
RPS will reopen with mask requirement
Richmond Public Schools will reopen Sept. 8 under the inescapable cloud of the COVID-19 delta variant, with officials announcing that students, teachers and staff will be required to wear masks in schools and on buses regardless of their vaccination status.

Silk Hair Studio becomes touch point for COVID-19 vaccination effort
Silk Hair Studio bustled with talk and activity Tuesday afternoon, though not just about hair care and other conversations between patrons in dryer chairs.

Washington Football Team returns to Richmond training camp
Welcome back, burgundy and gold, even if it’s only for a quick pit stop.

More than gold
Gymnast Simone Biles stuns the world, her teammates and her competitors by withdrawing from Olympic team and individual all-around competition to focus on her mental health
Gymnastics superstar Simone Biles was expected to again helped lead the American team to gold medal glory at the Tokyo Olympics just as she had at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. Instead, the reigning queen of the sport help draw attention to the stresses that top athletes face Tuesday after she voluntarily withdrew from further competition, citing concerns about her mental fitness to continue.

VEC brings suffering to thousands of unemployed
After seven and one-half months waiting for unemployment insurance or pandemic unemployment assistance benefits, I am in dire straits: I am driving dirty, i.e., with no car insurance and an expired inspection sticker, because I have no income.

Sewer system upgrades may result in bills tripling for city customers
Richmond faces many challenges, but one of the biggest and most expensive lies underground in the sewer system.

Tightening the reins
Richmond School Board votes 5-4 to issues its own design request for a new George Wythe High School and empanel new evaluation team after 3-hour debate
After four months of heated debate, the Richmond School Board on Monday night pushed ahead with its own plan to build a new George wythe High School and two other schools in hewing to its mantra that “schools build schools.”

Rev. Jesse Jackson honored with France’s highest award
The Rev. Jesse Jackson was awarded France’s highest award on Monday for helping “change the destiny of the United States” and with it, the world.

Concerns raised over lack of diversity among regional grand jury members
A regional grand jury vested with sweeping powers to investigate and issue indictments appears to have been exempted from the push to ensure racial equity in criminal justice.

Personality: Darrick Hanks-Harris
Spotlight on founder of The Black Village of RVA
In early December, Darrick Hanks-Harris began a new initiative to aid Black-owned businesses struggling in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Unsung civil rights pioneer Gloria Richardson dies at 99
Gloria Richardson, an influential yet largely unsung civil rights pioneer whose determination not to back down while protesting racial inequality was captured in a photograph as she pushed away the bayonet of a National Guardsman, has died. She was 99.

Muslims scale back Eid al-Adha observance in midst of pandemic
Muslims around the world this week begin observing a major Islamic holiday in the shadow of the pandemic amid growing concerns about the highly infectious delta variant of the coronavirus.

Milwaukee Bucks bring home trophy after 50 years
Giannis Antetokounmpo had the Larry O’Brien Trophy in one arm, the NBA Finals MVP trophy in the other and there was a cigar on the table in front of him.

License plate campaign pays homage to Richmond Planet
Reginald L. Carter is within striking distance of scoring another victory for his campaign for Black history and racial justice.

Wrinkle in removal: City doesn’t own Confederate Gen. A.P. Hill’s statue
The City of Richmond apparently never has owned one of the Confederate monuments it is trying to get rid of, and that could add a new complication to its removal.

RRHA extends eviction moratorium; halts CEO search
Just weeks before more than 1,500 of Richmond’s public housing residents were facing losing their homes, the Richmond Redevelopment and Housing Authority has extended its eviction moratorium to September, but not beyond Oct. 31.

’Where are people to go?’
Cityscape: Slices of life and scenes in Richmond
Homeless residents of a small tent city outside the vacant Richmond Coliseum received a final notice to move before a 12-foot fence blocking access is completed. The fence is being installed as a squad of city workers prepare to salvage useful items from the building before its demolition.

VSU eliminates debt for 1,200 students
At least 1,200 students attending Virginia State University no longer have to worry about the money they owe the school.

RPS to host Summer Fest
Richmond Public Schools is hosting two weekend parties to help spread the word to parents, students and community residents about the plans for in-person classes that are scheduled to begin Wednesday, Sept. 8.