Game on for VUU and VSU
Oprah for president? B3
A8, B2
Richmond Free Press © 2018 Paradigm Communications, Inc. All rights reserved.
VOL. 27 NO. 2
RICHMOND, VIRGINIA
www.richmondfreepress.com
ee Fr
Fr ee
c e l e b rat ing our 2 6 t h A nniv e r s ary
JANUARY 11-13, 2018
More left in the cold
Hillside Court residents are plagued by same problem facing Creighton Court — no heat By Jeremy M. Lazarus
Kanya N. Nash thinks its fine that some Creighton Court residents have had a chance to stay at a hotel free of charge because the heat failed in their public housing units. The 38-year-old mother of three just wishes that the Richmond Redevelopment and Housing Authority would show the same level of concern for her and her neighbors in Hillside Court who are facing the same conditions. “I moved here in 2010 and I haven’t had working heat. I have called and called maintenance, but nothing has changed,” Ms. Nash said. RRHA never provided her with a space heater; she had to buy her own. And to keep warm, she hangs blankets over the windows and uses them to
seal the cracks in the sills and in her mailbox. She knows it’s a lease violation. But Ms. Nash, who lives on a government disability check, has had to wrap herself in blankets and keep the oven running just to keep the chill off. Just after Christmas, as the worst cold in decades gripped the area, Ms. Nash kept warm by staying with relatives and having her children stay with their grandmother. “I’ve lived in public housing in New Jersey, too, and it is nothing like this. RRHA charges you if maintenance comes to look at a problem that a landlord is supposed to take care of. It can add $20, $30 to your rent each time. That never happened in New Jersey,” she said. Please turn to A4
‘We have to hold our officials accountable’ By Ronald E. Carrington
Sandra Sellars/ Richmond Free Press
An emotional Maurice Tyler, founder of Coaches Against Violence Everywhere and organizer of Monday’s Redemption Rally, talks about the deplorable conditions in which public housing residents are forced to live.
More than 70 people from across the area demonstrated Monday night against what organizers termed the mistreatment and neglect of the more than 10,000 people living in public housing units managed by the Richmond Redevelopment and Housing Authority. Standing outside of the RRHA headquarters on Chamberlayne Parkway in the cold and rain, Redemption Rally attendees from Creighton Court to Short Pump were moved as speakers talked about decades of poor management that have led to poor living conditions in RRHA housing. They called for working heat during the winter and air conditioning in the summer, installation of more street lights and effective policing to improve neighborhood safety and reduce ongoing violence. “We believe there is some mental anguish asPlease turn to A4
Sandra Sellars/Richmond Free Press
Kanya N. Nash puts blankets and quilts up at her windows to keep the cold from seeping into her apartment in the Hillside Court public housing community. With her heat not working, she relies largely on a small space heater that she purchased.
Virginia General Assembly
Republicans still in charge By Jeremy M. Lazarus
The General Assembly opened a new session Wednesday with Republican M. Kirkland “Kirk” Cox of Colonial Heights in the speaker’s chair in the 100-member House of Delegates. He became presiding of-
Related story on A5 ficer after Republicans scored back-to-back victories last week in two contested races to retain a slight majority. With a 21-19 margin in the Senate, that means Republicans can still control legislation on party line votes, dimming prospects for expanding Medicaid health insurance to
Sandra Sellars/Richmond Free Press
an estimated 400,000 adult Virginians who cannot afford to buy their own. Outgoing Gov. Terry McAuliffe and incoming Gov. Ralph Northam have pushed for expansion that would largely be paid for by the federal government, but
James Alcorn reveals the name of the winner in the drawing for the House of Delegates 94th District race. The chairman of the state Board of Elections, a Democrat, picked the name in a random drawing last Thursday as provided for by state law to break the tie between three-term incumbent Republican Delegate David E. Yancey and Democratic challenger Shelly Simonds. The win assured Republicans a 51-49 majority in the House after the Democrats picked up 15 seats in the Nov. 7 election.
have been unable to end the GOP blockade. The new session will be the 150th since the Virginia legislature reconvened in 1869
for the first time in two years following an act of Congress that dissolved the General Assembly, imposed military rule and forced passage of a new
state constitution allowing African-American men the right to vote. That led to Virginia regaining full statehood. Democrats saw their best prospect for gaining a 50-50 split in the House end Jan. 4 when the state Board of Elections broke a tie vote in the 94th House District. Board Chairman James Alcorn drew the name of three-term GOP Delegate David E. Yancey as the winner of the race. His challenger, Democrat Shelly Simonds, appeared to Please turn to A4
Virginia NAACP steps up lobbying
Sandra Sellars/Richmond Free Press
Slippery slope
By Jeremy M. Lazarus
Jesse Frierson is ensuring that the Virginia State Conference of the NAACP will have a strong, vocal presence at the General Assembly. As the new 60-day session was gaveled to order Wednesday, the Richmond businessman prepared to lead a team of Mr. Frierson 12 volunteers to attend subcommittees, meet with legislators, push the state civil rights group’s priorities, advocate on the budget and try to kill or at least gain positive amendments to bills the group opposes. “Our goal is to be more effective,” said Mr. Frierson, 60, chair of the state conference’s political action committee. The team he has assembled will be among the largest to Please turn to A4
Sandra Sellars/Richmond Free Press
From left, new Delegates Dawn M. Adams of Richmond and Hala S. Ayala and Jennifer D. Carroll Foy, both of Woodbridge, vote for the first time on their first day as legislators. They are among the 28 female delegates in the House this session, a record for the 100-member body.
Jamon Lewis, 11, makes the snow fly as he slides down a steep slope at Forest Hill Park in South Side last Friday. The snow created fun, but also icy conditions that led school systems in the Richmond area to close through Tuesday. Classes resumed Wednesday. The cold and ice also caused power outages and froze water pipes in untold numbers of homes and businesses. Underground water infrastructure also cracked, shutting off the water supply in Church Hill, parts of Downtown and in nearby suburbs. On Monday and Tuesday, cracked water mains twice caused partial closure of Interstate 95 in Richmond as water flooded the highway.