Vote on Nov. 6
Last night, I finished reading “The Blood of Emmett Till” by Timothy B. Tyson. The 14-year-old was killed in 1955 because of who he was and where he was. On Saturday, it happened again in a Pittsburgh synagogue. Eleven Jewish parishioners were killed because of who they were and where they were.
Moving beyond tragedy
Something is clearly wrong in our nation when worshippers are gunned down at the Tree of Life Synagogue, as occurred last week, or at the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, S.C., in 2015, or at the Sikh Temple in Oak Creek, Wis., in 2012.
Free Press Endorsements 2018
Tuesday, Nov. 6, is Election Day. And we believe there is no starker contrast or more clear choice for Virginia voters than in the race for U.S. Senate and in contests for the U.S. House of Representatives in the 4th and 7th Districts.
‘Wall of Honor’ unveiled on new Virginia Women’s Monument
Virginia First Lady Pam Northam and former First Lady Susan Allen, wife of former Gov. George Allen, gathered Tuesday with a small crowd in Capitol Square to proclaim a milestone in making a dream a reality.
TJ’s Jahlin Russell works like a wrecking ball
It’s no surprise Jahlin Russell plays football. The Thomas Jefferson High School senior is quick, strong, aggressive and fearless. He doesn’t back down.
Puerto Rican native Alex Cora manages Red Sox to World Series win
Diversity in the dugout. That was a theme during the Boston Red Sox’s World Series triumph over the Los Angeles Dodgers. With Sunday night’s victory, the Red Sox beat the Dodgers 4-1 to win the series. For the first time in World Series annals, managers for both baseball teams — Alex Cora of the Red Sox and the Dodgers’ Dave Roberts — are men of color.
Olympic ‘Black Power Salute’ rises 50 years later
Tommie Smith and John Carlos were among the fastest men of their generation. But it wasn’t what they did on the Olympic track that makes them most remembered. It’s what they did after their race — on the medals podium — that still resonates.
VUU Panthers meet VSU Trojans Saturday at Hovey Field
Virginia Union University football Coach Alvin Parker feels like his team has taken an unfair beating — not on the field, mind you, but in the polls.
Matthew Shepard’s ashes interred in Washington
After 20 years without a permanent resting place, the remains of Matthew Shepard, a 21-year-old college student whose brutal murder in 1998 in Wyoming has come to symbolize the plight of the LGBTQ community in America, were interred at the Washington National Cathedral.
Retired dentist Dr. Edwin D. Cooke Jr. dies at 85
Dr. Edwin Donald Cooke Jr. is being remembered as a caring dentist. The Air Force veteran practiced in the Richmond area for more than 35 years before retiring. Dr. Cooke, a resident of Prince George County, died Monday, Oct. 8, 2018, his family said. He was 85.
Poet and playwright Ntozake Shange dies at 70
Playwright, poet and author Ntozake Shange, whose most acclaimed theater piece is the 1975 Tony Award-nominated play “For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide/When the Rainbow Is Enuf,” died Saturday, Oct. 27, 2018, according to her daughter.
Personality: Franchon L. ‘Fran’ Randall
Spotlight on chef coordinator of ‘Sauté and Sizzle: Richmond Men Are Cooking’
Franchon L. “Fran” Randall is a good cook, even if she says so herself. The pescatarian’s favorite dish to whip up is fresh spinach, red onion, basil and fresh garlic and tomato sauce over angel hair pasta and topped with grilled or baked salmon.
Obama Elementary to hold fall festival Nov. 10
North Side’s newly renamed school is having a fall celebration.
Gingerbread House Challenge to benefit Better Housing Coalition
Twenty-four teams will vie to create a prize-winning gingerbread house this weekend to benefit the Better Housing Coalition, a Richmond nonprofit that develops affordable housing, it has been announced.
Stoney launches census committee
Mayor Levar M. Stoney is seeking to ensure every city resident is counted in the official 2020 Census. This week, Mayor Stoney launched Richmond’s Census 2020 Complete Count Committee to help make it happen when the population count begins more than a year from now.
Crusade for Voters endorses Sen. Kaine, other candidates
Incumbent U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine has received the endorsement of the Richmond Crusade for Voters, the city’s oldest and largest African-American political group.
RRHA inspection turns up more heating problems
An inspection of heating equipment in the city’s 4,000 public housing units has turned up broken radiators and other problems in 250 units, according to Orlando Artze, interim executive director of the Richmond Redevelopment and Housing Authority.
VCU cuts university-wide commencement ceremony in 2019
Virginia Commonwealth University is the latest customer to be affected by a still largely undisclosed plan to replace the Richmond Coliseum. VCU officials announced Tuesday that the university-wide spring graduation ceremony held in early May at the 13,000-seat Coliseum since 1972 is off for 2019.
Mayor: COLA for retirees too costly
Too costly. That is Mayor Levar M. Stoney’s explanation for his decision to back away from his March promise that he would seek to use a surplus to pay for a cost-of-living adjustment, or COLA, for retired city employees.
Election Day TUESDAY, NOV. 6 VOTE Polls Open 6 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 6. At stake: A U.S. Senate seat representing Virginia; the state’s 11 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives, including the 4th District that includes Richmond, Petersburg and parts of Henrico and Chesterfield counties, and the 7th District that includes parts of Henrico and Chesterfield counties; and the Richmond School Board’s 7th District seat.
