Richmond Free Press May 18-20, 2023 edition

By Claudia Lauer and Mike Catalin The

Press

Associated

The cold formality of the letter is seared in Debra Long’s memory.

It began “Dear Claimant,” and said her 24-year-old son, Randy, who was fatally shot in April 2006, was not an “innocent” victim. Without further explanation, the New York state agency that assists violent crime victims and their families refused to help pay for his funeral.

Mr. Long was a father, engaged to be married and studying to become a juvenile probation officer when his life was cut short during a visit to Brooklyn with friends. His mother, angry and bewildered by the letter, wondered: What did authorities see — or fail to see — in Randy?

In this April 19, 2023, photo, Debra Long of Poughkeepsie,

RPS struggles with student absenteeism still present

By Jeremy M. Lazarus

More than 4,700 students in Richmond Public Schools have missed 15 or more days of classes, many because of housing instability, the School Board was told Monday night.

The good news: That’s an improvement from a year ago when 5,200 students missed 10 percent or more of the school year, the definition of chronic absenteeism, Dr. Shadae Harris, RPS’ chief engagement officer reported.

The bad news: RPS is still falling far short of its goal of having 9% or fewer students chronically absent and is still experiencing levels of absenteeism that exceed the already alarming percentage of students who were chronically absent before the pandemic.

Dr. Harris noted that the team she has assembled to deal with absenteeism has already made more than 41,000 calls and

home visits with parents and missing students, a 17% increase from a year ago.

The school system also has installed improved technology to better track attendance and missing students, she said, ensuring a more efficient, data-driven process.

The main focus of the work is to build relationships with families, she said, to overcome barriers that are interfering with the education of their children.

She told the board that the data shows the approach is having an impact, with overall chronic absenteeism falling from 25% in May 2022 to the current 22%, although that is still higher than the 19% rate of chronic absenteeism reported for the 2019-2020 school year when the pandemic hit.

Still, absenteeism among Black students, who are the largest single ethnic group RPS serves, have a chronic absenteeism rate of 27%, which is significantly higher than the rate for white

Councilman says city ‘not equipped’ for safer streets

By Jeremy M. Lazarus

“Completely miffed.”

That is 1st District City

Councilman Andreas Addison’s reaction to City Hall’s efforts to reduce speed and the likelihood of more fatal accidents in the wake of highly publicized traffic deaths of two Virginia Commonwealth University students since January.

In a statement to the Free Press, Mr. Addison graded the Department of Public Works’ recent addition of a few speed bumps on Main and Cary streets as “unacceptable.”

In his view, radical solutions are needed to slow traffic and reduce the risks to pedestrians, cyclists and other motorists, including restoring two-way traffic on both streets rather than keeping one-way.

“(Our city) is not equipped or staffed to create safer streets,” he stated, adding that the muted response from city officials, “confirms every reason why the council approved my request for a Department of Transportation last year.”

He noted that the administration largely ignored a council vote, along with his proposal to have the city hire Bloomberg Associates, a consulting firm that he stated had helped Oakland, Detroit and Atlanta create their local departments of transportation.

“That idea went nowhere,” he stated.

Mayor Levar M. Stoney’s administration did not respond to a Free Press request for comment on the statement from Mr. Addison, chair of council’s Land Use, Housing and Transportation

lowing two deaths, particularly that of well-known graduate student Shawn Soares, 26, a staff member with the Virginia Conservation Network. He was heading toward the campus on May 4 when a turning car was struck by oncoming traffic and shoved into the sidewalk at Main and Madison streets where Mr. Soares was walking.

That followed the Jan. 27 death of Mahrokh Khan, 23, who was fatally injured after being struck by a car while

crossing Laurel and Main streets on the VCU campus.

VCU President Michael Rao, like Mr. Addison believes “a major change is needed” to streets and sidewalks to reduce the risk to students from traffic coming through the campus. He said VCU has hired a consultant to recommend improvements.

Despite the criticism, the Public Works Traffic Engineering Division has stated that it is seeking to “provide as many options as possible to ensure the safe passage of pedestrians, cyclists and vehicular drivers throughout Richmond.”

and Latino students. The struggle to get families to ensure their children are in class daily continues even as the school system spends more to educate fewer students.

Since 2019, Richmond’s contribution for public education, including the share of local sales tax that RPS receives, has jumped 38% to $253 million, while enrollment has fallen 14% in the same period.

On Sept. 30, Richmond schools reported enrolling 21,709 students in Pre-K through 12th grade, down 3,506 students from the 25,212 students reported as enrolled on Sept. 30, 2019. That’s enough students to fill five elementary schools or at least

Howard U. picks African diaspora scholar as next president

The Associated Press

WASHINGTON

Howard University is turning to an experienced scholar of the African diaspora to serve as its new university president.

Ben Vinson III, currently the provost at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, will officially take over as president from the retiring Wayne Frederick on Sept. 1. Dr. Vinson is a historian specializing in studies of the African diaspora, particularly in Latin America.

His appointment comes at a crucial time for the historically Black university; the venerable institution is riding a wave of national prominence, with illustrious alumni, major funding boosts and high-profile staff additions.

Dr. Vinson called the Howard position, “the honor of a lifetime,” in a statement put out by the university.

“Howard’s incredible legacy, its remarkable trajectory, combined with the fine talent of its faculty and staff, situate Howard at the uppermost echelons of higher education,” he said.

Seth Wening, The Associated Press

Debra Long walks in April 2023 near the tombstone of her son, Randy Long, in Poughkeepsie, N.Y. An AP examination of data from 23 states shows that Black people are disproportionately denied aid from programs that reimburse victims of violent crime.

Dr. Vinson

UR names new museum director

Free Press staff report

Issa Lampe is the new executive director of University of Richmond Museums effective June 1.

Dr. Lampe, who also will be part of the faculty in the Department of Art and Art History, earned her Ph.D. from Harvard University and has spent the past 15 years leading exhibition and engagement programs, most recently as deputy director overseeing academic and curatorial affairs at the Smart Museum of Art and director of the Feitler Center for Academic Inquiry at the University of Chicago. Prior to that, she held museum positions and taught coursework at institutions such as Stanford and Yale.

Throughout her career, Dr. Lampe has piloted new models of learning and engagement and supported and established programs and policies that diversify the cultural representation of museum collections and exhibitions.

“Issa’s commitment to inclusivity and belonging, and her rich experience in student and faculty engagement, public programming, academic curation, collection-building and diversifying exhibition programs, will benefit our community and further the alignment of museums with our academic mission,” said Jenny Cavenaugh, dean of the School of Arts & Sciences.

“I believe that academic museums can play a profoundly uplifting role in the lives of students,” Dr. Lampe said. “University of Richmond’s museums are an important part of campus culture, and I look forward to innovating additional opportunities to contribute to campus life and the University’s educational mission.”

Master gardeners to celebrate pollinators at June events

Free Press wire reports

The Henrico County office of Virginia Cooperative Extension and Henrico County Master Gardeners will offer activities and events throughout June to celebrate pollinators and promote the vital role they play in healthy ecosystems.

The events are free to attend and scheduled in conjunction with National Pollinator Week (June 19-25):

Saturday, June 3, 9 a.m.-1 p.m.: Henrico Master Gardeners Spring Plant Sale and Pollinator Festival at Deep Run Park, 9900 Ridgefield Parkway;

•Saturday, June 10, 10 a.m.-noon: Pollinators at the Park at Short Pump Park Pollinator Garden, 3329 Pump Road;

•Thursday, June 22, 7 p.m.: Screening of the documentary film My Garden of a Thousand Bees in the Board Room at Henrico County Government Center, 4301 E. Parham Road; and

•Sunday, June 25, 1-3 p.m.: Pollinators at the Park in the Butterfly Garden at Armour House & Gardens at Meadowview Park, 4001 Clarendon Road.

Residents also may take advantage of several programs and activities throughout June:

•Pollinator Lego Expo: Youth ages 5 to 19 are encouraged to assemble a pollinator-inspired Lego creation and submit a digital image and description. Prizes will be awarded in three categories;

•Pollinator Displays at the Tuckahoe, Libbie Mill, Fairfield and Varina libraries; and

•Henrico Master Gardeners Plant Clinics, 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Saturdays at Strange’s Florists, Greenhouses and Garden Centers, 12111 W. Broad St.

For more information, call (804) 501-5160 or visit https:// henrico.ext.vt.edu/news/celebration_of_pollinators_2023.html

RRHA completes move, announces annual meeting for residents

The city’s housing authority recently moved its remaining staff to its new offices at 600 E. Broad St. Downtown.

Richmond Redevelopment and Housing Authority took over the fifth and sixth floors of the office building next door to the Richmond Marriott and three blocks west of City Hall.

As the Free Press previously reported, RRHA made the move because of the decaying condition of the offices it occupied for decades at 901 and 918 Chamberlayne Parkway in Gilpin Court.

The housing authority also announced that the 2023-2024 Annual Agency Plan Meeting will take place Thursday, May 18, at noon at the Calhoun Center, 436 Calhoun St. Senior residents living in all RRHA public housing who seek transportation to the meeting should contact their property managers by calling (804) 780-4200, according to an announcement from RRHA’s communications office. A virtual annual meeting also will begin at 5:30 p.m. The link to join the meeting is: https://zoom.us/join. The meeting ID is 87131721291, and the passcode is: 529T55.

Cityscape

Each year when hundreds of art enthusiasts descend upon Byrd Park for the Annual Arts in the Park, an award-winning show and one of Richmond’s largest outdoor events. The time-tested event recently celebrated its 52nd year. With its free admission, Arts in the Park’s nationally-rated juried art show featured more than 350 exhibitors from throughout country. Categories included painting, pottery and ceramics, jewelry, furniture, photography, woodworking, glass, metal, sculpture, textiles, yard-art and more. Above, old wallpaper and vintage scientific illustrations take on new life in mixed media collages

Baltimore

Decision day looms for employees’ union choices

By Jeremy M. Lazarus

Once stalled, unionizing of City Hall employees has begun to move forward after Labor Relations Administrator Keith D. Greenberg ruled that crew leaders with the title of supervisor cannot be part of employee bargaining units, the Free Press has learned.

That decision clears the way for an election that would allow city labor and trades employees to select either the Teamsters or the Laborers International Union of North America to represent them.

The decision also enables the Service Employees International Union to secure elections to become the representative for two other city employee groups, administrative employees and professional employees.

Election dates have yet to be set, the Free Press has been told.

On Monday, the Richmond Coalition of Police officially became the bargaining agent for the 562 police officers up to the rank of lieutenant who are eligible to unionize.

RCOP, which currently has about 400 members, but will represent everyone in the bargaining unit, earned the right in

winning its election 183-7, RCOP officials said.

Firefighters, currently represented by Local 995 of the International Association of Fire Fighters, also have yet to vote to affirm the local as their agent in contract negotiations.

Meanwhile, unionizing continues at Richmond Public Schools.

The Richmond Education Associationrepresents most employees, although principals, custodians and bus drivers will be represented by other unions.

The principals already have decided to join Teamsters Local 592, while the estimated 225 custodians capped an election last weekend by approving Teamsters Local 322 as their bargaining agent.

School bus drivers are the only group that has not approved an exclusive bargaining agent, but the estimated 220 drivers will soon decide between the Teamsters and Labors International Union of North America (LIUNA) after rejecting REA in an election earlier this month.

A runoff election, now anticipated to be held in early June, is being scheduled for bus drivers to decide between LIUNA and the Teamsters.

The REA represents most of RPS’

eligible union employees, including teachers, instructional aides, cafeteria workers, central office support staff, school secretaries, attendance workers, office associates, security officers and licensed professionals ranging from school nurses to librarians and social workers.

The School Board approved budget funding Monday to provide first-year financial backing for the three-year contracts REA has negotiated with the administration for teachers and non-teaching employees they represent.

The board also approved the latest contracts that are to be effective July 1. The contract for licensed professionals would boost pay 12 % over the three-year term, while the contracts for part-time aides and cafeteria workers would boost the school system’s minimum wage to $18.93 an hour over the contract term.

According to the budget that the board approved 7-1, teachers are to gain a 6 percent increase in the 2023-24 school year, while instructional assistants would receive a 10.6 percent increase, cafeteria workers would receive a 5 to 17 % increase depending on position and hours worked, and security staff would receive a 5 to 9 % increase, depending on the position.

New state funding for RPS school construction

By Jeremy M. Lazarus

Millions of dollars are heading to Richmond Public Schools to support school construction projects, including the rebuild of burned-out Fox Elementary School in The Fan, and the development of a new career and technical education high school in South Side, according to information provided to the Richmond School Board.

The projected $27.5 million that RPS is to receive from the state appears to largely be due to legislative amendments that were tacked onto the 20222024 state budget the General Assembly approved and the governor signed into law a year ago.

The Free Press has been told the stream of new funding from the state is unaffected by the current budget impasse at the General Assembly over proposed changes in spending for the 2023-24 fiscal year that begins July 1.

The funding the School Board is to discuss at its first meeting in June is to include $5.6 million to support the

rebuild of Fox Elementary, whose second floor and roof were destroyed by a blaze in February 2022. That would be on top of the $15 million that Mayor Levar M. Stoney and City Council just approved in the city’s new budget.

Dana Fox, RPS’ chief operating officer, has projected that restoring the elementary school could cost $25 million. The city stepped in after RPS indicated the insurance might cover only about $10 million.

The new state funds ensure full funding, enabling the project to proceed. At this point, contractors are installing a new roof, but the full rebuild is still months away.

RPS also is to receive $20 million to support the transformation of a former tobacco factory on Maury Street into the vocational high school.

“We’re back on track,” 4th District School Board Jonathan Young, a leading advocate for the school, exclaimed after

James River Center to offer leading-edge science learning for

By Jeremy M. Lazarus

Richmond’s riverfront is gaining a new center whose purpose will be to introduce thousands of area schoolchildren to the James River each year.

The James River Association (JRA) broke ground Monday on the James A. Buzzard River Education Center to be developed on a nearly 1-acre site in the 3000 block of Dock Street.

Mayor Levar M. Stoney was on hand to celebrate the start of the multimillion dollar development that is named for a nowdeceased board chair of the nonprofit group that advocates for the river and promotes environmental learning.

The property is part of 5.2 acres the Capital Regional Land Conservancy purchased two years ago between Great Shiplock Park and Intermediate Terminal. The land was slated for a private development that never went forward.

“Our goal is to make sure that every child growing up in what Outside Magazine named ‘The Best Rivertown Ever’ is introduced to the James River and is able to enjoy the benefits it provides,” Bill Street, president and CEO of JRA, said at the ceremony.

“Breaking ground on this project is the culmination of more than six years of searching for a site, planning and design. We are thrilled to finally have this project on its way to becoming a reality.”

JRA purchased the land last year. The new center, to open in about 14 months, is one of three the association is building along the river, with a second located near Lynchburg and the

learning of the new funding. He noted the city had agreed to provide $215 million for new construction, with about $155 million earmarked to build a replacement for George Wythe High School and $15 million for Fox.

That would leave $45 million to invest in the School Board’s No. 2 priority, creation of the vocational high school in the building Altria donated to the school system a few years ago, he said.

Along with the state dollars, that would mean RPS would have $65 million to spend, “which should be adequate to do a lot of the work,” Mr. Young said. That new school is aimed at replacing RPS’ current career and technical center, which Mr. Young envisions being sold to raise more money to develop the new high school for 1,100 students.

The state also plans to provide $1 million to RPS to make improvements to Francis Elementary School in South Side and $1 million for improvements to Henderson Middle School in North Side.

local youths

third planned for the Williamsburg area.

Funding for the centers comes from a portion of the $26 million that JRA raised through its James Changer campaign. The fundraising campaign, which exceeded its original $20 million goal, began July 1, 2019, and ended June 31, 2022.

“Meeting the most ambitious campaign JRA has ever set and finishing it before the three-year campaign officially closed is truly extraordinary. This remarkable progress was made possible only through the generosity of our donors,” reads a statement on JRA’s website.

“Building a leading-edge education center on the city’s riverfront will expand our ability to engage local youths, particularly from the East End,” Mr. Street said.

This center will particularly help Richmond Public Schools in its efforts to provide place-based science learning, Josh Bearman, program director for the Blue Sky Fund and former RPS science instructional specialist, said when the project was first announced.

“The James River Center would represent a great opportunity for students to take part in meaningful environmental science education that focuses on the issues and resources within their city,” Mr. Bearman had said.

Photos by Sandra Sellars/Richmond Free Press

by

artist Kate Norris.

Free Press staff report

Regina H. Boone/Richmond Free Press

The funding the School Board is to discuss at its first meeting in June is to include $5.6 million to support the rebuild of Fox Elementary, whose second floor and roof were destroyed by a blaze in February 2022.

Artist Rendering

Dr. Lampe

Black victims of violent crime disproportionately denied aid in many states

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N.Y., holds the letter that explains why she was initially denied reimbursement for the funeral of her son, Randy Long, who was murdered in 2006. An AP examination of data from 23 states shows that Black people are disproportionately denied aid from programs that reimburse victims of violent crime.

“It felt racial. It felt like they saw a young African American man who was shot and killed and assumed he must have been doing something wrong,” Ms. Long said of the decision from what was known as the New York Crime Victims Board. “But believe me when I say, not my son.”

Debra Long had bumped up against a wellintentioned corner of the criminal justice system that is often perceived as unfair.

Every state has a program to reimburse victims for lost wages, medical bills, funerals and other expenses, awarding hundreds of millions in aid each year. But an Associated Press examination found that Black victims and their families are disproportionately denied compensation in many states, often for subjective reasons that experts say are rooted in racial biases.

The AP found disproportionately high denial rates in 19 out of 23 states willing to provide detailed racial data, the largest collection of such data to date. In some states, including Indiana, Georgia and South Dakota, Black applicants were nearly twice as likely as white applicants to be denied. From 2018 through 2021, the denials added up to thousands of Black families each year collectively missing out on millions of dollars in aid.

The reasons for the disparities are complex and eligibility rules vary somewhat by state, but experts — including leaders of some of the programs — point to a few common factors:

State employees reviewing applications often base decisions on information from police reports and follow-up questionnaires that seek officers’ opinions of victims’ behavior — both of which may contain implicitly biased descriptions of events.

Those same employees may be influenced by their own biases when reviewing events that led to victims’ injuries or deaths. Without realizing it, a review of the facts morphs into an assessment of victims’ perceived culpability.

Many state guidelines were designed decades ago with biases that benefited victims who would make the best witnesses, disadvantaging those with criminal histories, unpaid fines or addictions, among others.

As the wider criminal justice system — from police departments to courts — reckons with institutional racism in the aftermath of the police killing of George Floyd, compensation programs are also beginning to scrutinize how their policies affect people of color.

“We have this long history in victims services in this country of fixating on whether people are bad or good,” said Elizabeth Ruebman, an expert with a national network of victims-compensation advocates and a former adviser to New Jersey’s attorney general on the state’s program.

As a result, Black and brown applicants tend to face more scrutiny because of implicit biases, Ms. Ruebman said.

In some states examined by AP, such as New York and Nebraska, the denial rates for Black and white applicants weren’t too far apart. But the data revealed apparent bias in other ways: While white families were more likely to be

A few weeks later, and nearly 15 years after Randy Long was buried, Ms. Long’s application was approved and the state sent her a check for $6,000 — the amount she would have received back in 2006. She used part of that money to help Randy’s son, who is now in college, pay for summer classes.

denied for administrative reasons, such as missing deadlines or seeking aid for crimes that aren’t covered, Black families were more likely to be denied for subjective reasons, such as whether they may have said or done something to provoke a violent crime.

In Delaware, where Black applicants accounted for less than half of the compensation requests between 2018 and 2021 but more than 63% of denials, officials acknowledged that even the best of intentions are no match for systemic bias.

“State compensation programs are downstream resources in a criminal justice system whose headwaters are inextricably commingled with the history of racial inequity in our country,” Mat Marshall, a spokesman for Delaware’s attorney general wrote in an email. “Even race-neutral policy at the programmatic level may not accomplish neutral outcomes under the shadows that race and criminal justice cast on one another.”

The financial impact of a crime-related injury or death can be significant. Out of pocket expenses for things like crime scene cleanup or medical care can add up to thousands of dollars, prompting people to take out loans, drain savings or rely on family members.

After Randy Long was killed, Debra Long paid for his funeral with money she had saved for a down payment on her first house. Seven-

teen years later, she still rents an apartment in Poughkeepsie, N.Y.

Thousands of people are denied compensation every year for reasons having nothing to do with the crime itself. They are denied because of victims’ behavior before or after a crime.

Applicants can be denied if police or other officials say they failed to cooperate with an investigation. That can inadvertently harm people who are wary of retribution for talking to police, or people who don’t have information. A Chicago woman who was shot in the back was denied for failing to cooperate even though she couldn’t identify the shooter because she never

sation program that would have implicated her son in some kind of a crime. There was nothing in the report. And detectives said they hadn’t submitted any additional information.

Every chance Ms. Long got, she reminded detectives and the state officials reviewing her claim that her son had never been in trouble with the police. She wanted them to understand the injustice was also being felt by Randy’s thentoddler son, who would only know his father through other people’s memories.

Ms. Long kept information about her son’s case in a box near her kitchen. As more than 20 notebooks full of conversations with detectives piled up, Ms. Long tucked the state’s rejection letter inside a folder so she wouldn’t lose it, but also so she didn’t have to see it every time she searched for something.

“What plays in their mind is that their loved one wasn’t important,” said Ms. Love of the Philadelphia-based advocacy group. “It takes the power away from it being a homicide, and it creates a portion of blame for the victim.”

In recent years, several states and cities have changed eligibility rules to focus less on victims’ behavior before or after crimes.

saw the person.

And compensation can be denied merely based on circumstantial evidence or suspicions, unlike the burden of proof that is necessary in criminal investigations.

Many states deny compensation based on a vaguely defined category of behavior — often called “contributory misconduct” — that includes anything from using an insult during a fight to having drugs in your system. Other times people have been denied because police found drugs on the ground nearby.

In the data examined by AP, Black applicants were almost three times as likely as applicants of other races to be denied for behavior-based reasons, including contributory misconduct.

“A lot of times it’s perception,” said Chantay Love, the executive director of the Every Murder is Real Healing Center in Philadelphia.

Ms. Love rattles off recent examples: A man killed while trying to break up a fight was on parole and was denied compensation, the state reasoned, because he should have steered clear of the incident; another was stabbed to death, and the state said he contributed because he checked himself out of a mental health treatment facility a few hours earlier against a doctor’s advice.

Ms. Long scoured the police account of her son’s shooting. She called detectives and pleaded to know if they had said anything to the compen-

In Pennsylvania, a law went into effect in September that says applicants cannot be denied financial help with funerals or counseling services because of a homicide victim’s behavior. In Illinois, a new program director has retrained employees on ways unconscious bias can creep into their decisions. And in Newark, N.J., police have changed the language they use in reports to describe interactions with victims, leading to fewer denials for failure to cooperate.

Ms. Long, who now works as a victims’ advocate, was in a training session in 2021 when a speaker began praising New York state’s compensation program. Ms. Long tried to stay quiet and get through the training session, but couldn’t. She told the group about her experience and the weight of the letter.

An Office of Victims Services employee approached Ms. Long after the meeting. She told Ms. Long the program had undergone an overhaul. There were no longer five board members who could make subjective decisions about claims. The program was now operating as a division, and there had been a cultural shift within the agency in the last decade including an increased focus to reach victims of color. She convinced Ms. Long to resubmit her claim.

A few weeks later, and nearly 15 years after Randy Long was buried, Ms. Long’s application was approved and the state sent her a check for $6,000 — the amount she would have received back in 2006. She used part of that money to help Randy’s son, who is now in college, pay for summer classes.

“It’s not about the monetary amount,” Ms. Long said. “It was the way I felt I was treated.”

Howard U. picks African diaspora scholar as next president

Continued

Dr. Vinson, 52, grew up partially in the D.C. area and graduated from high school in neighboring Alexandria. He spent his childhood on military bases in Italy, where his father was a master sergeant in the U.S. Air Force. He has previously served as the founding director of the Center for Africana Studies at Johns Hopkins University, where he also taught history, and as dean of George Washington University’s liberal arts and sciences college.

“I look forward to returning to the DMV (the greater D.C. area), which I consider home, and working with the broader campus community to fortify Howard and help build upon its incredible tradition of delivering excellence, truth, and service to greater humanity,” he said.

late “Black Panther” actor Chadwick Boseman have brought fresh prominence and rising enrollment numbers. Major benefactors such as NBA star Steph Curry and MacKenzie Scott, the exwife of Amazon founder and Washington Post owner Jeff Bezos, have come to Howard with significant donations.

The university also has leveraged its prominence to secure a string of headline-grabbing faculty members. Two of America’s most prominent writers on race relations, Nikole Hannah-Jones and Ta-Nehisi Coates, joined the university in 2021, and famed actress and Tony Award winner Phylicia Rashad now heads the College of Fine Arts.

Even so, students have been impatient for change. In 2021, they held sit-ins and slept in tents to protest housing shortages and poor living conditions in the dorms, a concern common to many historically Black universities with aging buildings. After a standoff lasting more than a month, students reached an agreement with Howard and ended the protest.

books, including “Before Mestizaje: The Frontiers of Race and Caste in Colonial Mexico.”

Dr. Vinson earned a bachelor’s degree from Dartmouth College with a double major in history and classical studies, summa cum laude, and a doctorate in Latin American history, with distinction, from Columbia University. He has been awarded fellowships from the Fulbright Commission; National Humanities Center; Social Science Research Council; University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; and the Ford, Rockefeller, and Mellon foundations.

The chairman of the Howard board of trustees, Laurence C. Morse, said in a news release that Dr. Vinson had “demonstrated his commitment to elevating the diversity of experiences of people of the African diaspora — a commitment that aligns well with Howard University’s mission and vision.”

Free COVID-19 vaccines

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testing locations at www.vdh.virginia.gov/coronavirus/covid-19testing/covid-19-testing-sites.

Want a COVID-19 vaccine or booster shot?

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

Long one of the jewels of the Historically Black College and Universities network, Howard is enjoying a season of plenty. High-profile alumni like Vice President Kamala Harris and the two high schools.

• Wednesday, May 24, 2 to 4 p.m. - Henrico West, 8600 Dixon Powers Drive. Bivalent Moderna boosters for age 6 and older, Bivalent Pfizer boosters for ages 5 and older, Novavax primary shots for age 12 and older, JYNNEOS shots and Moderna/ Pfizer baby bivalent boosters. Walk ups are welcome.

• Thursday, May 25, 2 to 4 p.m. - 400 E. Cary St. Available are 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 are welcome.

To schedule an appointment online, visit vase.vdh.virginia. gov, vaccinate.virginia.gov or vax.rchd.com, or call (804) 205-3501 or (877) VAX-IN-VA (1-877-829-4682).

RHHD also offers at-home vaccinations. Call (804) 2053501 to schedule appointments.

New COVID-19 boosters, updated to better protect against the latest variants of the virus, are now available. The new 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 offer Bivalent Pfizer and Moderna boosters to children between the ages of 5 and 11 in clinics in the near future. Children in this age range will be eligible after at least two months since their last vaccine dose.

A total of 99 new cases of COVID-19 were reported statewide Wednesday for the 24-hour period, contributing to an overall state total of 2,306,661 cases in Virginia since the pandemic’s outbreak. As of Wednesday, there have been 459,871 hospitalizations and 23,757 deaths reported statewide.

State data shows that African-Americans comprised 21.7% of cases statewide and 21.15% of deaths for which ethnic and racial data is available, while Latinos made up 9.8% of cases and 3.7% of deaths.

Compiled by George Copeland Jr.

Dr. Vinson’s academic field makes a sharp contrast with that of Dr. Frederick, the outgoing president, who is a Howard-trained surgeon. The university search committee and trustees turned next to a historian, with his focus cast outside of the United States.

Dr. Vinson is a scholar of the African diaspora with an eye especially on colonial Latin America. He is the author of several

In a statement, the president of Case Western Reserve, Eric W. Kaler, credited Dr. Vinson with leading development of that university’s ambitious strategic plan and new general education requirements, and with increasing diversity in its faculty and graduate student recruitment. President Kaler also said that Dr. Vinson was a strong supporter of the humanities at a time when some universities were cutting back on them.

“He is an exceptionally warm and empathetic person and will be a great leader for Howard,” he said.

Schools’ struggle with student absenteeism still present

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Dr. Harris highlighted 10 schools where fewer students were chronically absent, including Swansboro Elementary School, where the percentage of chronically absent students fell from 39 percent in the 2021-

22 school year to 11 percent during the current school year.

But chronic absenteeism is rife at other schools, such as Armstrong High School. The school reported enrolling 747 students in September, of which 276 or 37% have missed 15 or more days of school.

A sampling of other schools where

chronic absenteeism remains high include: George Wythe High School, 34%; Albert Hill Middle, 24%; River City Middle, 27%; Blackwell Elementary, 28%; Carver Elementary, 36%; Fairfield Court Elementary, 36%; Henry Marsh III Elementary, 30 percent; Oak Grove Elementary, 39%; and Woodville Elementary, 36 percent.

Remembering Richmond’s finest, first

assigned to the Juvenile Division. On 18 July 1964, Sergeant Randolph was promoted to Detective Lieutenant. While challenged by segregated conditions and discriminatory practices, their perseverance created an inspiring legacy.”

Current and retired Richmond Police officers, including Henrico Police Chief Eric English, join Acting Richmond Police Chief Rick Edwards, right, on Sunday, May 7, in commemorating the hiring of Richmond’s first black officers 77 years ago. This annual ceremony sponsored by Engine Co. #9 and Associates was held at the Virginia Historic Marker at Leigh Street and Brook Road near the site of the precinct where the officers were first assigned. The marker reads, “On 1 May 1946, Richmond’s first professional African American police officers were hired and assigned to the First Precinct at Smith and Marshall Streets. They were Howard T. Braxton, Doctor P. Day, Frank S. Randolph, and John W. Vann. On 16 December 1949, Ruth B. Blair became the first professional African American female police officer hired and

Ms. Long

Black Therapy Expo and mental health

By Debora Timms

As a teenager, Brittany Rush struggled significantly with her mental health. Her family did their best with their knowledge of the disease, but didn’t always talk openly together or understand how to obtain resources for Ms. Rush.

These experiences made Ms. Rush passionate about mental health care and helping others. She earned a bachelor’s in criminal justice from Old Dominion University and a master’s in social work from Virginia Commonwealth University. She became a counselor and works currently as a program therapist for adolescents in residential treatment at Hallmark Youthcare. She also founded RUSH Community Group to help serve the Richmond community.

In hosting this weekend’s inaugural Black Therapy Expo, Ms. Rush will present mental health from the Black perspective and showcase Black mental health providers and artists who use their creativity in therapeutic ways.

“I think it will be beneficial to bring awareness and provide a safe space to ask questions and make connections,” Ms. Rush said about the event she hopes will be recurring and a resource for education and exploration.

“Access is a huge problem,” Ms. Rush said. “Drastically long wait lists for mental health services can see people waiting weeks or more. That’s why all the providers participating in the expo have openings available.”

While Black people experience mental health challenges at similar rates to other groups, they are less likely to seek treatment. Statistics from McLean Hospital, the teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School, show only 25% of Black people compared with 40% of white individuals seek mental health treatment.

Ronnie Ransome Jr. is one of the weekend’s participating providers. The Chesterfield County resident is a licensed mental

health professional who earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees at Virginia State University

In a recent telephone call, he named some other factors that often prevent people from getting the mental health help they need.

“One of the biggest factors is financial resources,” Mr. Ransome said. “When you don’t have the financial resources, it is hard to have any sustainability and stability in your life.”

Another factor is the stigma associated with mental health issues – especially in the Black community. Pressure to “keep things inside and suck it up” can lead to people becoming what he describes as “bottles of soda” rather than “bottles of water.”

“If you shake hard enough and long enough, the pressure builds and they explode,” Mr. Ransome explained. “Temporary decisions and temporary moments can have permanent consequences.”

Lack of representation also prevents people from seeking treatment. Data from the American Psychiatric Association shows that only 4% of psychologists in the U.S. are Black. This

can make it difficult for Black Americans to find someone they feel comfortable opening up to — especially about racerelated trauma. Racism itself plays a significant role. So much so that in 2021, the CDC called racism “a serious threat to the public’s health.” It not only contributes to unequal access to resources and services, but acts of racial discrimination, even those seen or heard about in the media, can cause or intensify stress and racial trauma.

Which is why safe spaces to talk about mental health openly are so important. Diamond Chanell said in a phone call that this expo can help remove stigmas, showing that mental health is as important as physical health and letting people know what resources are out there and that they are not alone.

When Miss Chanell shares a spoken word poem about her mental health journey and her song “Pray,” she will do so to raise awareness of the arts as an alternative therapy. The recent VSU graduate has a degree in psychology and uses poetry and music as therapy for herself and as a message to others who share similar struggles.

“Everyone wants to be happy. Everyone wants to be at peace,” Miss Chanell said. “Therapy can play a big part in making that happen.”

The Black Therapy Expo will take place from 12 to 3 p.m. on Saturday, May 20, at 2810 W. Cary St.t, Richmond. Tickets and more information are available online at www.eventbrite. com/e/black-therapy-expo-tickets-608527671647

Orchestra, museum present sounds of black composers

By Craig Belcher

The Richmond Symphony’s Big Tent concert series comes to Abner Clay Park for the first time on May 27 at 7 p.m. The free event in the recently renovated park features the music of noted black composers such as, Florence Price, Joseph Bologne (the subject of the recent film “Chevalier”), and Virginia resident Adolphus Hailstork.

“We felt like it was a perfect place to do it,” said Matt Wilshire, the Richmond Symphony’s director of artistic planning and orchestra operations, who learned about the park’s history on a recent walking tour of the area.

The concert, conducted by Chia-Hsuan Lin, also features soloists Katerina Burton, a Maryland resident, and Isaac Willson, a violinist in the symphony’s youth orchestra.

The event is a product of partnership between the the symphony and the Black History Museum & Cultural Center of Virginia.

It is in conjunction with the Children’s Book & Music Festival hosted at the museum. The festival, which began earlier this month, connected

New basketball program debuts next month

By Jeremy M. Lazarus

A new weekend basketball program for Richmonders ages 15 to 20 will roll out in June as part of Richmond’s summer offerings.

On Monday Mayor Levar M. Stoney announced the new city recreation initiative that is to launch 6 p.m. Friday, June 9, at two sites, the Gill Center at Fairfield Court Elementary School in the East End and George Wythe High School in South Side.

The program will run four hours, 6 to 10 p.m., on Friday and Saturday evenings through Saturday, Aug. 19, he and Christopher Frelke, city director of Parks, Recreation and Community Facilities, said at a press conference at the Southside Community Center.

Participants “will get to play basketball socially and also be safe in a positive environment,” the mayor told reporters. He said the city also is exploring options for providing

transportation “for those who might need a safe ride home at the end of the night, as well.”

The program appears to be modeled after the spring basketball program that the RVA League for Safer Streets has been operating for the past six years, though that group was not announced as a partner.

The league, which offers spring basketball play at the Liberation Church campus on Midlothian Turnpike, completed its most recent season a few weeks ago.

Founded in 2017 by Paul Taylor and the late Jawad Abdu, the program has sought to address issues of violence and offer a positive outlet for young men ages 17 to 28, a bit older group than the city’s program plans to serve.

On its Facebook page, the league states that “basketball is the draw but unifying families and reducing crime is the mission.”

speakers and musicians with local first and second graders who participated in the program.

“With literacy as the overarching connection, The Children’s Book & Music Festival engages children in informative and educational programs that capture their senses,” a press release states. “Through tours, hands-on activities, and special presentations and events, children learn about the stories of Virginia’s African American people that inspire.”

The museum will be open and have family activities leading up to the concert. During the performance, two artists with local ties, Sone-Seeré Burrell and David Marion will create paintings. The pieces created will be auctioned and the funds donated to the Black History Museum & Cultural Center of Virginia. The rain date for the concert is May 28, also at 7 p.m.

Regina H. Boone/Richmond Free Press

Mayor Levar M. Stoney speaks during a press conference about summer programs available for the city’s youths Tuesday at the Southside Community Center at 6255 Old Warwick Road.

Ms. Chanell

Mr. Ransome

Ms. Rush

Mr. Hailstork

Ms. Price

Ms. Burton

Where’s the money?

Last week we asked Mayor Levar M. Stoney to explain what happened to the higher real estate taxes the city received from owners of property with expiring tax abatements, also called roll-off dollars.

Others involved in housing advocacy have been just as puzzled as we are as to what happened to the first installment of $2.4 million of roll-off dollars that a city ordinance required be sent to the city’s Affordable Housing Trust Fund to be used to support development of incomerestricted developments.

For the first time, there is an explanation as to where that money went.

The $2.4 million and any further roll-off dollars are now included in the city’s general fund revenue without any specific indicator, according to Lincoln Saunders, the city’s chief administrative officer.

Mr. Saunders said the 2020 ordinance that City Council passed to direct that roll-off dollars be used as a revenue stream for the Affordable Housing Trust Fund “is still on the books.”

But he said the administration, with City Council’s tacit approval, is essentially ignoring that law, which he said is to be updated or eliminated in the coming months.

He said the council agreed with the approach that the Stoney administration adopted, which is to borrow $10 million in each of the next five years to support development of affordable housing in the city.

“I think it is a false statement to imply the money is somehow missing, when it is not,” he said.

Mr. Saunders said the city changed its approach to funding affordable housing after it discovered that the roll-off dollars would produce less money than anticipated.

He said the initial $2.4 million would have grown over several years to a maximum of $5.2 million a year and not increase, or less than the $10 million to be borrowed.

Mr. Saunders said the new approach would give the city a better chance to meet the goal of generating 10,000 additional affordable housing units by 2030, including apartments and for-sale homes.

Roll-off dollars would generate $23.8 million during the next five fiscal years, Mr. Saunders said. By borrowing the money, the city will have $50 million, or an additional $26.2 million to invest in income-restricted housing.

The new approach means that “we will be able to do more,” Mr. Saunders said.

The new approach also is more costly.

Mr. Saunders estimates the city will spend $17.6 million over 20 years to repay each $10 million borrowed. In other words, the city will pay $88 million over 20 years to repay the $50 million it collectively plans to borrow.

That’s a policy choice that can be debated.

We believe the administration and the council could have explained this more clearly and sooner to ensure the public was clear about what was happening.

Uphold your oath

We call on President Biden to uphold his oath to “preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.”

And that means preventing House Republicans from engineering a default in government payments on the debt.

Republicans have thrown down the gauntlet and are holding hostage a bill to raise the debt ceiling so that the government can continue to cover debts already approved by Congress in past budgets.

Their goal in creating this impasse is to ensure passage of legislation to cut spending in future budgets.

Failure to raise the debt ceiling could bring a halt to Social Security payments, stop Medicare and Medicaid reimbursements to doctors and hospitals, kill health care for veterans and create chaos in our trade with other nations for whom the dollar is the general currency.

Tens of thousands of people whose jobs are linked to federal spending could be out of work. Grants that localities count on could cease.

The GOP, and the party’s business allies who somehow think they will be untouched, do not care how much damage they cause to get their way.

However, President Biden can halt this crisis that could come as soon as June 1 by upholding a section of the 14th Amendment.

That section reads: “The validity of the public debt of the United States, authorized by law, including debts incurred for payment of pensions and bounties for services in suppressing insurrection or rebellion, shall not be questioned.”

In other words, he can order the U.S. Treasury to continue to pay the government’s debts without a congressional vote to raise the debt ceiling. The president already has said he is considering use of that section as the government’s ability to borrow runs out.

This is not what President Biden wants. But as chief executive, he is duty bound to carry out the laws that Congress passes, including the budget.

We say that failure to use that section of the 14th Amendment, Mr. President, would violate the oath you swore when you took office.

The battle over budgets can continue.

But that debate over the appropriate amount of government spending cannot be allowed to crash the economy and leave the American people in far worse shape.

Do your duty, Mr. President. Stop the madness.

“Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” Lord John Acton

I almost find it uncanny that a long-deceased individual can provide such an accurate analysis of current times. Or maybe it’s the predictable nature of humans?

However we reason it, the abuse of power is a recurring theme in human history that only portends tragedy for the less powerful.

By their nature, democracies are governments which are supposed to function in accordance with and express the will of the (majority of the) people. For that very reason, democracies are antithetical to those who value power over all else. As with the contemporary Republican Party and American Democracy, when the majority will of the people conflicts with the desires of those in power, chaos reigns.

Any secondary school civics textbook will explain that, in a democracy, the role of a political party is to explain proposed policy(ies) and convince a ma-

Power

jority of the populace to agree. This agreement is usually formed when the populace realizes a personal stake in the presented policy(ies), and, through the election process, expresses its will and accepts the proposed political direction. In our contemporary American Democracy, lies and misrepresentation, wealthy influencers,

voter suppression, gerrymandered voting districts, archaic laws and/or the passage of laws favoring partisan interests are among the bases upon which the distribution of political power hinges. Looking objectively, we see this demonstrated in issues which are in the forefront of our daily news reports. The carnage of American gun violence is at a record pace. According to the NAACP, Americans are 25 times more likely to be killed in a gun homicide than people in other high-income countries. Black Americans are 10 times more likely than white Americans to die by gun homicide. And, in 2022 and 2023, gun violence has surpassed car accidents as

the number one cause of death among American youths. Yet, while a majority of Americans clamor for tangible gun reform in the face of these appalling numbers, Republican lawmakers only offer us “thoughts and prayers.”

In a June 2021 Forbes Magazine poll, 57% of respondents believe abortion should be legal overall in all or most cases—with 23% saying it should be legal in all cases and 33% saying only in most cases—including 76% of Democrats and 36% of Republicans. That percentage was even higher when asked whether abortion should be legal during the first trimester specifically, with 61% saying it should be legal in all or most cases. Yet an unwavering national minority with influence in the courts and upon the reins of power are waging a ceaseless war against a woman’s autonomy over her own body and medical decisions.

In the aftermath of the elections in 2020 and 2022, those factions were instrumental in denying a greater political foothold to the MAGA crowd, and paved the way for the unexpected retention of progressive power in the Senate. They have become targets of draconian legislation to

America must rebuke a new feudalism

The pomp and circumstance of the crowning of King Charles III filled TV sets.

The British crown is ceremonial; King Charles will take part in rituals, but not rule – that is in the hands of the British prime minister and the Parliament. Yet, beneath the vast spectacle of the Crown is another reality: the Crown is not only fabulously rich; it owns much of the land in the world.

The death of Queen Elizabeth II sparked many investigations into the wealth of the royal family.

Forbes put the royal family’s wealth at $28 billion, including fabulous castles, jewels, invaluable art, and extensive land ownings across Wales and England. The royal family also enjoys exemption not just from inheritance tax, but from taxes in general.

But the actual holdings of the Crown are far greater than that. Kevin Cahill, a researcher on the London Sunday Times “Rich List,” has written a stunning book – “Who Owns the World” – that details who owns land across the world.

Mr. Cahill reports that the British Crown is the legal owner of about 6.6 billion acres of land – one-sixth of the Earth’s land surface. Charles III will be the king of 32 countries, and the head of the Commonwealth of 54 countries in which a quarter of the world’s population lives. In many of these countries – including Australia and Canada – the feudal land laws created under the British Empire still govern. The British Crown owns the land.

The users of it are essentially lease holders, some for specific terms, some in perpetuity. If King Charles could sell all the land for which the Crown holds the title, he would be, by far, the richest person who ever lived.

Much of the land is held in

Jesse L. Jackson Sr.

a tax haven – what Mr. Cahill calls the modern equivalent of a “bandit’s lair.” Of the world’s 24 largest tax havens, King Charles will become sovereign of no fewer than 13.

Most of the land that the crown holds title over is governed in fact by government agencies – who lease or dispose of it on behalf of the Crown. The Crown is not active in its governance – other than the extensive estates it owns in England. From most, it does not receive direct rents.

Its ownership, however, is a reminder of the force and impact of an empire. In the days when the sun literally never set on the British Empire – with colonies stretching from North America to India to Hong Kong – the Crown and its agents collected rents, jewels, gold, minerals and more from the world. Needless to say, even after independence, this booty was never returned or repaid.

The American Revolution helped free the former colonies from this feudal arrangement. Under free market rules, America’s land is privately owned, not owned by feudal lords. And America’s populist tradition helped ensure that land ownings – particularly outside the South – were initially small in size. Under Abraham Lincoln, the Homestead Act distributed the lands in the West to settlers in small claims. Slaves were not to

be part of that distribution.

Today, with inequality reaching new heights, America’s small democratic distribution of lands and property is under pressure. Billionaires are accumulating massive tracts of land and massive holdings of buildings. Private equity investors have transformed the housing market, turning more and more Americans into renters, while they own homes by the thousands. Billionaires also are finding ways to avoid inheritance taxes, and to use tax havens and tax dodges to avoid paying their fair share of taxes.

The crowning of King Charles III was a captivating, antiquated spectacle. It was literally a throwback to a bygone age. Yet the ermine and the jewels, the crowns and scepters contain a caution. Democracy thrives on opportunity, on a broad middle class, not a ruling elite with massive, accumulated fortunes and lands. America’s democracy thrived by distributing the land, making public education available to all, and extending the right to vote. When wealth got too concentrated, we taxed the rich and invested in what made the country strong. Now, wealth is once more concentrated. Big money dominates elections; corruption undermines our institutions from the U.S. Supreme Court to the local city councils. Let’s enjoy the ceremony of the British Crown, but let’s act to ensure that America does not descend into a new feudalism where money rules, and people suffer.

In the end, for all its flaws, I choose a bottom up democracy –of, by and for the people – over a top down monarchy.

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

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.

restrict their future votes. Black people, LGBTQ people, the young, and collegiate voters now find themselves in the crosshairs of conservative Republicans who are actively working to create legislative impediments to their voting rights. Maybe it was our faith in the strength of the past American Democracy. We may have underestimated the tyrannical and despotic dispositions of conservatives and how, once they got power, they would lie, cheat, and steal to retain it. Republicans clawed and scratched for 50 years to gain the control they now enjoy. We can reverse their ill-gotten control, but we must first commit to another struggle and remember the admonishment of Frederick Douglass when he told us: “Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never did and it never will.”

The writer is president of the Dick Gregory Society.

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Dr. E. Faye Williams

Virginia NAACP objects to Virginia’s withdrawal from ERIC

The NAACP Virginia State Conference (Virginia NAACP) objects to Commissioner Susan Beals’ decision to remove Virginia from the Electronic Registration Information Center (ERIC). ERIC has been a trusted tool by states to combat voter fraud since 2012.

Removing the Commonwealth from ERIC without an alternative plan to ensure voter protection, transparency and accountability is irresponsible. A decision of this magnitude should not

have been made unilaterally. The Virginia NAACP believes the public should have been informed of the administration’s concern and given an opportunity to provide feedback throughout the decision-making process.

Virginia NAACP President Robert N. Barnette, Jr. issued the following statement on May 12, 2023:

“Gov. Youngkin is a follower trying to be a part of the conservative cool kids’ club by copying other Republican Gov-

Erasing redlining

Free Press staff report

Nearly 100 years since redlining left Richmond’s communities of color marginalized, Coming Together Virginia will host a discussion about how such discriminatory practices caused long-term environmental effects for Richmonders and others.

“Erasing the Redline: Creating Environmentally Safe Spaces for our future” will take place 6:30 p.m., Tuesday, May 23 at the Branch Museum of Architecture and Design, 2501 Monument Ave.

In the 1930s, various areas of Richmond were redlined by the federal Homeowners’ Loan Corporation. Redlining was the practice of the federal government to infer the credit risk of the inhabitants of an outlined area. Communities of color or communities with a large immigrant

population always were considered high risk, although there was no credible proof to support that assumption, according to Coming Together Virginia, a nonprofit organization focused on a vision of a racially healed world of thriving, equitable and just communities.

As a result of this government policy, formerly redlined communities today still find themselves dealing with industrial pollution, noise pollution, air pollution and limited green spaces. These environmental issues help to significantly contribute to communities with poorer health outcomes.

The discussion will focus on quality of life for Richmond’s communities of color, and actions and solutions to combat the ongoing issues created by redlining.

for more details, please visit www.comingtogethervirginia.org/donate

ernors’ actions without true cause ... this is purely politically motivated.”

Changes in the middle of an election with no clear guidance will only add to voter confusion. The Virginia NAACP will continue to fight against voter disenfranchisement.

VIRGINIA STATE CoNfERENCE NAACP Richmond

Stories by Fred Jeter

Jayden Smith hurdles to the top

One of the nation’s smoothest and swiftest college hurdlers learned his craft in Richmond’s West End.

After starring at St. Christopher’s School under Coach Marshall Ware, Jayden Smith is now the Atlantic 10 conference high hurdles champ for Davidson College.

The sophomore won the 110-meter hurdles May 7 in record time (13.42) at the A-10 track and field meet in Amherst, Mass. It also was a facility record.

Smith’s time broke the previous mark of 13.88 set by Rhode Island’s Colin Aina in 2004.

The 13.88 also toppled the facility mark of 13.98 set by George Mason’s Tony Williams in 2014.

At the time Smith ran the 13.42 (May 2023), it was the seventh fastest time in the nation this spring.

To show it was no fluke, Smith broke the old meet record twice, running a 13.54 in the

VSU narrowly loses to Salem

Virginia State University’s bid for a second straight New South Athletic Conference (NSAC) baseball title came up short May 7 at Whaley Colbert Field in Ettrick.

The Trojans lost 7-6 to Salem (W.Va.) in the final game.

VSU won the same tournament a year ago in Elizabeth City, N.C.

Coach Merrill Morgan’s squad finished 21-29, but boasted having the NSAC Player of the Year with Tahraun Hammond and AllConference player Ricky Jones.

On the season, Hammond hit .323 while posting a 3-3 pitching record. Jones, a senior transfer from the University of Richmond, hit .333 with 11 doubles, three triples, two homers and 30 runs batted in.

From Hopewell High, Jones was outstanding in the tournament, going 6-for-14 at the plate with four runs scored and five RBIs. VSU joined the NSAC last season because of a lack of baseball participation in the CIAA. Other NSAC teams are Salem, Apprentice School of Newport News and Mid-Atlantic Christian of Elizabeth City.

CIAA universities that have baseball teams are Claflin, Lincoln and VSU.

prelims.

Smith was named Co-Most Outstanding performer, along with VCU’s Emmanuel Waller (from Lynchburg), who won the 400 intermediate hurdles.

The season is just warming up. The NCAA East Preliminaries are May 24-27 in Jacksonville, Fla., and the NCAA national meet is June 7-10 in Austin, Texas.

Smith’s credentials include:

• 2023 A-10 indoor champion, 60-meter hurdles

• 2022 A-10 outdoor champion at 110-meter hurdles

• 2022 A-10 indoor champion, 60-meter hurdles

The NCAA record for 110-meter hurdles is 12.98 by Florida’s Grant Holloway in 2019. The world mark of 12.8 was set by American Aries Merritt in 2012.

Barlow is XFL’s Coach of the Year

Coach Reggie Barlow’s first season coaching the XFL D.C. Defenders couldn’t have gone much better.

The Defenders won the regular-season title with a 9-1 record and Barlow, also the team’s general manager, was named XFL Coach of the Year.

Coach Barlow, 51, served as Virginia State University’s head football coach from 2016 to 2021, posting a 34-16 overall mark, and a 25-10 CIAA record.

His Trojans won the 2017 CIAA title and advanced to the NCAA Division II playoffs. Before coming to Ettrick, Barlow went 49-42 as the head coach at his alma mater, Alabama State University.

As a wide receiver and kick returner, Coach Barlow played in the NFL with Jacksonville, Tampa Bay and Oakland from 1996 to 2003. He was part of Tampa’s 2003 Super Bowl championship win.

Sanders beefs up Buffaloes’ roster

In overhauling the University of Colorado football roster, Coach Deion Sanders has spread his recruiting net as far as Virginia.

Among the many transfers headed to Boulder are Deeve Harris and Chazz Wallace, both former Old Dominion University Monarchs.

Harris is a defensive end known as a rugged pass rusher. Wallace is a defensive lineman.

Colorado went 1-11 last season and perhaps no school in history will undergo a more dramatic facelift.

“There is no way you put new furniture in this beautiful home without first clearing out the old furniture,” Coach Sanders told USA Today.

NCAA Division I FBS schools are allowed 85 scholarships. It looks possible that at least 71 players on Coach Sanders’ first roster will either be transfers or incoming freshmen.

Harris is a 6-foot-2, 233-pound edge rusher who had 57 tackles in two ODU seasons, including nine for loss and five sacks. He returned two interceptions for touchdowns and scored another TD on a fumble return.

figure prominently in the 2023 picture.

Coach Sanders, an NFL Hall of Fame cornerback, was 27-6 in three seasons as Jackson State’s football coach, including 22-3 in the past two campaigns.

Even though he has yet to win a game for UC, Buffaloes fans must like what they see so far. A record 46,000 showed up for Colorado’s spring intrasquad game. The previous high was 17,800 in 2008.

Coach Sanders will be tested early.

Among the transfers Coach Deion Sanders has recruited to Colorado are Deeve Harris, with Coach Sanders in photo, and Chazz Wallace, both former Old Dominion University Monarchs.

Two notable UC transfers are from the SWAC champion Jackson, Miss., State team of 2022. They are Coach Sanders’ son, quarterback Shedeur Sanders, and defensive back/wide receiver Travis Hunter. Both

Colorado opens its 2023 season in Fort Worth, Texas, against Big 12 power Texas Christian, last season’s national runner-up to Georgia.

2 cross pond to play for Rams ‘Tuddy’ to debut with Commanders for 2023 season

VCU might consider adding Shepherd’s pie, fish ‘n’ chips and cream tea to its concession stand menu.

Last season the Rams had one basketball player from the United Kingdom. Now it has two.

Michael Belle, a 6-foot-6 forward who will turn 20 in December, is a British native who played this past season for Strasbourg in France’s U-21 pro league.

He averaged 17 points and nine rebounds in the French league.

Belle joins Brit Tobi Lawal, a freshman.

Belle narrowed his choice to VCU and the Rams’ Atlantic 10 rival, Dayton, before deciding last weekend on VCU.

Belle becomes at least the fifth Englishman to grace its roster.

Martin Henlan played for the Rams 1986-1990, averaging 6.3 points and 6.8 rebounds for his career.

Nick George scored 1,546 points and grabbed 703 rebounds for VCU between 2002-2006.

Teddy Okerafor was a backup guard during the 2012-2013 season before transferring to Rider.

VCU now has 10 scholarship players and, as of press time, openings for three more.

The Washington Commanders will have a new owner and a new mascot for the 2023 season.

Opening day is Sept. 10 against Arizona with a 1 p.m. kickoff at FedEx Stadium.

The Commanders’ new owner, businessman Josh Harris, recently purchased the franchise for a record $6.05 billion from former owner Dan Snyder. The deal represents the largest franchise financial settlement ever in any sport.

On a lighter note, the team is introducing mascot Major Tuddy, a 6-foot-5 hog-like figure wearing the teams’ traditional colors, burgundy and gold.

The “Major” comes from the city’s long military history. “Tuddy” is a slang term for touchdown. The hog-like appearance is a throwback to the team’s beloved “Hogs” offensive line from the 1980s and 1990s.

Washington will have two national primetime games on Thursdays, in Week 5 against Chicago and in Week 12 against Dallas.

More details of the three preseason games have not been released.

Commanders’ schedule

Sept. 10 – Arizona

Sept. 17 – at Denver

Sept. 24 – Buffalo

Oct. 1 – at Philadelphia

Oct. 5 (Thursday) – Chicago

Oct. 15 – at Atlanta

Oct. 22 – at New York Giants

Oct. 29 – Philadelphia

Nov. 5 – at New England

Nov. 12 – at Seattle

Nov. 19 – New York Giants

Nov. 23 (Thursday) – at Dallas

Dec. 3 – Miami

Dec. 10 – Bye

Dec. 17 – at Los Angeles Rams

Dec. 24 – at New York Jets

Dec. 31 – San Francisco

Jan. 7 – Dallas

Tahraun Hammond

Michael Belle

Coach Dieon Sanders

Coach Barlow

Jayden Smith hurdles in the lead.

As Richmond’s growth spurt continues to attract new businesses and residents, Anthony Bryant wants to guarantee that the community’s interests aren’t left behind.

The Church Hill resident is the newest president of the Downtown Neighborhood Association, which enables residents, businesses and nonprofit organizations to advocate for the safety, improvement and preservation of the region, its history and identity.

“Richmond is growing and sometimes heads get turned when the ‘shiny new thing’comes to town,” Mr. Bryant says. “We believe it’s important to advocate for an area like ours that’s so rich in history.”

Advocacy has been the association’s main focus since its inception. Some of the organization’s popular events include Richmond First Fridays Art Walk, Broad Appetit food festival, and community enhancement projects surrounding what has become known as Richmond’s Arts District. Streets in the district include Belvidere, Broad, Bank, Canal, Cary and the intersections at 14th, Franklin and Main streets. Some of the DNA’s business memberships include Little Nomad, Elegba Folklore Society, Ledbury, Gallery5 and Waller & Company Jewelers.

The DNA’s mission prompted Mr. Bryant’s interest in the group, which he joined a year after opening his business, Little Nomad, in June 2017. Little Nomad, 104 W. Broad St., sells children’s clothes, books and toys.

“I felt it was important for young Black people to see someone like me in this role,” says Mr. Bryant when asked why he took on the job last year. “I also feel that I’m able to bring folks together, who normally may not be in the same room to encourage

Personality: Anthony Bryant

Spotlight on Downtown Neighborhood Association president

productive conversations.

“This is what I felt was missing from our board. A connector.”

As the DNA’s president, Mr. Bryant’s vision is that Downtown Richmond’s mix of retail establishments, restaurants and cultural outlets become more accessible to other parts of the city.

He also wants to see more buy-in from the City of Richmond byway of easier access to parking, and a stronger relationship with Virginia Commonwealth University, which prominently occupies several Downtown streets, to better determine its current and future objectives.

To achieve this goal, Mr. Bryant plans to fill the DNA’s board vacancies and subcommittees with a diverse group of people who truly care about Downtown Richmond.

“My vision is that we continue to engage with the community to create a Downtown that meets the needs and desires of everyone who lives, works and visits there,” he says.

Mr. Bryant practices what he preaches, having spent a significant part of the board and committee selection process traveling throughout the Downtown area and introducing himself to potential new members.

Such efforts have paid dividends, he says, and will allow the association to better serve the needs, and ensure the future, of Downtown Richmond.

“We have an opportunity to tell our story to a larger group of folks who are thinking about spending time or opening up shop in the Arts District,” Mr. Bryant says. “Our board has never looked more like the community that it represents. It’s imperative that we communicate with succinct messaging that the Arts District is open, safe and welcome to all.”

Meet a passionate voice for Downtown Richmond and this week’s Personality, Anthony Bryant:

Volunteer position: President of the Downtown Neighborhood Association.

Occupation: Entrepreneur.

Place of birth: Richmond.

Where I live now: Church Hill.

Education: Studied mass communications at Virginia State University.

Family: Wife, Nora, and daughters Devan,10, Myka, 8.

The Downtown Neighborhood Association: Engages key stakeholders in support of neighborhood safety enhancements, supports beautification and cleanliness efforts, and works with businesses and residents to support and/or host events that highlight the community.

When and why founded: The Downtown Neighborhood Association founded in 1996 began as a way for the businesses, nonprofits, and residents of the

Richmond Arts District to come together and advocate for the region.

How I became involved with Downtown Neighborhood Association: I have a long-standing affinity for the Downtown Richmond corridor. When searching for places to open my business, this area was at the top of my list. With that, I knew I wanted to assist in lifting the area up from a civic point of view.

When elected board president: March 2022.

Why I accepted position: I believe that I’m able to bring folks together who normally may not be in the same room to encourage productive conversations.

Length of term: Two years.

No. 1 goal or project as board president: To really move the needle on future projects that we have planned, we need to first focus on bringing on individuals that care and are committed to highlighting the downtown corridor. My main goal is to ensure that all of our board seats and subcommittee vacancies are filled in a timely manner.

Strategy for achieving goals: We are focused on having an active, well-rounded board. This takes folks with diverse backgrounds and a skill set that can assist with moving the association forward. I find these individuals really by hitting the pavement. Introducing myself to stakeholders and gauging their interest. We also communicate our openings to a larger group of stakeholders through our direct email blasts.

My vision for a vibrant Downtown: A vibrant downtown is a place that is welcoming,

inclusive, and full of life. I’d love to see more well-designed public spaces that have art at the forefront. A robust mix of retail, restaurants and cultural attractions. My vision is that we continue to engage with the community to create a downtown that meets the needs and desires of everyone who lives, works and visits there.

What Downtown Richmond needs: To be a thriving area, Downtown Richmond needs consistent and tangible support from entities such as the City of Richmond Department of Economic Development and elected officials.

The Downtown Neighborhood Association is important because: We believe it’s important to advocate for an area like ours that’s so rich in history. We’re here to be a forum for discussion so that our stakeholders can share their ideas and concerns so that we can come together to address them.

Number one challenge facing Downtown Neighborhood Association: We have an opportunity to tell our story to a larger group of folks who are thinking about spending time or opening up shop in the Richmond Arts District. It’s imperative that we communicate with succinct messaging that the Arts District is open, safe and welcome to all.

How the Downtown Neighborhood Association has made a difference:

• Advocating the needs and interests of the community to local government officials.

• Addressing neighborhood needs such as litter reduction, parking issues and traffic calming.

• Building a sense of community — Our bi-monthly mixers help bring people together who share a common interest and

want to feel more connected. Downtown Neighborhood Association partners with: Local city officials, Historic Jackson Ward Association, Venture Richmond and Richmond Region Tourism.

Upcoming events: The First Friday Art Walk is back! This event occurs on every first Friday of each month. It starts at Belvidere and Broad streets. Walk east along Broad Street and the surrounding area to experience everything the Richmond Arts District has to offer.

How I start the day: Before the madness of getting my kids ready for school, I take a few moments to myself to do some breathing exercises and visualize what a positive day looks like for me.

The three words that best describe me: Passionate, humble and thoughtful.

Best late-night snack: POPCORN IS LIFE.

How I unwind: I have a hard time staying still, so I unwind by being active. Deejaying and playing soccer are calming and fulfilling for me.

Something I love to do that most people would never imagine: I love making my own pizza dough and cooking pizzas for family and friends.

A quote that inspires me: “Easy is the path to wisdom for those not blinded by ego.”

At the top of my “to-do” list: Make sure I get home safe to my family.

The best thing my parents ever taught me: Stand up for yourself.

Next goal: We’re planning to bring festivals back to Broad Street. The goal is to have one each in the summer and fall.

East Marshall Street Well Project

Please join us for updates on VCU’s work to reconcile the university’s past and share your input on planning for the memorialization and interment of the remains found in the East Marshall Street Well.

Saturday, June 3, 2023 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. St. Paul’s Episcopal Church 815 E. Grace Street, Richmond, Virginia

The EMSW Project was created over 10 years ago, after the remains of more than 50 African Americans from the 1800s were discovered during construction on the VCU health sciences campus. Since then, the university has worked with the community to shape and implement research to better understand the individuals whose remains were found, as well as to develop plans for memorialization and interment.

Preregistration is encouraged at emsw.vcu.edu/events by May 25.

Seating is limited and available on a rst-come, rst-served basis.  Refreshments and a light lunch provided.

Funded by the American Council of Learned Societies in partnership with Saint Paul’s Episcopal Church. Made possible by ACLS Sustaining Public Engagement through funding from the National Endowment for the Humanities. For special accommodations, email EMSWell@vcu.edu.

Commencement 2023

VCU, VUU, VSU graduates celebrate diligence, hard work and promising futures

Free press, wire reports

Mo Alie-Cox, who constantly brought excitement to Virginia Commonwealth University as a standout basketball player, brought that same energy during VCU’s graduation ceremonies on Saturday at the Greater Richmond Convention Center.

“You guys should be no strangers to hard work, or you wouldn’t be here in these seats right now,” said Mr. Alie-Cox, who now plays for the Indianapolis Colts in the NFL. “The satisfaction and happiness that you get from knowing you put the work in to achieve something and it actually happens is second to none. As you take the next steps of your journey, you’re going to have to work even harder.”

The ceremony honored VCU’s approximately 4,700 spring graduates, including more than 3,000 earning undergraduate degrees, according to VCU’s website.

Mr. Alie-Cox, who received an honorary doctorate of humane letters at the ceremony, told the graduates to always have faith that their goals are attainable. He revealed that at one point early in his NFL career he questioned if playing professional football

was something he still wanted to do.

“Being young, you often want to see immediate success and for me that didn’t happen right away,” Mr. Alie-Cox said. “I had a talk with my mom, and she pretty much told me to finish what you started and have faith that everything will work out.

“A month went by, and I got called up to the active roster, and six years later I’m still there. I don’t want to even know where I would be right now had I lost faith.”

Dr. Faye Z. Belgrave received the Presidential Medallion during the ceremony. The Presidential Medallion honors members of the university community for extraordinary achievement in learning and commitment to the mission of VCU. Dr. Belgrave is an internationally recognized author, teacher, researcher and equity advocate. She joined the VCU faculty in 1997 as a professor of psychology and was appointed associate dean for equity and community partnerships in the College of Humanities and Sciences in 2020.

Graduation ceremonies also took place May 13 at Virginia Union University and Virginia State University. Sen. Lamont Bagby of Virginia’s 9th District delivered the 124th commence-

ment speech at VUU’s Hovey Stadium. During his speech, the newly elected state senator often became emotional as he spoke about VUU’s history and being asked to deliver the commencement address. VUU awarded Sen. Bagby an Honorary Doctor of Laws in recognition of his public service.

Sen. Bagby currently is the chair of the Virginia Legislative Black Caucus. Prior to his senatorial term, Sen. Bagby was elected to the Virginia House of Delegates, where he served for eight years. He also is a former member of the Henrico County School Board and the Norfolk State University Board of Visitors. Meanwhile, Harry Black, city manager of Stockton, Calif. and a Virginia State University alumnus, was the speaker for VSU’s spring 2023 graduation ceremonies. The university graduated nearly 600 students in ceremonies at its Multi-Purpose Center. Mr. Black served as a member of the VSU Board of Visitors from 2010 until 2018, and as the rector of the board from 2013 to 2018. Before becoming city manager of Stockton, Mr. Black, a VCU alumnus, served in several executive municipal posts including chief financial officer for the City of Richmond from 2005 to 2008.

Hakim J. Lucas places an honorary doctoral hood over the head of Dr. John W. Kinney in conferring his honorary doctor of divinity degree for the impact he has had on theological education at VUU for more than 35 years. Assisting with the hooding ceremony Saturday is Dr. W. Franklyn Richardson VUU board president. Octavia Davis, 32, above, of Alexandria walks with members of her VUU Class of 2023 during the 124th commencement exercises at VUU’s Hovey Stadium. Ms. Davis is a communications major with a focus in public relations.

Virginia State University graduates celebrate the 2023 Spring Commencement in the university’s Multi-Purpose Center on May 13. Joy Watson, Miss National Black College Alumni Hall of Fame and Blaise Davenport, class valedictorian, listen as Harry Black, a VSU alumnus, right, gives the keynote address.

PLACES TO GO, PEOPLE TO SEE

1600 Westwood Ave. When it takes place: Saturday, May 20, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Cost: Free. More information: www.hermitagerichmond. org/arts-on-the-lawn, or contact Jennifer Young at CulturalArtsHermitageRichmond@ pinnacleliving.org or 804-474-1802.

Price varies for each activity, and includes some select free events.

More information: www.riverrockrva.com

Lebanese Food Festival

Organized by: Lebanese Food Festival.

Where it takes place: St. Anthony Maronite Church, 4611 Sadler Road. When it takes place: Friday, May 19, to Sunday, May 21, from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.

Cost: Varies for food purchased.

More information: 804-277-9566, lebanesefoodfestival@gmail.com

Arts on the Lawn

Organized by: Hermitage Richmond.

Where it takes place: Hermitage Richmond,

The 25th Annual Asian American Celebration

Organized by: The Asian American Society of Central Virginia. Where it takes place: Greater Richmond Convention Center at 403 N. 3rd St. When it

Fridays and Saturdays from noon to 7 p.m., and Sundays from noon to 5 p.m. through September.

Cost: Tickets: $12 for adults, $8 for children between ages 5 to 12 years, and $8 for seniors 65 years and older. Children ages 4 or younger can ride for free. Tickets sold on a first-come, first serve basis in person and online. More information: www.venturerichmond.com/ our-services/riverfront-canal-cruises.

Friday Cheers 38th Concert Season

Organized by: Friday Cheers.

Where it takes place:

season runs

These VCU students could barely contain their excitement during commencement ceremonies on May 13 at the Greater Richmond Convention Center. VCU honored approximately 4,700 spring graduates. VCU President Michael Rao, Ph.D., told the graduates that they were poised to make a major impact on the world. “Our world and our society are in a time of tremendous change, but times of change are really opportunities,” President Rao said. “This is your chance to really reimagine the world — what we want it to look like and how we get there.” Alumnus Mo Alie-Cox, center, gave the commencement speech.

Regina H. Boone/Richmond Free Press

Far right, Virginia Union University’s president, Dr.

Sandra Sellars/Richmond Free Press

Civic activist Donald Jerome Garrett, who exposed payday loan practices, dies at age 69

By Jeremy M. Lazarus

Donald Jerome Garrett kept active in civic affairs despite suffering from kidney disease that required him to receive dialysis three days a week.

His community service is being remembered following his death on Thursday, May 11, 2023. He was 69.

Mr. Garrett, who relied on public transportation, served on a GRTC advisory board of riders who provided recommendations to improve CARE Van service. He also helped expose a payday lender that issued loans that violated state law.

Mr. Garrett went public and was a plaintiff in a class action lawsuit filed by the Virginia Poverty Law Center that resulted in hundreds of Richmond area borrowers avoiding lawsuits and judgments that the company had filed seeking payment of its illicit loans.

The lawsuit that he assisted in launching as well as other VPLC suits challenging payday lenders ultimately led the General Assembly to approve major

City dispatcher honored

By Jeremy M. Lazarus

Ashley Marlow has been honored for helping a 911 caller cope with an armed man on her front porch in Richmond.

Ms. Marlow, a city emergency communications officer, was recognized May 9 with the award for individual performance in a critical incident by the Virginia Association of Public Safety Communications’ Officials.

This is the first statewide award to be presented to a staff member of the Richmond Department of Emergency Communications, Preparedness and Response, department spokeswoman Karen Gill noted.

“The exceptional caring and professionalism, combined with quick thinking, that ECO Marlow displayed in this incident is in large part responsible for this Richmond resident staying safe,” Stephen Willoughby, department director, stated.

The award cites Ms. Marlow for providing support for 37 minutes to Alexis Wilber, a Fulton resident, as she hid in her home and waited for police to get there.

“It was scary and intimidating,” Ms. Wilber said of the encounter about 10:15 p.m. March 6, 2022.

She expressed gratitude for Ms. Marlow’s reassuring words and explanation of what was happening outside as the dispatcher also relayed information to arriving officers.

Ms. Wilber said she discovered the man on her porch after she returned home and sought to determine why the front porch light was not working.

She recounted that she was able to shut the front door, dial 911 and hide in a corner.

The stranger, later identified as Carlton Epps of Henrico, remained on the porch and was fatally shot after he refused to drop his gun and surrender, Richmond Police reported at the time.

“It was so surreal … like something out of a movie,” Ms. Marlow said of the incident.

“I was thinking of all of the things that could have gone wrong and hoping the caller would be OK.”

reforms involving lenders making personal loans of $500 or less.

Mr. Garrett also gained attention for battling a company’s efforts to evict himself and other tenants from the Henrico County apartment complex where he lived.

Funeral arrangements are still pending, according to Wilson & Associates’ Funeral Service.

Survivors include his daughter, Deonna Meade; son Roger Meade; brothers James “Chubby” Garrett, Craig Rodwell Sr. and George Rodwell Jr.; and sisters Sandy G. Bynum, Althea Coleman, Lavelle Cook, Shelly Munn and Shelia Rodwell.

Good Shepherd Baptist Church

“BACK

“MAKE

Pastor

St. Peter Baptist Church

Richmond Department of Emergency Communications Ashley Marlow and Alexis Wilber