, I can’t help but think of those who don’t get time to enjoy wind, sun and beach. Summer is a time when many come out to play. What happens to those who don’t have that opportunity? Do they live in Langston Hughes’dream deferred? Do they dry up like a raisin in the sun, fester like a sore, and then run? Do they sag like a heavy load? Do they explode? In a growing number of American cities, workers are exploding, striking and demand- ing more money and more days off. It’s about time. Dr. Julianne Malveaux is an economist, author, commentator and activist.
Best in class
Richmond Public Schools Superintendent Jason Kamras announced in his weekly newsletter that Open High School and Richmond Community High School recently ranked as the No. 2 and No. 3 best high schools in Virginia, according to U.S. News and World Report’s 2023 Best High Schools edition!
60 years after the March on Washington, please read Dr. King’s full ‘I Have a Dream’ speech, by Congresswoman Jennifer McClellan
It’s been 60 years since the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, when Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech. One of the most famous speeches in American history, it is named for its most quoted line: “I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.”
Labor Day 2023: Celebrating the union difference and building tomorrow’s public service workforce, by Lee Saunders
As we prepare to celebrate Labor Day, it’s as exciting a time as any to be a part of a union. Working people are seeing what the union difference is all about, and they want to be a part of it. Unions are overwhelmingly popular as the newest Gallup poll on attitudes toward labor unions shows.
Transparency and speaking truth to power
I am a 19-year veteran of the Richmond Fire Department and a candidate for the City of Richmond Personnel Board to represent the classified service. I have been closely following the narrative of the proposed burn building at Hickory Hill. I was in support of the burn building until I understood the entire narrative.
Safety Damar Hamlin makes the 53-player cut after Buffalo Bills pare roster, AP source says
Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin made the cut, a person with direct knowledge of the decision confirmed to The Associated Press on Tuesday and according to NFL Network Insider Tom Pelissero.
Simone Biles wins a record 8th U.S. gymnastics title a full decade after her first
Simone Biles is not going to explain herself. Part of this is by design. Part of this is because she simply can’t.
VUU’s Garcia named All-American
Virginia Union University’s Hayden Garcia, who competed in 2022-23 as a graduate student for the VUU Golf Team, has been named an All-American by The Black College Golf Coaches Association and Golf Coaches Association of America, it was announced last Thursday.
VUU readies for show in Ohio against Morehouse
On Sunday, Sept. 3, Virginia Union University will have a national audience watching its performance.
A’ja Wilson ties record for most points in WNBA
The Las Vegas Aces might be the surest bet in the city known as “The Gambling Capital of the World.” A’ja Wilson is a towering reason why.
Rev. Ellison now part of Sears' staff
The Rev. Joseph F. “Joe” Ellison Jr. is the new director community engagement for Virginia Lt. Gov. Winsome Sears.
September set off
The VSU Trojans, NSU Spartans and HU Pirates will swing into action Sept. 2 for their season openers.
Turf takes the field in Chesterfield County
The first turf field in Chesterfield County Public Schools officially opened Aug. 24. Before the L.C. Bird High School Skyhawks hosted the Rapids of James River High School to kick off football season, a ribbon-cutting took place on the 50-yard line of Bird High’s new Sprinturf Ultrablade field.
