
Trailblazer
Bettie Elizabeth Boyers Cooper’s actions spurred City’s full school desegregation
Bettie Elizabeth Boyers Cooper, who helped end Richmond and Virginia’s determined efforts in the 1950s to maintain racially segregated public schools, has died.

Voters support abortion rights in several states; legalizing marijuana sees small gains
Voters in three states enshrined the right to an abortion in their constitutions Tuesday night while marijuana legalization won in two more states.

Midterm elections 2022
Democrats defeat ‘red tide’ forecast by Republicans
The battle for Congress remains up in the air, with vote counting still underway in numerous states and a final determination whether Democrats or Republicans secure a majority in one or both houses potentially still weeks away.

‘We can no longer remain silent’
Coalition wants Bon Secours to increase investments in area’s poor communities
Sparked by a New York Times expose, a new coalition hopes to rally the East End community to pressure nonprofit Bon Secours Mercy Health to rebuild critical care services at Richmond Community Hospital and better meet the health needs of low-income communities.

Worries grow about City’s policy for sheltering the homeless
For apparently the first time in a decade, City Hall did not open a temporary shelter for the homeless when the temperature, including the wind chill, recently fell below 40 degrees.

Migos rapper Takeoff dead after Houston shooting, rep says
The rapper Takeoff, best known for his work with the Grammy-nominated trio Migos, is dead after a shooting early Tuesday outside a bowling al- ley in Houston, a representative confirmed. He was 28. Kirsnick Khari Ball, known as Takeoff, was part of Migos along with Quavo and Offset. A representative for members of Migos who was not authorized to speak publicly confirmed the death to The Associated Press. Police responded shortly after 2:30 a.m. to reports of a shoot- ing at 810 Billiards & Bowling, where dozens of people had gathered on a balcony outside of the third-floor bowling alley, police said. Officers discovered one man dead when they arrived. An AP reporter at the scene observed a body loaded into a medical examiner’s van around 10 a.m., more than seven hours after the shooting. Security guards who were in the area heard the shooting but did not see who did it, a police spokesperson said. Two other people were injured and taken to hospitals in private vehicles. No arrests have been an- nounced and few details were released about what led up to the shooting, but Houston po- lice planned a news conference

Players of color plentiful in World Series despite lack of Black players
For the first time since 1950, there are zero African-American players on either World Series 26-man opening roster.

Top Heisman prospect has Virginia ties
Hendon Hooker was at Virginia Tech before 2021 transfer to Tennessee
It’s becoming routine. Since 2006, Black quarterbacks have won the Heisman Trophy seven times and have been close to winning on many other occasions. The trend is likely to continue this season with one of the top-tier candidates having Virginia connections.

Spartans favored to win league basketball title
Norfolk State University has been picked to “three-peat” this season as MEAC basketball champ.

Atwater ghost haunts midterm elections, by Marc H. Morial
“It is not new to see antisemitism or overt racism in politics. What is new is after years ... in which it was clear that to be credible in public life politicians had to reject prejudice, it’s now been normalized in ways that are really quite breathtaking.” — ADL CEO Jonathan Greenblatt

Race neutrality is anti-Blackness, by Julianne Malveaux
During this Supreme Court session, the justices will tackle affirmative action in two cases brought by “Students for Fair Admissions,” opposing affirmative action policies at Harvard University and the University of North Carolina.

Get out and vote
The midterm election cycle hasn’t generated much buzz in Richmond. While a few registration and get-out-the vote drives have occurred, the hubbub of activity usually associated with election-year cycles has been absent.

Henrico County’s leaf collection starts Nov. 7
Henrico County will begin providing annual leaf collection services starting Monday, Nov. 7, with both free and paid options available for county residents.

James River Park gains key acreage at trailhead
Private property that provides an entry to a popular trail in James River Park is being donated to the city.

Armstrong/Walker football rivalry celebrated in new Black History Museum exhibit
A legacy created from a 40- year football rivalry between Armstrong and Maggie Walker high schools, the only two schools for Black students for decades, will be remembered this month at the 2nd Annual Armstrong Walker Football Classic Legacy Project Celebration. The first event is an exhibit at the Black History Museum and Cultural Center, featuring memorabilia collected and on display from alumni, staff and Richmonders who attended both schools.

John Marshall’s Dennis Parker picks N.C. State
Dennis Parker Jr. has decided to take his talents from the capital of Virginia to the capital of North Carolina.

Davis named to Hall of Fame
Bonnie Newman Davis, managing editor of the Richmond Free Press, was among several alumni and leaders recognized on Oct. 28 by North Carolina A&T State University’s Department of Journalism and Mass Communication’s Hall of Fame.

Virginians now may register and vote the same day
Hard to believe, but Virginia now allows people to register and vote when they go to the polls, even on Election Day.

Richmond voters have few voices in next week’s midterm elections
The country is just a few days away from an election that will determine whether Democrats or Republicans will control one or both houses of Congress.