FBI detects breaches in two state voter systems
The FBI has found breaches in Illinois’ and Arizona’s voter registration databases and is urging states to increase computer security ahead of the Nov. 8 presidential election, according to a U.S. official familiar with the probe.
GOP at it again
Republican leaders seek to hold Va. governor in contempt for restoring voting rights of 13,000 former felons last week
Gov. Terry McAuliffe once again is under attack from Republican leaders in the General Assembly who are determined to halt his efforts to restore the voting and political rights of hundreds of thousands of felons who have served their time. In a new filing Wednesday, GOP leaders asked the Virginia Supreme Court to hold the Democratic governor in contempt for restoring the political rights of 13,000 felons last week and for trying to do so in coming months for more than 200,000 others who have completed their sentences.
Electoral Board seeking legal decision on candidate qualification
Richmond has put a hold on printing ballots for the Nov. 8 general election while the city’s Electoral Board tries to figure out whether two candidates’ names should be listed.
Public hearing Aug. 31 on banning firearms in state executive branch offices
The state Department of General Services will hold a public hearing next week on its proposed permanent regulation banning concealed firearms in the state’s executive branch offices. The hearing will be 10 a.m. to noon Wednesday, Aug. 31, in the auditorium of the Pocahontas Building, 900 E. Main St. in Richmond.
Nonprofit helps students with scholarships
A Richmond area nonprofit is seeking to assist parents to obtain state scholarships to enroll children with dyslexia, autism or other learning challenges in accredited private schools.
Keep politics out of Richmond races
Let us not have political party influence or interference in any of our local elections. As divisive and dysfunctional as the political climate is, we should certainly want Richmond to be a political-free zone.
Journalist George Curry ‘will be missed’
I write as a native of Richmond, mail subscriber to the Richmond Free Press and a current resident of Tuscaloosa, Ala., hometown of the late George E. Curry, former editor-in-chief of the National Newspaper Publishers Association News Service.
‘American people cannot afford another recession’
We have made tremendous strides over the last eight years to dig ourselves out of one of the deepest recessions the United States has seen in decades. Under President Obama, we have gone from losing more than 800,000 jobs per month to the longest sustained monthly job growth in our nation’s history.
Make America ‘great’ again?
Our American exceptionalism allows us to shimmer too fully in our greatness. We are the biggest and the baddest. We are the best armed and the most influential. We win the most Olympic medals, and we have the most nuclear weapons. America, the greatest! We are so great that we wave our flags and shout, “USA! USA!”
Injustice with no action, little notice
Now it is Milwaukee. On Aug. 13, a car with two African-American men was stopped for “suspicion.” The men fled, the policeman pursued, and driver Sylville Smith, reportedly armed, was shot and killed.
Racism and ignorance: A dangerous combination
We are sick of Republican presidential candidate Donald J. Trump about now. His 11th-hour attempts to court “the blacks,” as he has referred to us on several occasions, show us what we already know — that he is both ignorant and racist.
Roland Martin kicks off African Arrival Day commemoration
A blistering August sun did not deter guests from attending a special outdoor ceremony last Saturday at Fort Monroe in Hampton. The event, staged to remember the 1619 arrival of the first 20 Africans to America, was held on the fort grounds near the site of the first arrival.
National Park Service activities commemorate 100th anniversary
National parks in Richmond and Petersburg are hosting events this weekend commemorating the 100th anniversary of the creation of the National Park Service.
10th Annual WE CARE Festival slated for Saturday
Music, games, health screenings and a giveaway of school supplies will highlight the 10th Annual WE CARE Festival this weekend.
Wiley lecture at VMFA Aug. 26
Dr. Eugenie Tsai, curator of the popular Kehinde Wiley exhibition at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, will discuss the selection and presentation of the nearly 60 pieces in the exhibit in a special lecture Friday, Aug. 26.
HBCU athletes win spotlight, medals in Rio
Francena McCorory represents the gold standard of track and field in Virginia. The Hampton native and Hampton University graduate now has doubled her Olympic gold medal count. The 27-year-old added a second gold in the 4x400 relay at the Olympic games in Rio de Janeiro. McCorory helped Team USA to a first place finish in the semifinals. She did not run in the finals, but still qualified for individual gold.
Is Bolt the greatest sprinter of all time?
There is ample reason to label Usain Bolt the greatest Olympic sprinter of all time. But is he? In support of American heroes, admirers of Jesse Owens and Carl Lewis may contest Bolt’s kingly status.
Japan’s ‘bolt’ turns heads, wins silver
Japan’s 4x100 relay team brought a “bolt” of it’s own to the 2016 Olympics in the form of “Aska” Cambridge.
Shields brims with confidence even before winning historic second gold
Claressa Shields brought one gold medal to the ring with her and left with two hanging around her neck after retaining her Olympic middleweight title and making U.S. boxing history last Sunday.
Lochte loses sponsors after Olympic embarrassment
U.S. swimmer Ryan Lochte lost the last of his four major sponsors, Japanese mattress maker Airweave, days after he admitted to exaggerating his story about being robbed at gunpoint in Rio during the Olympics. The incident embarrassed the host city, angered the local police and government and dominated news coverage of South America’s first Olympics, leading the U.S. Olympic Committee to issue an apology.
