Good trouble gets results in Hanover
Let’s take a moment to applaud the good work of the Hanover Branch NAACP. In a county that’s more that 80% white, you might think highlighting the concerns of African Americans is one of those jobs that isn’t worth the …
Still Black and still proud, by David W. Marshall
As an international music icon, James Brown emerged as one of the founding fathers of funk with a musical style that often profoundly influenced R&B, jazz, and rock.
Immigration crackdown enters Twilight Zone, by Clarence Page
Kafkaesque. One hears that word a lot in discussions of Kilmar Abrego Garcia. Or, for lowbrows like me, “The Twilight Zone” might be the pertinent reference.
Cyclist calls for urgent safety fix on Mosby Street
I’m writing to demand urgent action to address the dangerous conditions on Mosby Street. As someone who commutes by bicycle, I’ve experienced firsthand how unsafe this corridor has become, and a recent incident made it painfully clear that if nothing …
Educators find creative work-arounds to laws that restrict what they can teach, by Riley Drake
An onslaught of executive orders from President Donald Trump aim to restrict how and what educators can teach America’s children.
Screening out distractions
If you’re seeing this on your phone or computer, go ahead and take a moment to appreciate the irony — you’re reading about the governor’s call for “Virginia Screen-Free Week”... on a screen.
Chaos wears a suit, and smirks
There he is again, a friend said to me and pointed at the television. Why won’t somebody stop him? I took a look and wondered the same thing.
Eliminating women in power, by David W. Marshall
In 2024, four women held the rank of four-star general or admiral. One year later, in 2025, there are none. This is just one example of how individuals and groups who believe in social equity and fairness are embroiled in …
‘Improper ideology’ or accurate history? by Clarence Page
President Donald Trump has signed an executive order that directs Vice President JD Vance to eliminate “divisive narratives” and “improper ideology” from Smithsonian museums, educational and research centers and the National Zoo.
The history they fear is the truth we carry, by Ben Jealous
The last living link of my family’s story of origin in antebellum Southern Virginia died at age 105 a few years ago.
Earth Action Day: Unleashing our power for our planet, by Susan Bass
Soon, April 22 will mark the 55th anniversary of Earth Day. The power of those 20 million voices that came out on the streets that first Earth Day led the United States to create the Environmental Protection Agency and the …
Woman’s work
This year, it’s all but certain that Virginia’s next governor won’t be the best man for the job—because for the first time in the state’s history, both major parties have nominated women. Last week, Democrats and Republicans made it official, …
Trump’s Smithsonian order mirrors tactics of Nazis, Soviets, by David W. Marshall
Smithsonian Secretary Lonnie Bunch and other staff members at the Smithsonian are upset, and they have every right to be. The Smithsonian network spans 21 museums and has become one of the latest presidential targets through an executive order titled …
Wealth gets votes, not victory, by Clarence Page
Lately Elon Musk has been looking like a good candidate for Washington's unofficial "So Sorry to See You Go" award. We used to hand it out annually on "The McLaughlin Group," among other deliberately dubious honors, as a snarky salute …
Hip-hop can document life in America more reliably than history books, by A.D. Carson
Describing my 2017 appointment as a faculty member, the University of Virginia dubbed me the school’s “first” hip-hop professor. Even if the job title and the historic nature of the appointment might have merited it, the word was misleading.
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