
City Council collective bargaining vote is a win
I want to say kudos to Richmond City Council for voting and allowing most city employees to unionize.

DOJ: Buffett company discriminated against Black homebuyers
A Pennsylvania mortgage company owned by billionaire businessman Warren Buffett’s company discriminated against potential Black and Latino homebuyers in Philadelphia, New Jersey and Delaware, the Department of Justice said Wednesday, in what is being called the second-largest redlining settlement in history. Trident Mortgage Co., a division of Berkshire Hathaway’s HomeServices of America, deliberately avoided writing mortgages in minority-majority neighborhoods in West Philadelphia such as Malcolm X Park; Camden, N.J.; and in Wilmington, Del., the Justice Department and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau said in their settlement with Trident.

‘Chief Connection Officer’
Former NSU point guard is among nation’s top rugby players
As a Norfolk State University women’s basketball point guard, Jazamine “Jaz” Gray was known for her passing talent. She tossed for 230 career assists. Since then, Gray has passed the test in another sport — rugby.

‘The Lioness’ gets her prey
Amanda Nunes had revenge in her corner and that, combined with her flying fists and feet, was enough to regain her UFC bantamweight belt.

Virginia Union golfers’ academic skills saluted
Virginia Union University’s golf team believes in posting low scores on the course but high scores in the classroom.

Hopewell and Chester alums candidates for major college football awards
The 804 area code is producing big-time running backs.

Great expectations
Spartans rely on Davis’ offensive moves for wins
J.J. Davis was a freshman phenom last year at Norfolk State University, and much more is expected this season from the now sophomore.

Nichelle Nichols, Lt. Uhura on ‘Star Trek,’ dies at 89
Nichelle Nichols, who broke barriers for Black women in Hollywood as communications officer Lt. Uhura on the original “Star Trek” television series, has died at the age of 89.

Jackson Ward Collective hosts business conference
The term “Black Wall Street” is often associated with the prosperous residential and business community that was destroyed in the Tulsa, Okla., massacre 101 years ago. But there were similar places of prosperity in Black communities throughout the United States, including Richmond’s Jackson Ward.

HBCU United’s goal isn’t just about money
An HBCU basketball squad with a Virginia flavor left its mark on the winner-take-all $1 million The Basketball Tournament, the 64- team, single-elimination tournament for a million dollars.

Virginians Mine Oregon Gold
Grant Holloway and Noah Lyles, right, have made the seismic leap from the Virginia High School League to the tip top of the track and field world.

Personality: Martinez Kelley
Spotlight on board chairman of Atlantic Outreach Group
More than a decade ago Martinez Kelley saw the beginnings of the Atlantic Outreach Group, which eventually led to his path in community service.

How many homeless people will be sheltered this winter remains unclear
Finding adequate space also an issue, city officials say
City Hall is moving forward in trying to find nonprofits or churches and other faith-based groups with available space to house homeless people, at least during the winter.

Moving forward
Some hope collective bargaining agreement will define Richmond as a ‘workplace of choice’
Waves of applause resounded in the City Council chambers Monday night after, one by one, the nine members of the governing body voted, as anticipated, to allow city workers to organize unions and negotiate contracts on wages, benefits and working conditions.

102-year-old WWII veteran from segregated mail unit honored
Millions of letters and packages sent to U.S. troops had accumulated in warehouses in Europe by the time Allied troops were pushing toward the heart of Hitler’s Germany near the end of World War II. this wasn’t junk mail — it was the main link between home and the front in a time long before video chats, texting or even routine long-distance phone calls.

Community High alum lands role in AMC series
In August of 2021, Richmond native Kalyne Coleman got the call every young actor longs for: She got the part. On Oct. 2, Ms. Coleman will be seen in her first onscreen acting credit role as Grace de Pointe Du Lac in the AMC series “Interview with the Vampire.” But it almost didn’t happen.

35 years after winning Pulitzer, poet Rita Dove’s ‘Apocalyse’ is an awakening
When the coronavirus pandemic shut down much of the world in 2020, Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Rita Dove had not published a book of her own work for more than a decade.

Sons and Daughters of Ham Cemetery rededication ceremony this week
The Sons and Daughters of Ham Cemetery, a historic Black cemetery that neighbors the University of Richmond and the city’s Bandy Field Nature Park, will be rededicated on Thursday, July 28, it has been announced.

Players of color in MLB’s All-Star Game
Along with all the usual pageantry, the 92nd edition of the Major League All-Star Game was a “colorful” occasion indeed.

Kamala Harris meets with Democrats in Richmond to defend reproductive rights
Vice President Kamala Harris met with Virginia State Sens. Jennifer McClellan, D-Richmond, Mamie Locke, D-Hampton, Louise Lucas, D-Portsmouth, U.S. Rep. A. Donald McEachin, D-4th, and more than 20 other Democratic legislators and community leaders on Saturday, July 23, in Henrico County to discuss the fight to protect reproductive rights.