Richmond Free Press August 31-Sept. 2, 2023 edition

Groups agree to disagree Richmond Free Press

By George Copeland Jr.

Another attempt by community and city leaders to reach an agreement on gun violence solutions ended in disappointment Tuesday after representatives of two organizations met with Mayor Levar M. Stoney and Richmond Police Chief Rick Edwards at City Hall.

More than 100 members of Richmonders Involved to Strengthen Our Communities (RISC) and the Richmond chapter of Virginia Caucus of Rankand-File Educators (VCORE) assembled outside City Hall’s Marshall Street entrance for a prayer vigil Tuesday evening while waiting for news that the city would consider the use of a Group Violence Intervention plan to ensure a safer city.

The results of the meeting failed to satisfy either party, but both sides remain hopeful their approaches could bear fruit and a partnership could be possible.

“It may have been discouraging, but we’re not discouraged,” said the Rev. Don Coleman, RISC member and co-pastor of East End Fellowship. “We’re

going to keep pushing.”

Rev. Coleman joined Pastor Amy Starr-Redwine of First Presbyterian Church and teachers and VCORE members

Anne Forrester and Lisa Delao in the discussion, which was spurred by a letter they sent to city leaders in July.

The letter and meeting were

prompted by the Huguenot graduation shooting in June that led to the murder of Huguenot graduate Shawn D. Jackson and his stepfather, Renzo Smith, and left a dozen people injured. In a statement, Mayor Stoney

Changes in Youngkin administration

The Associated Press JACKSONVILLE, Fla.

By some measures, Jacksonville was making strides to emerge from its racist past. But the killing of three Black people by a young, white shooter was a painful and startling reminder that the remnants of racism still fester in the Florida city.

What happened Saturday in Jacksonville, said 79-yearold longtime resident Rodney Hurst, “could have happened anywhere, except it did happen in Jacksonville.”

The shooting occurred as the community prepared to commemorate what is known as Ax Handle Saturday, when a white mob used baseball bats and ax handles to club peaceful Black demonstrators protesting segregation at a downtown lunch counter on Aug. 27, 1960. Police initially stood by but joined the white mob when the Black group began fighting back. Newspaper reports at the time said at least 62 people

University of North Carolina graduate student left building right after killing adviser, police say

The Associated Press CHAPEL HILL, N.C.

A University of North Carolina graduate student walked into a classroom building, shot his faculty adviser and quickly left, authorities said a day after the attack paralyzed the campus as police searched for the gunman.

Tailei Qi, 34, was charged Tuesday with first degree murder and having a gun on educational property in Monday’s killing of Zijie Yan inside a science building at the state’s flagship public university.

Chapel Hill Police arrested Mr. Qi without force in a residential neighborhood near campus within two hours of the attack, UNC Police Chief Brian James said at a news conference.

Investigators were trying to determine a motive and searching for the gun, Chief James said. He declined to specify where in Caudill Labs Yan was killed, saying officers are still looking at evidence. Mr. Qi was already gone when a team of officers reached the building, Chief James said.

to pay fees

The Associated Press WASHINGTON

A federal judge on Wednesday held Rudy Giuliani liable in a defamation lawsuit brought by two Georgia election workers who say they were falsely accused of fraud, entering a default judgment against the former New York mayor and ordering him to pay tens of thousands of dollars in lawyers’ fees.

U.S. District Court Judge Beryl Howell said

By Jeremy M. Lazarus

Kay Coles James has stepped down as secretary of the commonwealth, and Harold W. Clarke is retiring as director of the state’s prison system.

The departure of the two senior Black state officials will usher in new leadership at several agencies in Gov. Glenn A. Youngkin’s administration.

Gov. Youngkin described Ms. James as “a leader, a trailblazer and a dedicated public servant to our Commonwealth and our nation” in announcing the departure of a key person in handling patronage appointments to policy positions.

“What a pleasure it has been serving the citizens of the Commonwealth and working with him and other cabinet members to deliver on his promise to make Virginia the best place to live, work and raise a family,” Ms. James said.

As secretary, her duties included recommending appointments to boards and commissions, overseeing restoration of released felons’ voting and civil rights, working with Virginia’s Native American tribes and appointing notary publics to authenticate documents.

During her tenure, the governor drew fire for ending the virtually automatic restoration of rights of released felons that began under Republican Gov. Robert F. “Bob” McDonnell and accelerated under the two Democratic governors that succeeded him.

Gov. Youngkin tapped the current director of the Virginia Lottery, Kelly Gee, as Ms. James’ replacement, opening the door to a new leader at that agency.

Ms. James, 74, will remain engaged as a senior adviser to Gov. Youngkin’s Spirit of Virginia Political Action Committee, which is coordinating the Republican effort to maintain control of the House of Delegates and regain a majority in the state Senate in the upcoming Nov. 7 election.

A Portsmouth native who grew up in Richmond’s public housing, Ms. James was the first Black woman to serve as president of the Heritage Foundation, an activist conservative think tank.

Judge holds Giuliani liable in Georgia election workers’ defamation case and orders him

‘It may have been discouraging, but

Labor Day 2023 closings

In observance of the Labor Day holiday on Monday, Sept. 4, please note the following:

Government offices

• Local government offices in the City of Richmond and Henrico, Chesterfield and Hanover counties will be closed.

• State and federal offices will be closed.

Courts

Closed in Richmond and the counties of Henrico, Chesterfield and Hanover.

Schools

Closed Friday, Sept. 1, and Monday, Sept. 4, for Richmond, Chesterfield County, Henrico and Hanover County public schools

Public libraries

Closed Monday, Sept. 4. The Library of Virginia will be closed from Saturday, Sept. 2, to Monday, Sept. 4.

Trash and recycling

No pickups Monday, Sept. 4; all collections will be delayed by one day for the week.

Banks, credit unions and other financial institutions

Closed.

U.S. Postal Service

Closed.

Department of Motor Vehicles customer service centers

Closed.

Malls, major retailers and movie theaters

Varies; check with specific locations.

ABC stores

All stores will close at 6 p.m. on Labor Day.

GRTC Operating on a Sunday schedule on Labor Day, with no express service.

Free Press office Closed.

Richmond’s bike share program back in business

Richmond’s bicycle rental system is back in business, with free rides being offered through the end of the year to re-energize, raise awareness and boost interest.

City Hall announced the restart Monday following the hiring of a new operator, We Go Share, out of Portugal.

The announcement was made as Richmond opened a new station at Dominion Energy Center, 600 E. Grace St. Officials said there are now 300 pedal-assisted electric bikes available at 25 stations around the city, with additional stations set to be installed in a bid to make the bikes more competitive with popular scooters.

The free use of bikes through Dec. 31 is available to anyone who downloads the RVA Bikeshare application and then registers as a rider using the app, according to the city Department of Public Works.

The bike share operation shut down May 19 after a financially stressed Canadian company, Bewegen Technologies, abruptly terminated its ties with Richmond as well as a host of other cities.

DPW solicited other software companies, and We Go Share was selected to restart the program at cost of $55,000, according to the city.

Launched with a federal grant, the operation is expected to pay for itself from fees riders pay for using the bikes. City financial reports on the program indicate that revenue and expenses were roughly equal before Bewegen put the brakes on its operations.

Free community testing for COVID-19 continues

The Richmond and Henrico County health districts are offering testing at the following locations:

• Thursday, Aug. 31, 1 to 5 p.m. - Henrico Arms Apartments, 1566 Edgelawn Circle.

• Friday, Sept. 1, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. - Southside Women, Infant and Children Office, 509 E. Southside Plaza.

Call the Richmond and Henrico COVID-19 Hotline at (804) 205-3501 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday for more information on testing sites, or go online at vax.rchd.com.

The Virginia Department of Health also has a list of COVID-19 testing locations around the state at www.vdh.virginia.gov/ coronavirus/covid-19-testing/covid-19-testing-sites.

Want a COVID-19 vaccine or booster shot?

The Richmond and Henrico health districts are offering free vaccines for COVID-19 and more at the following locations:

• Thursday, Aug. 31 and Sept. 7, 2 to 4 p.m. - 400 E. Cary St., Bivalent Moderna boosters for ages 6 and older, Bivalent Pfizer boosters for ages 5 and older, Novavax primary shots for ages 12 and older, JYNNEOS shots and Moderna/Pfizer baby bivalent boosters; walk-ups welcome but appointments encouraged.

• Wednesday, Sept. 6, 2 to 4 p.m. - Henrico West Health Department, 8600 Dixon Powers Drive, Bivalent Moderna boosters for ages 6 and older, Bivalent Pfizer boosters for ages 5 and older, Novavax primary shots for ages 12 and older, JYNNEOS shots and Moderna/Pfizer baby bivalent boosters; walk-ups welcome but appointments encouraged.

People can schedule an appointment online at vase.vdh. virginia.gov, vaccinate.virginia.gov or vax.rchd.com, or by calling (804) 205-3501 or (877) VAX-IN-VA (1-877-829-4682). VaccineFinder.org and vaccines.gov also allow people to find nearby pharmacies and clinics that offer the COVID-19 vaccine and booster.

Those who are getting a booster shot should bring their vaccine card to confirm the date and type of vaccine received. RHHD also offers at-home vaccinations by calling (804) 2053501 to schedule appointments.

The Pfizer booster is approved for ages 12 and up, while the new Moderna booster is for ages 18 and older.

As with previous COVID-19 boosters, the new doses can only be received after an initial two vaccine shots, and those who qualify are instructed to wait at least two months after their second COVID-19 vaccine.

The Richmond and Henrico Health Districts also offer Bivalent Pfizer and Moderna boosters to children between the ages of 5 and 11. Children in this age range will be eligible after at least two months since their last vaccine dose.

Compiled by George Copeland Jr.

Cityscape

New principals appointed at RPS schools

Free Press staff report

Richmond Public Schools welcomed one new principal and five new interim principals with the start of a new school year and Superintendent Jason Kamras used his daily newsletter, RPS Direct, to give each of the appointees a brief introduction last Thursday.

Dr. Timothy Vaughn, Thomas C. Boushall Middle School’s new principal, most recently was as an administrator in Texas, and his move to RPS marks the start of his 18th year as an educator.

He earned a bachelor’s degree in English education from Kentucky State University and a master’s in educational leadership from the University of Dayton in Ohio, as well as having earned his doctorate in educational leadership at Ohio’s Miami University.

Christopher Jacobs was named interim principal at Dogwood Middle School. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in business administration from James Madison University and worked for more than 15 years in business management and

customer service before making a career change. Mr. Jacobs began teaching mathematics at Broad Rock Elementary School and Albert Hill Middle School before earning his master’s in educational leadership and supervision from Averett University. He most recently was assistant principal at Albert Hill Middle School.

Kelly Carter is the new interim principal at Armstrong High School. She began her 23-year career with RPS as a business teacher at John Marshall High School and Elkhardt Middle School, before serving as an academic coordinator, assistant principal and deputy principal at Armstrong High School. She earned a bachelor’s and master’s degree from Virginia State University, and a master’s in educational leadership from Virginia Commonwealth University.

Dr. Michael Massa is the new interim principal at Huguenot High School, where he is known as “Dr.

M.” The proud educator earned all of his degrees from Virginia Commonwealth University and has served as a school administrator for more than 12 years, including five years as a high school principal.

Dr. Blair Smoak is the interim principal at Richmond Alternative School. He earned a bachelor’s degree in political science and a master’s in education from Virginia State University. He also was awarded a post master’s degree in school leadership from The George Washington University and a doctorate in district leadership from Bowie State University.

Crystal Potee is the interim principal at Thomas Jefferson High School. She graduated from George Wythe High School (now Richmond High School for the Arts) and holds a bachelor’s in English and a master’s in educational administration from Old Dominion University. Ms. Potee started as an English teacher at Thomas C. Boushall Middle School in 2000. After 12 years, she moved into administration and served as an assistant principal at both Franklin Military Academy and Thomas Jefferson High School.

Superintendent Kamras encouraged the RPS community to welcome these new school leaders and to keep an eye out for messages about future in-person meet-and-greet opportunities.

By Jeremy M. Lazarus

Cookouts, parties at breweries and restaurants and free admission to the Lewis Ginter Botanical Gardens.

Those are among the events planned for Labor Day in Richmond on Monday, Sept. 4, according to websites listing events. Missing from the list are parades, celebrations or other activities related to working people and labor unions — even though this holiday was created to celebrate workers.

Despite new unions sprouting at City Hall and among employees of Richmond Public Schools, the unions and their new membership are not offering any public activities.

Nor is the city, members of the governing body, City Council, or the School Board hosting anything, despite their support for the new unions.

A Free Press request for comment on

By George Copeland Jr.

The Richmond School Board unanimously approved a motion during their meeting Monday evening for a minimum 20-minute seated lunch time.

“We have workers and students who experience lunches of fewer than 20 minutes and some as low as 13 or 14 minutes,” said Beth Almore, a Richmond Public Schools teacher and board member of the Richmond Education Association, who noted these times fell below the 20-minute seating time recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

“I sincerely hope the school system will take every effort to come into alignment with the guidance of the CDC.”

Noting that work already was underway to extend lunch times before Monday’s meeting, Superintendent Jason Kamras was receptive to the approved motion, which directs him to provide the lunch times and

whether the 2023 Labor Day would be more meaningful as a result of the formation of these new unions did not draw a single response from union members or their leaders.

“This is still not a union town,” said one labor organizer in seeking to explain the silence and the dearth of activities for a holiday that dates to 1882 and has now come to symbolize the end of summer rather than a salute to working people.

As best can be determined, it has been 137 years since Richmond has had a big Labor Day parade. In 1886, the growing Knights of Labor held its national convention in the city and a parade of working people was one of the activities.

At the time, the Knights allowed Black workers to become members, though in separate unions from white workers. That tolerance, though, evaporated within a few years.

Labor solidarity has been harder to

lengths at every school and draft policy to extend them. Board members acted quickly after various speakers raised the issue in the opening minutes of the meeting.

“It is absolutely outrageous,” said School Board member Jonathan Young, who introduced the motion. “Colleagues, this is just a no-brainer.”

According to RPS Chief Academic Officer Solomon Jefferson, the shortened lunch times were the result of class hours required by the Virginia Department of Education, with schools setting their lunch period lengths based around the expectations for course time from the state.

“Historically, we’ve had about 25 minutes for lunch,” Mr. Jefferson said, “because we do have to have 94 minutes for each block in order to meet the state hours for high school and also for high school credit courses in middle school.”

Mr. Jefferson and Mr. Kamras said pre-

celebrate for a number of reasons, including the struggles of Black workers to gain equal pay and positions with white counterparts in the face of white unionist opposition.

It took lawsuits and passage of the 1964 Civil Rights Act to begin to end that exclusion.

Unions themselves have faced serious challenges since the state adopted rightto-work legislation that allows workers to opt-out of having union dues taken out of their pay.

During election seasons, unions are well known for their efforts to help elect supportive candidates in Virginia. And unions have held strikes in the state.

Still, most of the unions in this city and around the state have avoided public, inyour-face celebrations given the backlash and criticism that can generate.

Based on the list of activities for Monday, unions are choosing to be discrete.

viously planned changes to extend lunch times would soon go into effect.

Short lunch times are not the only issues that Richmond students and faculty are currently facing. Education officials, teachers, parents and others also drew attention to disrepair in schools, expressed concern over ongoing data security problems, and missing or non-functional technology for the first day of school, alongside a lack of preparation due to an earlier start to the semester.

Similar issues emerged outside the Richmond schools Monday, with Henrico County Public School students also facing long lines to pass through weapon detectors and nonfunctional air conditioning as they began their semester.

Mr. Kamras’ lunch time policy proposal is expected to be presented to the School Board on Monday, Sept. 4.

“I’m clear on the objective and I’m happy to bring back what I think will meet Mr. Young’s motion,” Mr. Kamras said.

Sandra Sellars/Richmond Free Press

Labor Day holiday prompts no public celebrations for City workers now represented by unions

RPS lunch times to be extended

A view of the city from the overlook at 22nd

Mr. Jacobs

Dr. Smoak

Ms. Carter

Dr. Massa

Dr. Vaughn

Ms. Potee

Gun violence talks bear limited resolve

Continued from A1

said that while RISC, VCORE and city officials both agree on the need to stop gun violence in Richmond, there were conflicting ideas on the solutions, and they “did not directly align on the best approach.”

“One life lost to gun violence is one too many,” Mayor Stoney said. “As the Mayor of Richmond, I will always welcome collaboration and conversations from any group or individual on how we can work together to address gun violence in our community.

“It is my hope that we can continue this conversation and

collaboration in the future.”

The meeting RISC had with Mayor Stoney was the first in several months due to their differing views on how best to tackle gun violence.

In 2020, RISC first suggested using a GVI framework to identify and address the root causes of gun violence. It later partnered with rehabilitation group REAL LIFE to bring GVI to Hopewell, in the form of Project Safe, Alive and Free. The project has resulted in an 80 percent drop in the number of shooting incidents in the city in June and July compared to a similar timeframe last year, according to the group.

Mayor Stoney has opted for a Gun Violence Prevention and

Intervention Framework that mixes elements of GVI with other approaches and initiatives used throughout the country. It seeks to reduce flashpoints for gun violence with a particular focus on Richmond youths and young adults.

It was this plan that Rev. Coleman said city officials repeatedly referred to throughout their meeting, pointing to commonalities between the initiatives already in place and elements of GVI that RISC and VCORE emphasized.

And while Rev. Coleman and others were disappointed with how the meeting ended, he remains hopeful for collaboration.

“The challenge is, are we willing to find what will work?” Rev. Coleman asked.

Judge holds Giuliani liable in Georgia election workers’ defamation case

Continued

the punishment was necessary because Mr. Giuliani had ignored his duty as a defendant to turn over information requested by election workers Ruby Freeman and her daughter, Wandrea “Shaye” Moss, as part of their lawsuit.

Their complaint from December 2021 accused Mr. Giuliani, one of Donald Trump’s lawyers and a confidant of the former Republican president, of defaming them by falsely stating that they had engaged in fraud while counting ballots at State Farm Arena in Atlanta. In a statement Wednesday, the women said they had endured a “living nightmare” and an unimaginable “wave of hatred and threats” because of Mr. Giuliani’s comments.

“Nothing can restore all we lost, but today’s ruling is yet another neutral finding that has confirmed what we have known all along: that there was never any truth to any of the accusations about us and that we did nothing wrong. We were smeared for purely political reasons, and the people responsible can and should be held accountable,” they said.

The ruling compounds the legal jeopardy for Mr. Giuliani at a time when he and Mr. Trump are both among 19 defendants charged this month in a racketeering case related to efforts to overturn the 2020 election in Georgia. It also creates the potential for a massive financial penalty for Mr. Giuliani as the case proceeds to a federal trial in Washington to determine damages he may be liable for.

He will have a “final opportunity” to produce the requested information, known under the law as discovery, or face additional sanctions if he fails to do so. In the meantime, Judge Howell said, Mr. Giuliani and his business entities must pay more than $130,000 in attorneys’ fees.

“Donning a cloak of victimization may play well on a public stage to certain audiences, but in a court of law this performance has served only to subvert the normal process of discovery in a straight-forward defamation case, with the concomitant necessity of repeated court intervention,” Judge Howell wrote.

Judge Howell said that aside from an initial document production of 193 pages, the information Mr. Giuliani had turned over consisted largely of “a single page of communications, blobs of indecipherable data” and “a sliver of the financial documents required to be produced.”

Mr. Giuliani has blamed his failure to produce the requested documents on the fact that his devices were seized by federal investigations in 2021 as a part of a separate Justice Department investigation that did not produce any criminal charges.

Ted Goodman, a political adviser to Mr. Giuliani, said in a statement that the judge’s ruling “is a prime example of the weaponization of our justice system, where the process is the punishment. This decision should be reversed, as Mayor Giuliani is wrongly accused of not preserving electronic evidence that was seized and held by the FBI.”

Last month, Mr. Giuliani conceded that he made public comments falsely claiming the election workers committed ballot

Changes in Youngkin administration

Continued from A1

She also served as the state secretary of health and human resources in Gov. George F. Allen’s cabinet in the 1990s and as director of the U.S. Department of Personnel Management under President George Bush. She previously was an assistant cabinet secretary under President George H.W. Bush.

A graduate of Hampton University, Ms. James’ wide-ranging career also includes service on the Fairfax School Board and the state Board of Education and as a dean of the government school at Regent University in Virginia Beach.

She and her husband, Charles E. James Sr., also founded the Gloucester Institute, a leadership training program for young African-Americans, after purchasing the former Moton Center in Gloucester.

Separately, Mr. Clarke, 70, will close out his 13-year tenure as head of the Department of Corrections after the Labor Day holiday.

Gov. Youngkin announced that the current chair of the Virginia Parole Board, Clarkson Dotson, would succeed Mr. Clarke. He also named Patricia West, a former judge and former state secretary of public safety, as the new chair of the Parole Board.

During his tenure, Mr. Clarke has won applause for his initiatives to reduce recidivism, or the return of released prisoners for new offenses, to the lowest level in the nation, but also has faced repeated often successful lawsuits over harsh policies toward Muslim inmates, solitary confinement and instances of brutality toward those incarcerated.

In his 49-year career in corrections, which he began as a counselor in a Nebraska prison, he rose to lead prison systems in Nebraska, Washington and Massachusetts before Gov. McDonnell tapped him to run Virginia’s system in 2010.

He became so respected the General Assembly removed the civilian oversight board that once reviewed and approved his operations and policies.

Mr. Clarke is a past president of American Correctional Association and of the Association of State Correctional Administrators.

Milestones

are meant to be celebrated.

Wandrea “Shaye” Moss, a former Georgia election worker, is comforted by her mother, Ruby Freeman,

than Swiss cheese” and suggested Mr. Giuliani was more interested in conceding the workers’ claims than actually producing meaningful discovery in the case.

“Yet, just as taking shortcuts to win an election carries risks — even potential criminal liability — bypassing the discovery process carries serious sanctions, no matter what reservations a noncompliant party may try artificially to preserve for appeal,” she said.

Ms. Moss had worked for the Fulton County elections department since 2012 and supervised the absentee ballot operation during the 2020 election. Ms. Freeman was a temporary election worker, verifying signatures on absentee ballots and preparing them to be counted and processed.

Mr. Giuliani and others alleged during a Georgia legislative subcommittee hearing in December 2020 that surveillance video from State Farm Arena showed the election workers committing election fraud.

on

Continued from A1

— 48 of them Black — were arrested for fighting and inciting a riot.

Mr. Hurst, who was 16 when the violence erupted, has been encouraged by progress since the Civil Rights Movement, but he worries that racism has again become normalized. Mr. Hurst blames dog whistles from Republicans, especially former President Trump, who is again riding the politics of white grievance in his bid to return to the White House.

Even so, he said, “Jacksonville did not need anybody to help its racism along.”

Jacksonville Sheriff T.K. Waters said notes left by the 21-year-old shooter made it clear he was targeting Black residents of a predominantly African-American neighborhood.

He fatally shot Angela Michelle Carr, 52, as she sat in her car and chased A.J. Laguerre, 19, through a Dollar General store before shooting him. The third victim, Jerrald Gallion, 29, was killed as he entered the store.

Then the gunman killed himself.

Ryan Palmeter used an AR-15 style semiautomatic rifle and a Glock handgun, Sheriff Waters said. He bought both weapons legally earlier this year despite his involuntary commitment for a 72-hour mental health examination in 2017.

Somewhat puzzling is the apparent lack of a racial motive in the shooting five years ago, leaving questions about why Mr. Palmeter cited the attack in his writings.

Jacksonville is home to nearly 1 million people, about a third of them Black, just south of Florida’s border with Georgia. The city is still coming to terms with its Southern heritage while trying to become more cosmopolitan in the shadows

Continued from A1

Mr. Yan was “a beloved colleague, mentor and a friend of so many on our campus and a father to two young children,” UNC Chancellor Kevin Guskiewicz at the news conference.

On Wednesday afternoon, the school’s iconic Bell Tower will ring in honor of Mr. Yan’s memory and students are encouraged to take a moment of silence, he said. The school also canceled classes until Thursday.

Earlier Tuesday, Mr. Qi briefly appeared in Orange County Superior Court in Hillsborough. Judge Sherri Murrell ordered Mr. Qi to remain jailed without bond and scheduled his next court date for Sept. 18.

of the state’s other major cities: Miami, celebrated for glitzy nightlife and inviting beaches, and Orlando, home to the worldrenowned Disney World and Universal theme parks.

Jacksonville elected its first Black mayor in 2011. A couple of years later, another watershed moment unfolded when a coalition of activists succeeded in persuading the School Board, after years of failed attempts, to rename a high school honoring Nathan Bedford Forrest, a Confederate general and the first grand wizard of the Ku Klux Klan.

Since then, the city has continued to sever ties to its racist past by removing a Confederate soldier statue atop a memorial in a park bordering City Hall. The move was finalized by Jacksonville’s former mayor, a Republican who once served as his party’s statewide chair.

Mr. Trump took Duval County in the 2016 presidential election. Two years later, a Black Democratic candidate running for governor, Andrew Gillum, won the county but narrowly lost statewide to now-Gov. Ron DeSantis.

In 2020, Joe Biden carried Duval County thanks to a heavy turnout from Black voters — the first time a Democratic presidential candidate has won the county since Jimmy Carter in 1976.

Earlier this year, Democrat Donna Deegan, who is white, was elected mayor of Jacksonville. Sheriff Waters, who is Black and a Republican, took the helm of the sheriff’s office in January.

“It feels some days like we’re going backward,” Mayor Deegan said through tears Sunday while addressing a congregation at St. Paul AME Church, 3 miles (4.8 kilometers) from the site of the shooting.

Just last week, a City Council committee pulled funding for the mayor’s chief of diversity and inclusion — the first time the city would have had such a position.

Former state Sen. Audrey Gibson, who represented a mostly Black district in Jacksonville, said a single event should not define the community.

“I don’t think you can use one person to say there’s a racism issue in Jacksonville,” she said, even if a historical pattern of racial divides persists today, particularly in wealth and the economy.

There are still many unknowns about the shooter’s motives and why he chose that particular neighborhood, Sen. Gibson said, even though “it was obvious that he was trying to attack Black people, regardless of who they were.”

Social justice activists such as Michael Sampson, who founded the Jacksonville Community Action Committee, have long hoped for permanent change but continue waiting.

Saturday’s shooting is “a reminder that we’re still at the same place,” he said.

Mr. Sampson recalled the killing of 10 Black people at a Buffalo supermarket in May 2022 by a white supremacist, who was sentenced to life in prison in February.

“This happened in Buffalo,” Mr. Sampson said. “You had a racist killer indiscriminately trying to kill Black people, and now this happened in Jacksonville — it happened in Jacksonville — so there’s a culture that needs to be addressed out there.”

Ax Handle Saturday serves as a reminder of Jacksonville’s racist past, Mr. Sampson said, and the brutality against Black residents that repeated with the shooting and deaths of three people.

“That violence,” he said, “is still something that we face every day.”

After the hearing, Mr. Qi bowed to the judge, his Mandarin interpreter, public defender Dana Graves and the guards who took him away in handcuffs.

Ms. Graves left court without talking to reporters and did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment.

Mr. Yan was an associate professor in the Department of Applied Physical Sciences who had worked for the university since July 2019, Chancellor Guskiewicz said Tuesday. He led the Yan Research Group, which Mr. Qi joined last year, according to the group’s UNC webpage.

Mr. Yan was a respected and approachable professor and research adviser who was deeply knowledgeable about the field, said Wen Liu, a 2022 graduate who worked

in the lab for three years. He was somewhat reserved, yet always willing to answer questions with patience and respect and advise lab members who got stuck in their research, Mr. Liu said.

Richmond Free Press

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University of North Carolina graduate student left building right after killing adviser, police say

Jacksonville shootings refocus attention on city’s racist past and the struggle to move

right, as the House Select Committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol holds a hearing June 2022 at the Capitol in Washington. fraud during the 2020 election, but he contended that the statements were protected by the First Amendment. That caveated stipulation, Judge Howell said, has “more holes

10 drugs targeted for Medicare price negotiations as Biden pitches cost reductions

The Associated Press WASHINGTON

President Biden touted the potential cost savings of Medicare’s first-ever price negotiations for widely used prescription drugs on Tuesday as he struggles to convince Americans that he’s improved their lives as he runs for reelection.

The drugs include the blood thinner Eliquis, diabetes treatment Jardiance and eight other medications. The negotiation process was authorized under the Inflation Reduction Act, which Biden signed last year, capping decades of debate over whether the federal government should be allowed to haggle with pharmaceutical companies.

Any lower prices won’t take effect for three years, and the path forward could be further complicated by litigation from drugmakers and heavy criticism from Republicans.

But the effort is a centerpiece of Biden’s reelection pitch as the Democrat tries to show Americans he’s deserving of a second term because of the work he’s doing to lower costs while the country is struggling with inflation. The drug negotiations, like many of President Biden’s biggest policy moves, will take time to play out, and his challenge is to persuade the public to be patient.

Paperwork problems drive surge in people losing Medicaid health coverage

“For all of you out there, I get it, and millions of Americans get it,” President

The Associated Press President Joe Biden celebrates a new phase of his administration’s efforts to lower medical costs on Tuesday, saying “we’re going to keep standing up to Big Pharma.” Officials announced the first 10 drugs targeted for Medicare price negotiations.

Biden said at the White House. “I promise you. I’m going to have your back and I’ll never stop fighting for you on this issue.”

He noted that he got “no help from the other team” — meaning Republicans — when it came to lowering prescription costs.

The drugs on the list announced Tuesday accounted for $3.4 billion in out-of-pocket costs for Medicare patients last year.

The Medicare program paid more than $50 billion for the drugs between June 1, 2022, and May 31, according to

National Recovery Month program

Free Press staff report

the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, or CMS.

That includes more than $16 billion on Eliquis, a total that does not count discounts or rebates that are already negotiated for the drug. The drug from Pfizer and BristolMyers Squibb treats blood clots in the legs and lungs and reduces the risk of stroke in people with an irregular heartbeat called atrial fibrillation.

The diabetes treatments Jardiance from Eli Lilly and Co. and Boehringer Ingelheim and Januvia from Merck made the list. It also included Amgen’s autoimmune disease treatment Enbrel and Entresto from Novartis, which is used to treat heart failure.

Other drugs on the list include AstraZeneca’s diabetes and heart failure treatment Farxiga and three drugs from Johnson & Johnson: the blood thinner Xarelto, the blood cancer treatment Imbruvica and it’s biggest seller, Stelara, an IV treatment for psoriasis and other inflammatory disorders.

The list also includes several versions of Novo Nordisk’s Fiasp, a fast-acting insulin taken around meals.

The announcement Tuesday is another significant step toward taming drug pricing under the Inflation Reduction Act, which was signed by President Biden last year. The law also calls for a $2,000 annual cap on how much people with Medicare have to pay out of pocket for drugs starting in 2025.

Pollen counts Richmond a top 25 attraction

By Caroline Reinhart

If you are coughing and sneezing more than previous summers: you are not alone. Richmonders are feeling the effects of summer heat and worsening allergies.

On the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America’s 2023 list of most challenging places to live with pollen allergies, Richmond ranked 23rd. Yet, this is an improvement from Richmond’s ranking in the top 10 six out of the last 10 years, according to various news reports.

It doesn’t feel that way to Richmonder Antoinette Rogers, who says her “allergies first seemed to develop as springtime allergies, but as [she has] gotten older they seem like they last year-round and they have become more intense.”

There is a reason for this. Dr. Darshana Alle, an allergist at AllerVie Health, explained that “high pollen seasons are starting earlier and lasting longer in Richmond.” The result is that common seasonal allergies can last from the spring to late summer months.

Researchers found that about 50% of the increase in pollen seasons and about 8% of the increase in pollen concentrations can be attributed to intensifying climate change. These impacts,

such as hotter average temperatures and increased atmospheric carbon dioxide, are extending plants’ growing season. As warmer winters take hold plants will produce pollen sooner and longer, increasing the risk of exposure to allergens.

Additionally, extreme weather events, such as recent heat waves, can “increase the risk of indoor mold, thus posing a risk for patients suffering from underlying environmental allergies and asthma.”

Although there is no cure for allergies, there are ways to manage and prevent common symptoms (congestion, runny nose, itchy eyes, etc.) by keeping windows closed, changing clothes when entering the house, and keeping your house clean, especially if pollen has gotten inside, suggests the Allergy Foundation of America. Also allergy sufferers can take allergy medicine, rinse their noses frequently, or even discuss immunotherapy options with their doctor.

Dr. Rogers, a program director for the Delta Research and Educational Foundation, shares her own techniques for coping with her allergies.

“I drink lots of water and take Claritin and Nasonex, as needed,” she said. “I also keep cough drops on hand, as the postnasal drip causes coughing.”

A Church Hill restaurant is teaming with Richmond area playwright and author Raymond Goode to mark September as National Recovery Month in the city, it has been announced.

Rise Café plans to host a three-part monologue series on the struggles, triumphs and resilience of addicts that Mr. Goode has created titled “Through Their Eyes.”

The three different programs will be offered to the public without charge from 6 to 8 p.m. Friday, Sept. 8; Friday, Sept. 15; and Friday, Sept. 22, the announcement stated.

The Redirect Foundation and X-Rise Labs are sponsoring Mr. Goode’s presentation that seeks to raise awareness of drugs, alcohol and addictive behavior, according to a release on the program.

Substance recovery program and treatment providers have been invited to participate.

Rise Café, which serves coffee, breakfast and lunch offerings, is located at 2600 Nine Mile Road in Bon Secours’ Sarah Garland Jones Center.

Details: Anthony K. Jones, (804) 621-5004 or redirectfoundation@gmail.com

Courtesy Science Museum of Virginia

Using hands-on and large-scale interactive exhibits and multimedia components, the Science Museum of Virginia’s “Space: An Out-of-Gravity Experience “explores the solutions that will shape our future in space.

Science Museum’s space exhibit closing

Free Press staff report

Richmonders interested in space and how astronauts survive it have just a few days to experience it at the Science Museum of Virginia, as the “Space: An Out-of-Gravity Experience” exhibition will end on Labor Day, Monday, Sept. 4.

The exhibition has been at the Science Museum since May, allowing visitors to learn about space, the dangers for humans, how science works to adapt to those dangers and the potential future of exploration through interactive, hands-on stations.

The space exhibit also features a replica of the International Space Station, NASA video footage of the process of space exploration and a free showing of “Astronaut: Ocean to Orbit or Birth of Planet Earth at the Dome” on the same day guests visit the exhibition.

The exhibition is available through a combination ticket that includes access to the Science Museum’s regular features, and costs $22 for adults, $15 for ages 3 to 5, $19 for ages 6 to 12 and seniors age 60 and older. Discounts are available for teachers, military and others through the Museums for All program.

Science Museum members will receive unlimited free admission to the Science Museum and the touring exhibition, though the free Dome feature promotion is not available, according to museum officials. Tickets are available at Guest Services or at www.smv.org/visit/tickets-admissions.

VCU Health’s Bridging the Gap program receives $5M grant for community violence intervention initiatives

Free Press staff report

Bridging the Gap, a VCU Health program geared toward community violence intervention at the bedside and in the community, was among six recipients of a $5 million grant to sustain the work of hospital-based community violence intervention programs (HVIPs) in Virginia.

Bridging the Gap, which is a part of VCU Health’s Injury and Violence Prevention program (IVPP), is an evidence-based program and a national model that provides services to Richmond area youths and adults who have been admitted to VCU Medical Center for intentional injuries such as gunshot wounds, stab wounds and assaults, according to VCU Health. The program focuses on this population with the goal of reducing the rate of re-injury, and subsequent health care demands and costs often associated with violent injuries, by providing the participants

and their families with the services required to break the cycle of violence and reintegrate positively in the community.

Originally started in 2003, Bridging the Gap has seen incredible success in changing the life trajectory of participants, VCU Health officials said. So far, more than 1,950 patients have participated in the program. Research has shown that Bridging the Gap participants reduce re-injury rates by 76%, meaning those who have experienced gun violence in the Richmond area and enroll in the program are significantly less likely to be readmitted to the hospital for gun violence.

“For a long time, people have viewed trauma centers as the place that people go once they get shot, as the end of the path,” said Michel Aboutanos, M.D., medical director of the VCU Medical Center Level I Trauma Center. “That is not the case. Through Bridging the Gap, we have

redefined the role of the trauma center. Not only are we treating patients from a clinical perspective, but we’re intervening in the hospital and offering direct services and connecting patients and their families with resources and support with our partners in the community.”

In addition to supporting and helping to coordinate appropriate follow-up health care after discharge, Bridging the Gap provides survivors of violence and their families with intensive case management services in home and community settings. This continued engagement connects them with resources to help with housing, enrolling in educational and vocational programs, assisting in finding positive social outlets and accessing mental health services.

“We recognize that a hospital is not just a building with medical equipment; it is a cornerstone of a thriving community,” said Michael Elliott, chief operating officer of VCU Health. “We are

proud of the work of our IVPP initiatives and Bridging the Gap. Our mission goes beyond providing medical care; it extends to fostering a culture of health, compassion, and resilience and that’s what the programs are all about.”

The grant is administered by the Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services through the Virginia Hospital & Healthcare Association (VHHA) Foundation. The funding will, in part, allow VCU Health to continue to serve as a technical assistance center, providing training and support for other programs throughout the state to develop and execute similar HVIPs.

The $5 million is the largest grant award in VHHA Foundation history. It went into effect on July 1 and will be distributed over the course of two years.

For more information, visit https://www. vcuhealth.org/services/injury-and-violenceprevention/ivpp-programs/bridging-the-gap.

Oh ye of little faith

Gov. Glenn A. Youngkin and Attorney General Jason

S. Miyares both profess to be men of Christian faith, which calls on adherents to be accepting of people no matter their status, resources or appearance.

So why do they take such comfort supporting the oppression of transgender people?

Given all the attention the governor and Mr. Miyares have given the topic, you would think that people who say their actual gender is the opposite of their outward appearance – they are a girl despite looking like a boy or a boy rather than the outward girl – are overrunning the state, instead of being a tiny minority.

Best estimates suggest that possibly 1.6 million people in the U.S. identify as transgender, or far less than 1% of the population of 335 million.

In Virginia, the transgender population numbers about 38,000 people, or four-100ths of the state’s 8.6 million people.

Somehow, this tiny group represents a threat to these leaders and others who support them despite their stated adherence to the belief that all people are made in God’s image.

No one chooses to be transgender or gay or straight. We are all the product of the mixing of genes from a man and a woman. While it is quite clear that being heterosexual is the result for most of us, it does not always work that way. And for smaller numbers, the outcomes are different. That is known. That is science. That is reality.

In the case of transgender people, though, the governor and attorney general believe they have a right and a duty to stomp on those who are different.

They insist that public school districts follow new Board of Education rules that public schools can only recognize students by the sex they were born with and the name on their birth certificate.

Across the state, there are an estimated 6,200 transgender youths ages 13 to 17, or high school age. They are spread among the 623 public and private high schools, meaning an average of nine students per school if they were spread evenly.

So, a school can’t create one unisex bathroom that would allow those few students to have a comfortable place to relieve themselves? Teachers and administrators can’t adjust to a preferred name for the, at most, handful of students they might encounter?

This obsession with making life miserable for transgender students and adults needs to stop.

It makes no sense that people who openly talk about their faith as Gov. Youngkin does to then do things that belie their words. Is that what Jesus teaches: Hate transgender people? Or did he teach, “Love they neighbor,” no matter who they are?

It seems such faith hypocrisy is on the rise.

Another report of such faith hypocrisy comes from Rhonda Sneed, the volunteer leader of the homeless services support group Blessing Warriors RVA.

She noted that two local churches appear to have turned their back on Jesus’ teachings regarding the homeless.

Declining to publicly identify the churches, Ms. Sneed reported that one church, where a few unsheltered people sleep under a porch roof, hired security guards to chase them away at 2 a.m. last week.

Ms. Sneed also noted how another church ruthlessly threw out sleeping bags a few homeless people had stored behind the church’s dumpster.

She stated that one of the churches that meted out the harsh treatment posts on its website, “Be a living witness to Christ’s justice and love, especially to the most vulnerable among us.”

We can only shake our heads in dismay.

Who runs the world?

Kudos to Beyoncé and Taylor Swift for making audiences everywhere laugh, shout, twist and twerk all summer long with your fantastic “Renaissance” and “Eras” world tours. Not only do we salute your enormous talent, but also your tenacity and determination to persevere in some often challenging circumstances, including thunderstorms and Ticketmaster nightmares.

Take another bow Simone Biles and Sha’Carri Richardson for your brilliant gymnastic and track and field performances, respectively, that demonstrate those magic words so eloquently performed by Donnie McClurkin, “We fall down, but we get up.”

And a special nod to Damar Hamlin and LeBron Raymone “Bronny” James, two super skilled athletes who have shown us that prayer and patience always win.

Best in class

Richmond Public Schools Superintendent Jason Kamras announced in his weekly newsletter that Open High School and Richmond Community High School recently ranked as the No. 2 and No. 3 best high schools in Virginia, according to U.S. News and World Report’s 2023 Best High Schools edition!

“Simply amazing!!!” Mr. Kamras said.

We agree! Congratulations!

Once more, America faces a reckoning

This country faces a reckoning. The question is whether we will come together or fall apart, move forward or descend toward a moral abyss. In this time of deep discord, of partisan divide, racial tension, extreme inequality, the outcome is far from certain.

As fraught as this time is, however, it is not unique. We have faced such moments before.

When this nation was founded on the proposition that all were created equal, the founders could not duck the question of slavery. States with large numbers of slaves wanted the slaves to be counted for purposes of representation and taxation, even though they were considered property, without any rights. To form the union, the founders compromised in the Constitution, with slaves counted as three-fifths of a person — three-fifths human — increasing the number of representatives from the slave states while remaining in bondage. Thomas Jefferson owned 600 slaves, but publicly denounced slavery as a “moral depravity” and believed that slavery represented the greatest threat to the new nation. “I tremble for my country,” he wrote, “when I reflect that God is just; that his justice cannot sleep forever.”

In the end it took a Civil War – with the most casualties

of any war in American history – to bring an end to this depravity. That triumph was driven by an abolitionist movement, by increased slave revolts, by strong leaders like Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln, and by white people and black people willing to risk their lives to preserve the union and eventually to save it from the moral abyss of slavery.

Then, after a period of Re-

construction when biracial majorities transformed the South, creating the first public school systems and a new economy, a relentless reaction set in, with terrorism — lynchings, murders, beatings, intimidation — stripping the new freed men of their rights and driving their allies apart. What followed was nearly a century of legal apartheid — segregation — in which black people were deprived of the right to vote, the right to sit on juries, access to public facilities and more.

Once more, America was scarred by a moral depravity.

This time, it required a nonviolent Civil Rights Movement with courageous white people joining African-Americans demanding their rights. The country responded when they witnessed the horrors of the Birmingham bombing, Bloody Sunday in Selma and more. That movement for justice forced politicians to react, and with strong leaders like Lyndon

Johnson and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. they reconstituted America with the passage of the Civil Rights Bill and Voting Rights legislation. Once more coalitions like the Rainbow Coalition came together to exercise those rights, register people to vote, and elect new leaders to lead the way.

Now, with America growing more diverse — and yet more unequal with the wealthy few capturing almost all of the rewards of growth — a new reaction is building, driven by cynical politicians who fan racial division for political profit. A reactionary majority in the Supreme Court gutted the Voting Rights Act, repealed affirmative action, opened the floodgates to big and secret money in politics, and authorized political gerrymandering.

Donald Trump, personifying that reaction, launched a multistate, multilayered effort to overturn his loss in a democratic election to stay in power. Once more, America faces a reckoning.

As history teaches us, it will take a broad coalition of concerned citizens — drawn across lines of race, region and religion — to come together to save democracy. Courageous leaders can resist the efforts to undermine democracy, as Republican officials did in Arizona and Georgia.

Courageous prosecutors like Atlanta’s Fani Willis, can seek to enforce the rule of law. In the end, however, the American people will decide if the country will continue to

Who gets to play?

As summer winds down, and folks start rushing back to school or work, the memories of their vacations perhaps sustain them when, after Labor Day, the business of fall quickly engulfs them.

There’s that Gershwin song from Porgy & Bess, “Summertime and the Living is Easy,” recorded more than 25,000 times with artists as diverse as Ella Fitzgerald and Willie Nelson.

There’s that no-caring vibe that so many exude. Summer feels like, “Let’s go out to play.”

Which begs the question: Who gets to play?

In the European Union, workers get 20 days a year for vacation. Stores are nearly deserted in Paris this August because people have time off!

In contrast, the average worker gets just 11 days of vacation in the United States. If they’ve worked in corporate America, the average worker gets just one week and has to work for up to five years before getting even two weeks.

Many think educators get the summer off, and some faculty have the summer for research

and preparation. But many K-12 teachers are paid so little that summer is when many of them get their side hustle on. Some teachers are driving for rideshare companies such as Uber and Lyft. Others have lined up consulting, tutoring, or other assignments. The other day, I had a ride with a math teacher who said his salary was too low to sustain his family. During

the summer, he clocks 12-hour days into ride-sharing.

He’s one of the millions who don’t get to come out to play.

Then there are the people who cobble a living working two or three part-time jobs. More than 8 million people have multiple jobs. Who knows what kind of juggling they are doing? Do any of their jobs provide them with vacations? When do they unplug? Reflect? Spend time with family or simply get to exhale?

Just like everything else in our society, leisure is unevenly distributed. Those with more means and more access have more opportunities to play. Those who are simply surviving don’t have playtime, reflection time, or other downtime.

The European Union edict

that everyone, regardless of where they sit on the economic totem pole, gets 20 days a year off is an egalitarian recognition of the human right to relax. We in the United States are not as far along. Instead of rewarding labor with time off, we exploit workers in as many ways as possible, extracting surplus value from their work.

There is little data on leisure, so most of my thoughts are interpretations and extrapolations.

But as I listen to people wax rhapsodic about their vacations, their “happy places,” the wind and the sun and the beaches, I can’t help but think of those who don’t get time to enjoy wind, sun and beach.

Summer is a time when many come out to play. What happens to those who don’t have that opportunity? Do they live in Langston Hughes’ dream deferred? Do they dry up like a raisin in the sun, fester like a sore, and then run? Do they sag like a heavy load? Do they explode?

In a growing number of American cities, workers are exploding, striking and demanding more money and more days off.

It’s about time.

Dr. Julianne Malveaux is an economist, author, commentator and activist.

The Free Press welcomes letters

The Richmond Free Press respects the opinions of its readers. We want to hear from you. We invite you to write the editor. All letters will be considered for publication. Concise, typewritten letters related to public matters are preferred. Also include your telephone number(s). Letters should be addressed to: Letters to the Editor, Richmond Free Press, P.O. Box 27709, 422 East Franklin Street, Richmond, VA 23261, or faxed to: (804) 643-7519 or e-mail: letters@richmondfreepress.com.

move forward, or if those who scorn its laws to divide us will succeed. Whether or not Donald Trump and his co-conspirators are found guilty in a court of law, the threat that they represent will only be defeated by the decision of the American people at the polls. Once more we must decide the course this country will take.

Time and time again in our history, citizen movements have saved America from a moral abyss.

Time and time again, courageous leaders have responded and molded their energies into political reforms that made America better. Now once more, the country needs that movement and that leadership to move us forward.

The writer is the founder of Rainbow/PUSH, a nonprofit organization that pursues social justice, civil rights, and political activism.

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Rev. Jesse Jackson

Julianne Malveaux

60 years after the March on Washington, please read Dr. King’s full ‘I Have a Dream’ speech

It’s been 60 years since the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, when Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech. One of the most famous speeches in American history, it is named for its most quoted line: “I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.”

Dr. King’s speech became emblematic of the Civil Rights Movement and has been taught in classrooms across America for decades.

Unfortunately, most people largely ignore the main theme of Dr. King’s speech, which called on America to uphold the “promissory note” etched into the Declaration of Independence that all men are created equal. He called on America to redress the inequity in our nation, make the reality of our nation match the promise of its founding principles, “the fierce urgency of now” to do so, and the dangers of doing nothing.

Dr. King grounded his speech in a historical context many far-right Republicans now seek to eradicate from school history curricula: That 100 years after the promise of the Emancipa tion Proclamation, Black Americans still had not achieved full freedom and equality, but were “sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination,” living “on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity,” languishing “in the corners of American society ... an exile in his own land.”

The March on Washington aimed “to dramatize a shame ful condition” — the chasm between our nation’s promise of

equality and liberty and the reality Black Americans experienced in 1963.

To put a finer point on it, Dr. King declared the purpose of the March was “to cash a check.”

This prolonged default on America’s promissory note was the result of backlash to progress made during Reconstruction. Following the abolition of slavery and passage of the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments, Jim Crow laws took root in the South and relegated African-Americans to second class citizens, an effort upheld by the Supreme Court’s “separate but equal” decision in Plessy v. Ferguson

Congresswoman Jennifer McClellan

Labor Day 2023: Celebrating the union difference and building tomorrow’s public service workforce

As we prepare to celebrate Labor Day, it’s as exciting a time as any to be a part of a union. Working people are seeing what the union difference is all about, and they want to be a part of it.

Unions are overwhelmingly popular as the newest Gallup poll on attitudes toward labor unions shows.

Across the country, there is a bold surge of worker activism, as more people raise their voice on the job and claim their seat at the table. Workers are organizing with renewed vigor and winning some of our best contracts in decades. In the cultural sector, for example, 6,000 workers at museums, libraries, zoos and other cultural institutions have joined AFSCME since 2019. Municipal workers in New Orleans – a part of the country that hasn’t historically been labor-friendly – won collective bargaining rights this summer.

In city after city, we are seeing that same energy and enthusiasm during local job fairs that AFSCME is sponsoring as part of “Staff the Front Lines” – our new initiative to recruit qualified people for vacancies in public service. Job seekers are flocking to these hiring events in droves – nearly 200 people showed up in Philadelphia on a recent Monday afternoon.

They have heard our mes-

sage that public service jobs are good jobs that can support a family and provide a career path. These are very often union jobs that come with strong protections, plus a unique sense of solidarity and fellowship with your co-workers. You get excellent benefits, including a pension so you can one day re tire with dignity. These are also jobs with a purpose that allow

you to make a difference in the lives of your neighbors.

Our strategy is working. After a huge drop in public sector employment during the pandemic, we are seeing a bounce back, especially in places where we enjoy strong partnerships with employers. Those best-in-decades contracts we’re negotiating are helping retain valued public service workers. And many employers are making steady progress bringing in new people who want to do work that strengthens their communities, while enjoying the rights and freedoms of union membership. Nationwide, July was the 16th consecutive month of growth in state and local government jobs, with a total of 315,000 added since the beginning of this year.

But there are still many positions to fill, and so we are casting a wide net. In many places, we are doing grassroots outreach to young people, to communities of color and to populations that are underrepresented in these jobs. That means, for example,

Transparency and speaking truth to power

I am a 19-year veteran of the Richmond Fire Department and a candidate for the City of Richmond Personnel Board to represent the classified service.

I have been closely following the narrative of the proposed burn building at Hickory Hill. I was in support of the burn building until I understood the entire narrative.

The Richmond Free Press did a fantastic job in covering the story and opening my eyes.

That being said, how the entire ordeal went down makes the Fire Department look really bad.

In your editorial you noted that Fire Chief Melvin Carter “hid the fact” that Hickory Hill would be used by no fewer than five other jurisdictions.

My fear is that when executives, fire departments and others hide things from the community it directly undermines the special relationship Richmond firefighters have with the community that is built on trust. As firefighters we have access to people and places that others don’t. Again, it is a special relationship that is built on the trust that the community gives us.

Keep doing the people’s work, Richmond Free Press.

The cornerstone of an ethical organization is transparency and the ability to speak truth to power.

ANTHONY L. WELLS

Mechanicsville

anything they consider “woke.”

Widespread misinformation campaigns have left many conservatives opposed to a theory they do not fully understand. Countless members of the Republican party, including former President Donald Trump, then-Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin, and several members of the House Freedom Caucus, have even invoked Dr. King in their attacks on CRT and DEI, claiming they ignore the message he delivered in front of the Lincoln Memorial. They clearly have not read “I Have a Dream” in its entirety, which was rooted in and delivered through a historical lens.

The GOP’s “war against wokeism” paved the way for coordinated efforts to restrict school curriculums. Now, states across the nation are banning thousands of books, the vast majority of which are written by members of the LGBTQ+ community or

and stability. We weren’t living on Easy Street for sure, but there was food on the table for dinner and a roof over my head at night.

We want to give more people of all races that chance – the chance to be one of the everyday heroes of public service, the chance to be a part of something bigger than yourself by joining a union.

This Labor Day, we honor the sacrifice of all working people. And we affirm that life is better in a union. In the months and years to come, through “Staff the Front Lines” and other campaigns, we will keep fighting to help more people discover the union difference.

Lee Saunders is president of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME).

Employment Opportunities

Principal Scientist I – Altria Client Services, LLC (Richmond, VA): Identify & prioritize opportunities for process improvements & standardization by leading various projects & collab. w/ end users, vendors & cross-functional stakeholders to identify specific automation needs, making reccs. & implementing proposed solutions. Req.’s at min., a Bach. Deg. in Chem., Analytical Chem., or closely rltd. field, or for. equiv. Must have at least 8 yrs exp. in the job offered or rltd. Exp. must incl. Exp. operating testing equipt. used in an organic chem. analytical lab; Hands-on method dvlpmt & method validation exp.; Exp. working w/ Laboratory Info. Management Systems (LIMS); Exp. w/ pre-clinical study designs & concepts; Advocating & implementing efficiency improvements in an analytical setting; Good Lab. Practices (GLPs) and Good Clinical Practices (GCPs) exp. Apply at: http://www. altria.com/Careers, Req. # 6382637.

Thank you for your interest in applying for opportunities with The City of Richmond. To see what opportunities are available, please refer to our website at www.richmondgov.com. EOE M/F/D/V

Freelance

Lee Saunders

Noah Lyles, Sha’Carri Richardson and lots of unknowns as track gets ready for Paris Olympics

The Associated Press BUDAPEST, Hungary

In some ways, track and field served up a tantalizing preview of what’s to come next year at the Paris Olympics.

In others, the sport left the nine-day world championships with as many questions as answers.

For every Noah Lyles and Sha’Carri Richardson, athletes who won championships and declared themselves the sprinters to beat, there was a Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone or Elaine Thompson-Herah, defending Olympic champions who either didn’t show up or barely showed up at all.

There were a handful of champion track and field athletes who were not heard from, or were far from the top of their form, in Budapest but should be competing for title, starting in 340 days when the Olympic track meet starts in the Stade de France.

A quick rundown of some takeaways from Hungary and things to watch in next year in France:

Noah Lyles

One of Lyles’ takes in the euphoria of his win in the 200 meters — part of his 3-for-3 performance in the sprints — was how track is one of those true international sports, while the NBA, for instance, is not.

“I watch the NBA Finals and they have ‘world champion’ on their head. World champion of what? The United States?” Lyles said. “Don’t get me wrong. I love the U.S. — at times — but that ain’t the world.”

Some of the NBA’s best players scoffed. If Lyles can push track back to the popularity it enjoyed in the 1980s, or even during Usain Bolt’s reign from 2008-17, he might resonate the way an NBA star does. The real push, however, doesn’t come at worlds, it comes at the Olympics.

The Associated Press

Sha’Carri Richardson of the United States celebrates Aug. 26 after she crossed the finish line to anchor her team to gold in the Women’s 4x100-meters relay final during the World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary. Right, Noah Lyles of the United States celebrates anchoring his team to gold in the Men’s 4x100-meters relay final during the same championships.

Sha’Carri Richardson

Richardson proclaimed “I’m not back, I’m better,” and she backed it up by winning the 100 in her first major championship. She beat two of Jamaica’s best sprinters in five-time cham-

pion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce and Shericka Jackson, who is also threatening the world record in the 200.

Missing from that field was Thompson-Herah, the two-time defending Olympic champion in the 100 and 200. ThompsonHerah will be 32 next year, but she saves her best for the biggest stage. Richardson will be 24.

Hurdle hype

McLaughlin-Levrone will be at the Olympics, though it’s still anybody’s guess as to which event she’ll run.

Will she try to defend her title in the 400-meter hurdles, where she holds the world record? Or will she go for the 400 flat, which she had been running through 2023 before a minor knee injury took her off the track.

Curious about all this is Femke Bol of the Netherlands, who put on quite a show in Budapest in McLaughlin-Levrone’s absence. More hurdles

The women’s 100 hurdles might just be the most unpredictable event in track.

Take Danielle Williams, for instance. The Jamaican hurdler won the event as a heavy underdog to add this gold to her one from 2015.

“You could pick like four or five” people who can win any race, Williams said.

At the Olympics, it’s even more difficult to predict. Remember Lolo Jones? There has never been a repeat champion in the event, which doesn’t bode well for Puerto Rico’s Jasmine Camacho-Quinn, the runner-up in Budapest.

What’s more, only Sally Pearson has followed a win at worlds with an Olympic title.

“I like being on the outside, all eyes being on everyone else, and just me being able to do my thing,” Williams said.

Safety Damar Hamlin makes the 53-player cut after Buffalo Bills pare roster, AP source says

By John Wawrow

The Associated Press

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y.

Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin made the cut, a person with direct knowledge of the decision confirmed to The Associated Press on Tuesday and according to NFL Network Insider Tom Pelissero.

The person spoke to the AP on the condition of anonymity because the Bills had not announced their final cuts in paring their roster to 53 players. The NFL Network first reported the news regarding Hamlin, whose bid to resume his football career approaches completion after his near-death experience during a game at Cincinnati in January.

Though general manager Brandon Beane has stressed changes could still be made to the roster before the Bills open their season at the New York Jets on Sept. 11, what’s undeniable is the courage Hamlin has shown in reaching this milestone of his comeback by reclaiming a backup role behind starters Micah Hyde and Jordan Poyer.

What began as a national theme of “Prayers

For Hamlin” has turned to praise for Hamlin, who put aside hints of trepidation in each step of his recovery. It’s a journey that’s taken the

25-year-old from being placed in a medically induced coma after going into cardiac arrest and needing to be resuscitated on the field, to returning to the turf to take and deliver hits at full speed during practice and three preseason game appearances in one of North America’s most violent professional sport.

“I made the choice that I wanted to play, you know, it wasn’t nobody else’s choice but mine,” Hamlin said of his approach after a three-tackle outing in Buffalo’s preseasonopening win against Indianapolis three weeks

ago. “So, when you see my cleats laced up and my helmet and shoulder pads on, there ain’t gonna be no hesitation.”

A week later in his hometown of Pittsburgh, Hamlin was selected to take the field as a captain for the coin flip before the Bills’ game against the Steelers.

“It was real special, like a moment of serendipity, just like life coming full circle for me,” he said following the game in which finished with three more tackles. “It’s just something indescribable.”

Overall, Hamlin finished the preseason with nine solo tackles and one assist while playing 80 defensive snaps and 19 more on special teams.

Coach Sean McDermott all but assured Hamlin’s place on the roster was secure two weeks ago by saying the player had little more to prove.

“From my non-medical standpoint, I think he’s checked all the boxes as far as that goes,” McDermott said. “There’s just been enough of a sample where you’re saying, he’s executed well and come out of that healthy.”

Now the question is how much more playing time he’ll get in returning to a backup role. Hamlin’s extensive playing experience in his second NFL season last year — he had 13 starts

Simone Biles wins a record 8th U.S. gymnastics title a full decade after her first

By Will Graves

Associated

The

Press

SAN JOSE, Calif.

Simone Biles is not going to explain herself. Part of this is by design. Part of this is because she simply can’t.

When the gymnastics star is at her best, as she was Sunday night while winning her record eighth U.S. championship, she feels like she’s in a “fever dream.” It’s not autopilot exactly. It’s more of a vibe. A flow.

It’s in those moments that the doubts that still plague her almost daily even now, a decade into a run of unprecedented excellence, fade away.

There is no thinking. No overanalyzing. No “ twisties.” All of it recedes into the background. Her coach, Laurent Landi, calls it a skill. Biles, even at 26, won’t go that far. Maybe because she simply doesn’t want to. She spent a long time, far too long, getting caught up in her head. She’s intent on not doing it this around.

So yeah, she was smiling midway through a floor routine that made almost every other competitor on the floor stop what they were doing to watch and drew a standing ovation from a portion of the sellout SAP Center crowd.

No, she can’t explain why. When her coaches told her she’d nailed every tumbling pass, she was clueless.

“It just doesn’t feel real for some reason,” Biles said. It is. Remarkably.

Then and now

Ten years ago she was a teenage prodigy who doesn’t remember much from her ascension to the top of her sport. She was always fixated on the next thing. World championships. Team camps. The Olympics.

Now she’s a 26-year-old newlywed determined to enjoy this. For real. Six months ago she wasn’t sure she was all in.

Three weeks ago she returned to competition in Chicago feeling as if she was going to “throw up” every time she saluted the judges.

The woman who posted a two-day all-around total of 118.40 this weekend in northern California — four points clear of runner-up Shilese Jones and well ahead of Florida junior Leanne Wong in third place — is not ready to hit fast forward. She won. She’s letting herself be happy this time. That didn’t always happen before.

“We really try to celebrate our success individually and as a team just so that in a couple of years you can remember this,” she said. “Because I really don’t remember a lot from the past.”

Biles’ eight crowns moved her past Alfred Jochim, who won seven between 1925-33 when the Amateur Athletics Union ran the championships and the men’s competition included rope climbing.

Yes, really. Biles and the Bell curve

The sport has come a long way over the last century. No one has spent more time at the far end of the Bell curve than Biles, whose singular talents continue to push boundaries.

She’s training smarter these days, her only real acquiescence to the miles she’s put on it for the last 20 years. While she remains one of the most visible active athletes in the Olympic movement, she’s making it a point not to let the world in on every single little thing as she eyes a trip to Paris next summer.

Biles joked it’s because people are “nosy.” The reality is, she’d just like a little privacy.

“I like to keep (my goals) personal, just so that I know what I’m aiming for,” Biles said. “I think it’s better that way. I’m trying to move a little bit differently this year than I have in the past. I think it’s working so far, so I’m going to keep it secretive.”

There appears to be more balance in her life, leaning into the “it’s just gymnastics” mantra

that helped fuel her rise.

Age hasn’t caught up to her yet, though she played it relatively safe — by her standards — on Sunday. She tweaked her right ankle while drilling her electric Yurchenko double pike vault on Friday.

Next stop is Antwerp in late September, where Biles will try to add to the 25 world championship medals — 18 of them gold — she’s captured so far.

Jones figures to be on the plane too. The 21-year-old is a marvel on bars, where she thrives despite being tall (5-foot6ish) for someone who opts to do this for a living. The crowd erupted when she nailed her dismount, her 15.000 score was tops in the meet on the event and put 10 months filled with injuries that have slowed her training firmly behind her.

Up in the air

Who joins Jones and Biles at worlds remains very much up in the air.

Reigning Olympic champion Sunisa Lee, who has spent most of the year battling a kidney issue her doctors are still trying to get a handle on, could have a chance as a specialist.

Wong, one of several athletes trying to compete at the NCAA and elite levels at the same time, put together two stellar nights that included an elegant bars set and a floor exercise that makes up for in precision what it lacks in power.

Jade Carey and Jordan Chiles, teammates of Biles’ at the 2020 Olympics, who have also spent the last two years splitting time between college and elite, weren’t quite as sharp. Chiles fell off both the bars and beam. Carey finished in the top 10 on just one event — vault — where the Americans figure to be loaded.

— was the result of him filling in after Hyde sustained a season-ending neck injury.

However little or much playing time he sees against the Jets, Hamlin’s recovery will have come full circle in prime-time settings. He was hurt on a Monday night broadcast, and the Bills open on a Monday night in what should be an emotionally charged setting honoring the 22nd anniversary of 9-11.

Hamlin has approached each step of his recovery — from being discharged from the hospital on Jan. 11 to news of doctors clearing him to resume practicing in late April to his first padded practice on July 31 — by focusing on one moment at a time.

To peek too far ahead, he said, would be emotionally overwhelming. At the same time, Hamlin’s not been one to look back, either, while dealing with the nation-wide attention he’s attracted.

“I honestly would love to do this whole process under a rock, getting myself together and then pop back out when I feel like my best,” Hamlin once said. “But I think there’s strength in going through a process in front of everybody’s eyes.

It shows vulnerability and shows strength, shows perseverance, and that’s things I would love to stand for.”

VUU’s Garcia named All-American

Free Press staff report Virginia Union University’s Hayden Garcia, who competed in 2022-23 as a graduate student for the VUU Golf Team, has been named an All-American by The Black College Golf Coaches Association and Golf Coaches Association of America, it was announced last Thursday.

Hayden Garcia

The BCGCA awards honor black college golfers from all backgrounds and across all divisions of collegiate golf.

Garcia, who hails from South Africa, helped lead the Panthers to an appearance in the NCAA Division II Regional Golf Championship in 2023, and also was the salutatorian of the 2022 VUU graduating class.

Garcia also was named the 2022 CIAA Scholar Athlete of the Year.

Garcia was a standout golfer in the Panthers program, earning All-CIAA honors following the 2022 spring season. The Cape Town, South Africa, native also helped lead VUU to a team title at the CIAA Northern Division Tournament, where he earned the Low Medalist award as the top individual finisher and was an All-Tournament selection.

Additionally, Garcia was a vital part of Virginia Union’s runner-up finish at the 2022 and 2023 CIAA Golf Championship, an event that he finished fourth and ninth overall individually to earn a spot on the All-Tournament team. Carrying a cumulative 4.01 GPA as a biology major, Garcia was named salutatorian of the 2022 graduating class at Virginia Union. While at VUU, Garcia worked for Dr. Vernon Ruffin in the Ruffin Neurological Lab during his last two semesters and was active in the community, registering more than 180 service hours throughout his career.

The Richmond Flying Squirrels season is getting down to the nitty gritty.

Still very much alive for the second-half title in the Eastern League’s Southwest Division, the Squirrels will finish its regular season slate at The Diamond next week Sept. 5 through Sept. 10 against the Akron Rubber Ducks (Cleveland affiliate).

Following the Akron homestand, the Squirrels will travel to Erie, Pa., to close the regular season Sept. 12-17.

A hot hitter recently has been Venezuelan Victor Bericoto. The 21-year-old outfielder has hit six homers and six doubles since being called up from Eugene, Ore., on July 4. Combining statistics with Eugene and Richmond, Bericoto has drilled 22 homers with 72 RBI.

There would still be a chance of a home playoff game later in September if the locals claim the second-half crown.

A year ago, Richmond won the first half title and lost in the Eastern League semifinals to the Portland Sea Wolves.

Godofredo A. Vásquez/The Associated Press

From left, Shilese Jones, Simone Biles and Leanne Wong pose for a photograph after placing second, first and third place, respectively, in all-around competition at the championships.

Damar Hamlin

Sports Plus

Stories by Fred Jeter

Black quarterback numbers show progress

The NFL’s fraternity of starting Black quarterbacks continues to grow.

This season’s first-year starters include Desmond Ridder, C.J. Stroud, Anthony Richardson, Bryce Young and Jordan Love. Black QBs on the highest level are becoming almost the rule rather than the exception.

Counting Miami’s Tua Tagovailoa, of African/ Pacific Islander ancestry, there are 15 QB’s of color representing the 32 franchises.

Always subject to change, the five first-year starters add their names to 10 returnees.

Fresh faces

• Ridder (Atlanta): second season out of Cincinnati; played behind Marcus Mariota until 14th game a year ago.

• Stroud (Houston): second overall pick in 2023 draft out of Ohio State.

VUU

• Richardson (Indianapolis): fourth overall pick in 2023 draft out of Florida.

• Young (Carolina): first overall pick in 2023 draft out of Alabama.

• Love (Green Bay): first round pick in 2020 out of Utah State; was Carson Rodgers’ backup the past three seasons.

All face difficult rebuilding assignments. In 2022, Carolina and Atlanta were 7-10, Indianapolis 4-12, Houston 3-13 and Green Bay 8-9 in the iconic Rodgers’ final season.

Back for more

• Russell Wilson (Denver): out of Wisconsin; second season with Broncos after 10 seasons in Seattle.

• Geno Smith (Seattle): West Virginia; in 11th NFL season, succeeded Wilson with Seahawks in 2022.

readies

for show in Ohio against Morehouse

On Sunday, Sept. 3, Virginia Union University will have a national audience watching its performance.

Mark Lawton is among the many Panthers who vow to not let what may be a once-in-a-lifetime chance slip away.

“We plan to put on a show, just like we plan to put on a show every week,” said Lawton, now in his third season as VUU’s starting center.

“We’re blessed to have the opportunity to showcase our program.”

Every Panthers’ play starts with snap-man Lawton, a 6-foot-2, 280-pound junior from Washington, D.C. who likes being called “Five-Nine,” his j,ersey number.

• Dak Prescott (Dallas): Mississippi State; in eighth season as Cowboys’ starter.

• Deshaun Watson (Cleveland): Florida State; in second season with Browns after three seasons in Houston.

• Patrick Mahomes (Kansas City): Texas Tech; in seventh season with Chiefs.

• Kyler Murray (Arizona): Oklahoma; in fifth season with Cardinals.

• Lamar Jackson (Baltimore): Louisville; in sixth season with Ravens.

• Jalen Hurts (Philadelphia): Oklahoma; in fourth season with Eagles.

• Tua Tagovailoa (Miami): Alabama; fourth season with Dolphins.

• Justin Fields (Chicago): Ohio State; in fourth season with Bears.

In last year’s Super Bowl, Mahomes and

A’ja Wilson ties record for most points in WNBA

The Las Vegas Aces might be the surest bet in the city known as “The Gambling Capital of the World.”

A’ja Wilson is a towering reason why.

The 6-foot-4 Wilson tied the WNBA record for most points in a game by tossing in 53 Aug. 22 in a 112-100 win in Atlanta over the Dream.

“My teammates found me my spots and I was just really aggressive,” she said.

Hurts faced off with the Chiefs prevailing. It was the first time both finalists had starting Black quarterbacks.

As of 1999, there were still 13 NFL franchises that had never had a Black starting QB.

The first Black starters were Marlin Briscoe with Denver in 1968, James Harris with Buffalo in 1974 and Joe Gilliam with Pittsburgh in 1973.

The list of Black QBs will likely swell.

This season’s top QBs include numerous black athletes, starting with Heisman Trophy winner Caleb Williams at Southern Cal. Barring the unexpected, Williams will be the first overall pick in the 2024 draft.

Other up-and-comers are K.J. Jefferson at Arkansas, Jayden Daniels at LSU and Taulia Tagovailoa (Tua’s brother) at Maryland.

Las Vegas Aces forward A’ja Wilson (22) heads up court after scoring against the New York Liberty during the first half of a WNBA basketball game Aug. 15 in Las Vegas.

The Associated Press

She also snared seven rebounds and blocked four shots, all in just 33 minutes of the 40-minute contest.

had scored 40 the week before in a victory over Washington.

Cat fight in Canton

Sunday, Sept. 3

Virginia Union University

Panthers vs. Morehouse College Maroon Tigers; HBCU Hall of Fame Game; Canton, Ohio; NFL Network, Westwood One Radio; 4 p.m.

Mark Lawton

This will be the season opener for both VUU of the CIAA and Morehouse of the SIAC.

VUU Coach Alvin Parker puts it like this:

“It might be the biggest game Union ever played … everyone is talking about it.”

Several busloads of “Unionites” are expected to be on hand for the special occasion.

VUU was invited largely on its consistently strong performances under Coach Parker, including a 9-2 worksheet a year ago when the Panthers averaged 41 points and 402 yards total offense per game.

“We showed that we deserved to be invited … now we need to represent,” Coach Parker said.

There was plenty of crackle and pop in last seasons’ offense for VUU, with Lawton providing the snaps.

Returning for VUU is All-American running back Jada Byers, but top receiver John Jiles (40 catches, 16-yard average nine touchdowns) transferred to West Florida and quarterback Jahkari Grant (1,916 yards, 18 TDs) has graduated.

Lawton believes the Panthers’ muscular “Movin’Van” offensive line will help the replacements perform just as well.

“We’ve got a lot of pride in our offensive line,” Lawton said. “Games are won in the trenches.”

Lawton believes the game in front of national cameras in Canton – and perhaps pro scouts — will help increase awareness of NCAA Division II and HBCU athletes, as well as VUU as a university.

“Five-Nine” adds that it could help with professional opportunities beyond college. Rarely are Division II athletes presented to a national audience on an NFL field.

While the Panthers have performed many times on regional TV channels, this is believed to be their first fully national broadcast.

“We’ll be playing not only for ourselves, but also for the school and our fans,” Lawton said.

Wilson is the hottest player on the hottest team in the league. The defending champion Aces started this week with a WNBA best 30-4 record.

In torching the nets in Atlanta, Wilson hit 20 of 23 field goals from two-point range, one-of-one from outside the arc and 20 of 21 free throws.

Wilson’s 53 ties the record set by 6-foot9 Liz Cambage in 2018. Cambage played 37 minutes in that game.

The only other 50-something game in WNBA annals was by Riquna Williams, who had 51 in 2013.

Fans could see this coming. Wilson, named after the Steely Dan song “Aja,”

On the season, she averages 22.3 points (third in the league), 9.5 rebounds (second) and 2.1 blocks (first). The former South Carolina All-American seems well on her way for a second straight MVP title while the Aces are heavily favored to claim the league title again. There are no “sure things” in Vegas, but this might be close.

September set off VSU, NSU in ‘Labor Day Classic’ in Norfolk; Hampton takes on Grambling in New Jersey

The VSU Trojans, NSU Spartans and HU Pirates will swing into action Sept. 2 for their season openers.

VSU will play at NSU in a 4 p.m. resumption (first meeting since 2019) of the “Labor Day Classic” at the Spartans’ Dick Price Stadium.

Hampton will play Grambling in Harrison, N.J., at Red Bull Arena (a pro soccer stadium) in the Brick City HBCU Kickoff Classic. Kickoff is 3 p.m.

VSU and NSU are both under the direction of second-year coaches, Henry Frazier III in Ettrick and Dawson Odoms in Norfolk.

Frazier’s first season at VSU was a major success as he rallied the Trojans to six victories, double the total from the previous season.

VSU coach Frazier says his starting quarterback will be either returning senior Jordan Davis or Romelo Williams, a transfer from Central Connecticut State with two seasons eligibility remaining.

“They’ve been 1-A and 1-B in camp,” said Frazier. “It will be a game-time decision who starts at Norfolk, and both are likely to play.”

NSU benefits from a significant advantage in scholarships totals. NSU, under the umbrella of NCAA/FCS, is allowed 63 scholarships.

NCAA Division II VSU is permitted just 36.

The 2022 season didn’t go nearly as well for Coach Odoms at NSU. The Spartans were 2-9 but did finish with a 42-38 win at South Carolina State in the finale.

Hampton, a member of the extremely difficult Coastal Athletic Association (CAA), is hopeful of a bounce-back season under

Turf takes the field in Chesterfield County

Free press staff report

The first turf field in Chesterfield County Public Schools officially opened Aug. 24. Before the L.C. Bird High School Skyhawks hosted the Rapids of James River High School to kick off football season, a ribbon-cutting took place on the 50-yard line of Bird High’s new Sprinturf Ultrablade field.

Among the student groups who will benefit from Bird High’s turf field are the football team, marching band, cheer-

leaders, field hockey team, lacrosse team, soccer team and track and field team.

Synthetic turf allows the field to be used year-round, by eliminating downtime for grass growth and reducing rain delays. In addition to renewing the multipurpose field, this project improves accessibility, event areas and drainage.

Sprinturf Ultrablade fields have been installed at Bird High and at Monacan High (where a September ribbon-cutting is planned). The Chesterfield

County Board of Supervisors covered the $2 million cost for each site, and the county Parks and Recreation Department managed the projects in coordination with Chesterfield County Public Schools. New pickleball complex coming to Pouncey Tract Park Henrico County officials broke ground for the construction on a championship pickleball complex on Saturday.

The $4.4 million project will provide two championship

courts and 10 standard courts plus covered spectator seating, LED court lighting, a 103-space parking lot, road improvements and an underground stormwater detention facility. The courts are expected to be ready for play in June.

Pouncey Tract Park is located at 4747 Pouncey Tract Road in Glen Allen. Of note: The Henrico County Division of Recreation & Parks currently has 26 pickleball courts at four locations: 12 at Pouncey Tract Park, eight at

Coach Robert Prunty.

The Pirates started 3-0 a year ago but finished 4-7. HU will be coming to the University of Richmond on Oct. 28 for the Spiders’ homecoming.

Grambling’s second-year coach is Hue Jackson, the former NFL head coach with Oakland and Cleveland. Coach Jackson’s record at Grambling last season was 3-8.

HU holds a 6-2 all-time lead over Grambling in a series dating to 1990. All but the first game (at Grambling) has been on neutral fields.

In the last meeting, in 2006, HU won 27-26 in overtime.

The Tigers have produced more than 100 NFL players, including Hall of Famers Willie Brown, Buck Buchanan, Willie Davis and Charlie Joiner.

Both HU and Grambling boast College Football Hall of Fame coaches Joe Taylor with the Pirates and Eddie Robinson with Grambling.

L.C. Bird High School’s new field

The Springs Recreation Center, two at the Sandston Recreation Area and four at Hidden Creek Park. Since 2020, Henrico has attracted more than 3,800 pick-

leball players to Pouncey Tract and other sites for pickleball tournaments, including the Virginia Pickleboo Classic and Virginia Pickleball Classic.

The Associated Press

Left, Kansas City Chiefs quarterbacks from left to right, Chris Oladokun, Shane Buechele, Patrick Mahomes and Blaine Gabbert arrive at NFL football training camp July 28 in St. Joseph, Mo. Center, Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts takes part in a practice at the NFL football team’s training facilities in Philadelphia on June 1. Right, Denver Broncos quarterback Russell Wilson, middle, signals at the line of scrimmage during the first half of an NFL preseason football game against the Arizona Cardinals in Glendale, Ariz., on Aug. 11.

ESCALADE IQ

The Rev. Nicole Unice says the best thing her parents ever taught her was that life is a great adventure.

Thus, the self-confessed “adrenaline junkie” seems to find adventure in everything she does — from hang gliding on her last birthday to authoring seven books to teaching in multiple Evangelical congregations in and around the Richmond area.

It was during the course of her ministry work that Rev. Unice first connected with Rise Richmond — then known as Church Hill Activities & Tutoring or CHAT. She says she was “hooked” on the nonprofit as soon as she began working with the students and staff in 2015.

“What I saw with Rise was real transformation with a lot intentionality and an incredible commitment to the community,” Rev. Unice said in a recent telephone interview.

What started as homework help and hospitality in the Church Hill home of founders Percy and Angie Strickland grew into CHAT, which became a registered nonprofit in 2003. Twenty years later the organization serves more than 150 students annually through its after-school programming for kindergarten through eighth grade, a fully accredited Christian high school and job training, mentoring and employment for teens and young adults.

In August, CHAT was rebranded as Rise Richmond to better reflect its mission and services. The word “rise” was chosen to embody the energy and momentum that allows students to realize their goals are achievable, and Rev. Unice says the proud moments are many.

“Every time a graduate of one of our programs comes back to visit, it’s a reunion and celebration of everything they’re accomplishing.”

She adds that the organization also provides a meaningful way to accomplish the work of

Personality:

Nicole Unice Spotlight on Rise Richmond’s board chairwoman

reconciliation — something she believes should be the primary work for people of faith — and Rise is a place to make that happen in and through the young people in Richmond’s East End.

The North Carolina-born pastor moved to Virginia to attend college at William & Mary, settling in Richmond with her husband, David Unice, in 1997. They live in The Fan and will celebrate their 26th wedding anniversary in September.

“It was an issue of convenience when we first moved here because we were recruited to jobs in Richmond,” Rev. Unice said.

“We fell in love with the community and we’re still here.”

That love made them both want to give action to their beliefs. When asked to serve as Rise’s board chair, Rev. Unice accepted the offer. She stepped into the role in January 2021, and her time as board chairwoman was just extended for one more year. For her, it has been a revelation to learn just how valuable a board is to an organization — especially in encouraging and shepherding its vision.

Rise’s organizational vision now is for a permanent home for its programs. The nonprofit’s need for more space has led to raising its profile and financial resources to make that goal a reality.

“We have waiting lists for all our programs,” Rev. Unice added. “We need a modern, accessible campus that can accommodate all the demand that we have.”

Meet a pastor whose ministry is people and this week’s Personality, Nicole Unice:

Volunteer position: Board chairwoman, Rise Richmond.

Occupation: Author, pastor,

and chief people officer of Pangea Technologies.

Date and place of birth: Aug. 21 in Ft. Bragg, N.C. Family: Husband, Dave; and children: Charlie, 20, Cameron, 18, and Desmond, 16.

Rise Richmond is: A community of students, families, volunteers, donors, staff, and neighbors championing students’ voice and ability, and bringing the future within reach.

Mission: Rise Richmond cultivates the God-given potential of students through learning opportunities that equip them to flourish.

How I became involved with Rise Richmond: While doing local ministry, I was able to connect some young leaders with the volunteer work in the after-school program. From there, I was able to connect into leadership and work with the team on clarifying mission and some strategic planning. Once

I was connected with the students and the staff, I was hooked!

Why this organization is meaningful to me: I believe that for people of faith, our primary work is reconciliation—showing up to learn and connect more deeply with God and our neighbors. Rise is a place where that work is happening day after day, in and through young people. There’s nothing more valuable than that.

Why I accepted position as board president: Our world in the last few years has become increasingly divisive and polarized on many issues. We experienced that first-hand as a community in 2020 as we reckoned with generations of systemic inequalities and racism, in a way that invited conversation at every table. In the midst of that experience, I was invited to pray about becoming the board chair for Rise [formerly CHAT]. It felt important to both me and my husband to not be neighbors who just talk about issues and move on with our lives. We also wanted to put our resources and time behind the work of reconciliation in Richmond, in whatever part we could play. No. 1 goal or project: Raising awareness about Rise and the benefit to the community, building our donor base and preparing to build out a permanent home for our programs.

Strategy for achieving goals: Prayer! First and foremost, Rise and its board are a praying people. We believe in the presence of God and His love moving in and through the work we do together.

No. 1 challenge facing Rise Richmond: Space and financial resources — we fill up every room in our largest facility at Carlisle Avenue Baptist Church, which is where Rise Academy and Rise After School are located. We have waiting lists for all our programs, and we need a modern, accessible campus that can accommodate all the demand that we have! And 90% of our budget is funded through the generosity of the Richmond community.

What makes this studentcentric organization unlike others:

• Age range of student population served (kindergarten through young adulthood).

• Breadth of programming/variety of learning opportunities.

• Faith-based approach.

How Rise Richmond oper-

ates: We run three programs:

• Rise After School: MondayThursday after-school programming for kindergarten through eighth grade

• Rise Academy: fully accredited, independent, Christian high school

• Rise Labs: job training, mentoring, and employment for teens and young adults

How a student can sign up for Rise Richmond: Visit https:// www.riserichmond.org/student applications to learn how to get involved in each of our programs. Other ways to become involved with Rise Richmond include:

• Volunteer with Rise After School (get started at https:// www.riserichmond.org/volunteer)

• Give to Rise Richmond: https://www.riserichmond.org/ donate

• Support our workforce training by visiting Rise Cafe (https://

risecaferva.com/) or purchase products from Rise Print Shop ( https://www.riserichmond. org/print-shop).

Upcoming events: A Richmond Big Band Christmas: two shows Dec. 2, 2023, at the Byrd Theatre. Benefit tickets available at https://bigbandchristmasrva.com/)

How I start the day: With coffee, prayer and hopefully a run in the neighborhood.

The three words that best describe me: Curious, intense, energetic.

If I had 10 extra minutes in the day: I would read a great book.

If I host a dream dinner party I would invite: Sandra Day O’Conner. She was the first female justice on the Supreme Court and was my childhood hero.

Best late-night snack: Popcorn drizzled with olive oil & garlic salt.

The music I listen to most is: Worship music.

A quote that inspires me: “I want to live my life in such a way that it would not make sense if God did not exist.” — Cardinal Emmanuel Suhard No. 1 on my “to-do” list: Finishing last edits on my next book.

Who influenced me the most:

I’ve been most influenced by my friend, mentor and pastor Pete Bowell. He taught me how to really see people and to love them just where they are. What I’m reading now: “Letters from Henri” (a collection of Henri Nouwen’s correspondence through his life), a book on “Management Strategies for Organization Growth,” and just finished re-reading “Invention of Wings” by Sue Monk Kidd.

Next goal: Get my two oldest kids settled in college and reset rhythms of life with our new normal!

POTUS

Black women benefit from more mind, body, spirit practices

By Debora Timms

Khepera Sankara was at rock bottom when she attended her first yoga class in 2013. It was an Ashtanga class taught by yoga teacher Robbie Norris as part of a program that brought yoga to the Richmond City Jail, where Ms. Sankara was incarcerated for shoplifting.

“It was a godsend,” she said in a recent phone interview. “I found it so profoundly transformational. Just the physical practice helped change my mind and body so much that I wanted to get deeper into the philosophy of the practice.”

Those first classes were challenging. Ms. Sankara says that while she had flexibility, she lacked strength and initially found some of the balancing postures difficult. However, she kept her focus positive and soon saw improvement.

“I entered the class with a curiosity,” Ms. Sankara recalled. “I left excited to come back and learn what else was possible for me.”

Practices such as yoga, meditation and mindfulness have been growing in popularity, with the Centers for Disease Control’s National Center for Health Statistics reporting that the number of people who meditate almost tripled between 2012 and 2017. As with all groups, the number of Black women participating in mind, body, spirit-focused activities is increasing — as are the programs and events being designed and marketed to them.

There are many different practices that promote mindfulness and expanding awareness of our inner selves. Yoga is one, but even within yoga, there are many different styles that can be grouped into four main categories. Jnana — the

yoga of knowledge, Bhakti — the yoga of devotion, Karma — the yoga of service and Raja — the main yoga practiced in the United States. Some of the most recognized classes — vinyasa, ashtanga, hot yoga, power yoga and hatha — are all forms that use the physical body as a gateway to self-realization.

Jana Long, co-founder and executive director of the nonprofit Black Yoga Teachers Alliance, became a certified yoga instructor in 2006, but she started practicing yoga as a 19-year-old where she grew up in Washington, D.C. Now 71 and living in Baltimore, she says she spent decades almost always being the only Black person in classes that popped up sporadically around the city.

“The first Black yoga teacher I ever met was more than 30 years into my practicing yoga,” Ms. Long said. “He walked into the gym where I was a member and said he was going to teach yoga. He looked like Black Jesus — I signed up immediately.”

Ms. Sankara noted that while her first classes in jail were mainly filled with Black women, it was a different story upon her release from jail later that year. She says she sought out spaces and teachers who looked like her, but even in those classes the majority of those in attendance were white.

“It does show the need for us expanding and

Happily and naturally

Dr. Jasmine R. Jackson, right, leads a panel discussion on Land Reclamation in the Age of Climate Resilience during the 20th Happily Natural Festival and Urban Farm Expo On2 2227 Wise St. last weekend in Richmond. Founded in 2003, the three-day festival continues African nation-building and movement work by focusing on social change and holistic health & wellness. Since its inception, the festival has placed a specific focus on natural hair care, cultural heritage, and naturopathic medicine. Left, Stephen Jenkins, owner and founder of Gracist, hosted a booth on Saturday.

It’s in the genes

Nine Richmond families from the Historic Jackson Ward community: Anderson, Barbour, Brown, Bryant, Clay, Cotman, Gilbert, Jefferies and Rodwell gather to learn more about their family history their ancestral DNA through an inaugural project, “Reclaiming Our Time: Genealogy & DNA Big Reveal,” sponsored by the City of Richmond. The Aug. 19 program at the Virginia Museum of History and Culture began with processional drumming by the RAM Drum Circle, which ushered in the project’s participants and genealogist, Dr. Paula Royster, CEO, Center for African American Genealogical Research, based in Fredericksburg. Dr. Royster researched each family and presented what she found to the individuals, extended family and others who attended the program.

What a fellowship

Katrina Hicks, a member of the Maggie L. Walker High School Class of 1968, left, catches up with her retired business teacher, Marjorie Saunders, 103, during the annual Maggie L. Walker High School Alumni Mass Classes Mighty Green “Fellowship Day” reunion Aug. 20 at Dorey Park in Henrico County. Class members celebrated their former teacher, who also taught government and typing courses.

sharing the practice with our community,” she said, adding that in 2017 she herself became a registered yoga instructor in kemetic yoga — a very different style that moves slowly and encompasses postures that are very accessible and can be modified to anyone.

Both women say that as yoga and other mindfulness practices have become more mainstream, more Black women are starting to embrace the practice, or at least are curious to try them.

“Yoga is a way for women, and specifically Black women, to find their strength,”

Ms. Long said. “I believe that Black women are very fragile people who have not been fully accepted in American culture. Yoga can offer the tools to self-acceptance and self-love. I think we seek that affirmation.”

Also, given the many health disparities in the Black community, there are real health benefits that can be gained, she said.

Author and transformation coach Patrice Gaines has taught meditation and transformational workshops centered around Black women for years. She believes another reason increased programming and attendance to such sessions is because Black teachers and practitioners are becoming better known.

“I suspect social media is a big factor,” Ms. Gaines said in an email. “More Black women are aware of Black teachers, which has made an incredible difference for both.”

“It’s been my experience that when you get a workshop of Black women, there are experiences that come up that they feel comfortable sharing because they know they are among people who can relate or may have the same worries or distractions from peace,” she added.

Ms. Sankara said that such meditative practices

also can be empowering. She teaches classes at The Well Collective in Shockoe Bottom and founded Sankara Wholistic Wellness online this year. She also offers a community healing practice once a month, with the next scheduled for Sept. 17 in Forest Hill Park.

Angel V. Shannon founded Seva Health, LLC in Pikesville, Md. in 2013 as a nurse practitioner offering integrative medicine for adults and seniors.

“It was interesting to me when I was in critical care and ICU because I was always looking for ways to weave what I truly, truly believe good health is all about. It really is harmony of mind, body, spirit and living in connection with nature,” Mrs. Shannon said by phone.

She adds that holistic practices and workshops are an opportunity for Black women to explore other avenues of healing in a system where there is still a lot of medical mistrust. They can also help give Black women the language to advocate for their care choices in clinical appointments with a sense of urgency and empowerment.

Ms. Sankara

Ms. Shannon Ms. Gaines Ms. Long

Regina H. Boone/ Richmond Free Press

Photos by Julianne Tripp

Regina H. Boone/ Richmond Free Press

Thousands gather for March on Washington’s 60th anniversary

By Jack Jenkins Religion News Service

WASHINGTON

Thousands of people assembled near the Lincoln Memorial on Aug. 26 to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the March on Washington, paying tribute to the historic civil rights gathering led by the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. while voicing new frustrations with political extremism that threatens racial progress.

In his address to a sprawling crowd, the Rev. Al Sharpton, founder of the National Action Network, framed the country’s current political contest as a battle between “dreamers” and “schemers.”

“Sixty years ago, Martin Luther King talked about a dream,” said Rev. Sharpton, referring to Dr. King’s famous “I Have a Dream” speech, delivered from the same spot in 1963, in which the slain civil rights leader envisioned a future of racial harmony. “Sixty years later, we’re the dreamers — the problem is we’re facing the schemers.”

Rev. Sharpton explained “dreamers” were those in the crowd and elsewhere who resist various forms of hatred and advocate for causes such as voting rights, women’s rights, abortion rights and LGBTQ equality. The “schemers,” meanwhile, are their political opponents — including former President Trump, who surrendered at an Atlanta jail this week on charges of trying to overturn the 2020 election results in the state.

“The dreamers are in Washington, D.C.,” Rev.

Moore Street Missionary Baptist Church

1408 W. Leigh Street · Richmond, Va. 23220 (804) 358 6403

Dr. Alonza L. Lawrence, Pastor

Sharpton said. “The schemers are being booked in Atlanta, Ga., in the Fulton County Jail.”

As in 1963, a dizzying array of activists, faith leaders, musicians, actors, labor advocates and lawmakers delivered their own impassioned speeches, standing for a broad coalition addressing racial injustice. It is credited with helping to spur passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

Like Rev. Sharpton, the Rev. Jamal Bryant, pastor of New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in Lithonia, Ga., made reference to Mr. Trump’s most recent indictment, broadening the term to criticize churches that don’t do enough to help those in need.

He called for an “indictment on churches that are silent — they speak in tongues, but don’t speak truth to power” and “an indictment of those who have multimillion dollar buildings,

but turn a blind eye to those who do not have a standard of living.”

Rev. Bryant urged attendees to “serve indictments to those who have been adversarial to the advancement of our people,” and singled out conservative figures such as Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas and presidential candidate and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.

Richmond Devine Nine members go to D.C.

About 85 members of several Richmond area fraternities and sororities attended last Saturday’s March on Washington in Washington, D.C., where they joined thousands of others to commemorate the historic event’s 60th anniversary. On Aug. 28, 1963, more than 250,000 people participated in the historic March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, gathering near the Lincoln Memorial. During the widely covered event 60 years ago, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his exalted “I Have a Dream” speech. Last Saturday, local members of the Alpha Phi Alpha and Kappa Alpha Psi fraternities, and Delta Sigma Theta and Alpha Kappa Alpha sororities road buses to the event, convened by the Kings’ Drum

“Your Home In God’s Kingdom”

Good Shepherd Baptist Church

Rev. Bryant’s frustration with Gov. DeSantis was echoed by the Rev. R.B. Holmes Jr., pastor of Bethel Missionary Baptist Church in Tallahassee, Fla. Standing a few feet from the steps of the memorial, Rev. Holmes pointed to Florida’s widely criticized efforts to alter the way Black history is taught in the state, including instructing students that African-Americans “developed skills” while enslaved, “which, in some instances could be applied for their personal benefit.”

“I’m here because we have a governor in my state of Florida trying to take us back to the dark past,” Rev. Holmes told Religion News Service. “I’m here because God has called us to stand up against DeSantis and Goliath. We cannot allow this government, this system, this far-right extreme group, to deny our history, water down Black history, deny Black history, uplift nationalism and diminish Black history.”

Rabbi Heather Miller, a Black woman and founder of The Multitudes, recalled the different faiths represented at the 1963 march and offered her presence as evidence of solidarity across different identities and faith traditions.

“When we talk about Black and Jewish unity, we call upon images of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King and Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel marching together 60 years ago on days like these,” she told the crowd. “While it is certainly true that there are times when there is disunity between the two identities of mine … there is an energy in the air right now that seems to be radiating off of everything. And me, getting to stand here as a Black rabbi, it does not get any more harmonious than this.”

Rev. Ellison now part of Sears staff

The Rev. Joseph F. “Joe” Ellison Jr. is the new director community engagement for Virginia Lt. Gov. Winsome Sears.

St. Peter Baptist Church

Major Institute and the Rev. Al Sharpton’s National Action Network, to bring attention to many of the racial, social and economic disparities that continue today, said Darryl Stuckey, a past vice president of the Richmond Chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity. Mr. Stuckey, who chairs the Alphas Making

Men program, and is a trustee of its Beta Gamma Lambda Education Foundation, said it is vital that young people know their history in light of all the efforts being made to dismantle the gains made by Black people and other minorities. “This is an example of why Black lives matter,” he said.

Triumphant Baptist Church

Lt. Gov. Sears named Rev. Ellison to her staff earlier this month to beef up outreach on various issues and initiatives she has been involved with, including business development, youth and gang violence, prisoner re-entry, housing and family and fatherhood initiatives.

Ellison

Rev. Ellison, former pastor of the Essex Village Ministries in Henrico County, has since served as vice president of the Family Restoration Network and as the Republican Party’s Virginia outreach director.

A graduate of the Carolina Theological Bible Institute and Seminary, Rev. Ellison also has served as team chaplain for Virginia Union University’s athletic program and as well as for NASCAR drivers and staff during the races in Richmond.

Rev.

Jack Jenkins/Religion News Service

Attendees during the 60th anniversary of the March on Washington, Saturday, Aug. 26.

Photos courtesy of Darrell Stuckey