Vinegar Hill Magazine | Summer 2022 Issue by Vinegar Hill Magazine

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VINEGAR HILL MAGAZINE SUMMER 2022

INSIDE 4 APPRECIATION VS. APPROPRIATION Khalilah Jones gives her take on Appreciation vs. Apppropriation. 12 JUST MONICA Charlottesville native, Monica Richardson talks about leading a major American newsroom, the Pulitzer, and more. 20 BLACK PLAYMAKING Leslie M. Scott-Jones talks all the reasons why Black playmaking is the thing. 23 ON PUBLIC VIOLENCE Katrina Spencer gives a first-person account to public violence in America and kicks off our First Person Charlottesville series.

We are looking for your stories.These can be told from your own personal point of view, or as reported pieces sharing community members’ perspectives. Please keep in mind that we are not seeking pieces that are purely your opinion. This doesn’t mean it can’t include your perspective, rather we want the focus to be your experiences or the experiences of the people you are writing about. We want these stories to reach many people and be as strong as they can be. They will be published by Charlottesville Inclusive Media, a partnership between Charlottesville Tomorrow, Vinegar Hill Magazine and In My Humble Opinion.Not sure if your idea fits? Tell us about it and we’ll get back to you! We do our best to respond to pitches within two weeks. If we are the right people to help with your story, we will pay you competitively for this important work. Essays and photographs are paid at a rate of $200 to $600 depending on the complexity of the story. Keep in mind that we go through a process of editing and fact-checking to make your stories as strong as possible. We’re excited to share this beta version of the project with you. Please do begin to share your stories that we might help bring to life! If you have questions or ideas to improve how First Person Charlottesville works, please feel free to reach out to Charles Lewis, Sarad Davenport and Angilee Shah at Charlottesville Inclusive Media at news [at] cvilleinclusivemedia.com.

Vinegar Hill Magazine is a space that is designed to support and project a more inclusive social narrative, to promote entrepreneurship, and to be a beacon for art, culture, and politics in the Central Virginia region. Advertising and Sales Manager(s) SteppeMedia Publisher Eddie Harris Layout & Design Sarad Davenport © 2022 Vinegar Hill Magazine. All rights reserved.

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Cultural Appreciation vs. Cultural Appropriation by Contributing Writer: Khalilah Jones Model: Micah Washington Wardrobe Styling: Khalilah Jones

Listen, we all know that trends come and go, especially those related to fashion. More often than not, people will take up a unique new fashion trend without a thought as to where it has come from. As a person that feels that my clothing and personal style are a means of self expression, I understand that for many cultures, there is usually a deep-rooted history behind why and what they choose to wear. This is where cultural appropriation comes into play. Fashion and style, particularly within the Black culture, has such a deep history and meaning. I for one have definitely rocked my Sunday’s Best “for the culture”. Think Black Panther opening,

Juneteenth celebrations, Black History Month and even just a random Melanin Monday (okay, I made that one up but you get the gist). I am a strong proponent of cultural appreciation over appropriation. With that being said, I really encourage people to educate themselves to know why we have worn the things we have in the past. It’s such an in-depth thing that I wish people would understand more. As we discussed our plans to attend a concert, I was once asked by a non-person of color, why Black people dress up for everything and nothing? I had to explain to her that it is deeper than an “outfit”. We have to go 10 times harder

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“As a Black woman, I know, but so many do not even realize, that a significant number of the trends that circulate around the world of fashion began within the Black community.” in absolutely every aspect of our lives and STILL are overlooked and undervalued. Our appearance and image are the one thing that we can absolutely own with a je ne sais quoi that others try to emulate (usually unsuccessfully). As a Black woman, I know, but so many do not even realize, that a significant number of the trends that circulate around the world of fashion began within the Black community. From tracksuits to bucket hats and even bodycon dresses, many of the items that are considered heavily “stylish” and “trendy” now were not always thought of in the same

light. Trends that begin within the Black community cycle to mainstream fashion after the novelty has worn off and they have lost association with Black culture. As a young Black girl skipping thru elementary school playgrounds and then strutting through high school halls, a lot of the things that we did to our hair like beads, braids, bobos and barrettes or adorned our bodies with such as oversized cross-color pants with cropped tops or clothes worn backwards a’la Kris Kross, were made fun of. Inevitably, it was something that we were made to feel silly for. We really had to work to accept ourselves

and own these looks. That is why people are drawn to what is different and eye-catching. Not even recognizing that ultimately, they are drawn to the confidence and swag that can only be cultivated from a deep, radical, unapologetic self acceptance rooted in culture! It is so disheartening because a lot of times, that same “trend” or “style” will be praised once adopted into white culture. I am not going to lie, as a Black woman in the wardrobe styling and image consulting world, watching fashion trends explode onto the scene can be incredibly frustrating. This is a pain point, not only because our community was often

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“There are countless fashion trends derived from Black women and Black people in general.” the one to wear an item first but also because many Black designers are not at all as widely praised, compensated or recognized as their white counterparts when it comes to designing the items. It is extremely difficult to watch something that was once mocked when our culture introduced the style, become “all the rage” when it is taken up by mainstream culture. There are countless fashion trends derived from Black women and Black people in general. Fashion trends, like bucket hats and shoulder bags, were popularized by Black women

so many years ago but were reintroduced as a mainstream fashion trend. The difference between how the trends are perceived is just how it’s associated with Black people. As soon as Black people are erased from those trends (much like the intentional erasure and white washing in school books, but I digress), it’s a popular trend and becomes the new thing, but when it’s popular in our community, it becomes weird and ghetto. While it would seem the popularity of trends coming up from Black culture would seem to be all positive for the community, there are

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challenges that arise from having our original ideas be taken, manipulated and used in ways we did not intend. There is such a dichotomy and it is super complicated because on one hand, the popularity definitely does sometimes bring more awareness to Black designers and their brands and we are not hating that! But on the other hand, there are also so many white designers that create the same product and those are more popular because they catapult to the mainstream much quicker, which takes away well deserved money and due credit from the Black designer.

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The idea of cultural appropriation is not an easy one to understand. When it comes to clothing, most individuals just want everyday people to have a slightly better understanding of where their clothing comes from. It is a tough pill to swallow knowing that they love our swag, style and je ne sais quoi and all the good and exciting aspects of the Black culture but refuse to fight the good fight with us when it is most important. What makes it such a challenge with clothing is the fact that you can’t necessarily say a culture “owns” a piece of clothing, even if the culture made it popular. I personally feel frustrated to know that so many people did not appreciate these trends when we were wearing them but then changed their mind as soon as they transcended to mainstream and ultimately minimized the significance of our contribution to pop culture. More intentionality and research is what our communities that so often have their trends used with absolutely no context or not a lick of homage given back to the rightful owner, is what we seek. If nothing else, I would like for others to understand that as Black people, when we talk about fashion, it’s not just about textiles, colors, fit and style. A lot of times, this is such a bold and necessary act of self expression and is a prominent part of who we are. Put some respect on it. Embrace appreciation over appropriation. Until next time…

VINEGAR HILL MAGAZINE SUMMER 2022

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just Monica

She leads a major American newspaper, won a Pulitzer, but when she comes home to Charlottesville, she’s “Just Monica”

Charlottesville Tomorrow Editor-in-Chief Angilee Shah talks with Miami Herald Executive Editor Monica Richardson about leading in a pandemic, breaking news and how to build community with journalism.

By Angilee Shah Monica Richardson is the executive editor of a major American daily newspaper. She is a veteran newsroom leader and a Pulitzer Prize winner. And she is a child of Charlottesville. “I was that kid that made summer trips to Charlottesville to spend the summers with grandparents and aunts and uncles,” she says. “When I come home, I’m not the editor of the Miami Herald. I’m Monica, you know, who grew up here.”

Her father was in the Air Force so she lived in Washington D.C. and moved a lot growing up. They returned to Charlottesville for her high school years — she’s class of 1988, Charlottesville High School. She was on the yearbook and newspaper staff, of course. Her first newspaper jobs were at the Culpeper Star-Exponent and then the Charlottesville Observer, a weekly that published from the 1970s until 2004.

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In June, I spent some time talking with Richardson about her journey. I am not a child of Charlottesville, but I’m the editor-in-chief of Charlottesville Tomorrow. I’m from Los Angeles by way of Canada, and have lived in a dozen cities. My career began in international news, then national news and public media and now I am here, living and working in Richardson’s hometown. Richardson got her start in central Virginia, and then went on to positions at the Lexington

The Miami Herald won a 2022 Pulitzer Prize in breaking news for its coverage of the Surfsider condominium collapse in June 2021. 98 people died. Executive Editor Monica Richardson (center) took the helm of the paper just six months before the tragedy. Courtesy of Matias J. Ocner/Miami Herald

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Herald-Leader and spent 15 years at the Atlanta JournalConstitution before becoming executive editor of the Miami Herald in January 2021. We had a lot to talk about. This transcript is edited for length and, in minor ways, for clarity. You’ve said that coming through the smaller market papers, in Virginia and Kentucky, was really valuable to you. How has that experience served you in big markets like Atlanta and Miami? The difference with local journalism is that these are our neighbors, you know? And so that’s the neighborhood approach and sense of community I was able to build by working in

places like Culpeper and Charlottesville. What happens in a neighborhood is as important as what happens in the state, and part of our job is to make that community connection between what matters to someone who lives on Grady Avenue and why that’s important at the state level in Virginia. Here in Miami, local news is very different. Local is Haiti and local is Puerto Rico and Cuba — a long list of places. But still, starting and working in Charlottesville and then Culpeper grounded me in a lot of ways. And now I brag about that when I meet with interns and people who have started their careers in big places. I say all the time, I wouldn’t trade my path for anything.

“I have a picture of my first story for the Culpeper StarExponent on the wall, March 5 1993. And I remember showing up to work in my business suit and heels that day. I realized as a journalist, I would always keep a change of clothes and boots in my car,” says Monica Richardson. Courtesy of Richardson.[/caption] So you started as executive editor of the Miami Herald at a pretty difficult time, in January 2021. I also started as editor-in-chief of Charlottesville Tomorrow in the COVID-19 pandemic. But, you know, when the reporters live a mile away in a small town, it’s different. How was it for you joining a large organization in the pandemic? Really difficult. I actually didn’t move to Miami until mid-February, so I was doing everything virtual before that. It’s still hard. You know, I’m not sure I have to this day met everyone face-to-face from my newsrooms. [Richardson also oversees el Nuevo Herald, the Bradenton Herald and FLKeysNews.com.] The Miami Herald was in the process of selling its building when I got here. So by the time I got here, there was no building. We have a small office that we use for hurricanes and if people don’t have power and such, but we’re right now looking for a place. It’s a little bit easier now that things are opening up — I can meet with people in the community — but everything for the most part internally has been virtual. But it also has been remarkable to me to see how newsrooms have managed to keep things going through the pandemic.

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“I have a picture of my first story for the Culpeper Star-Exponent on the wall, March 5 1993. And I remember showing up to work in my business suit and heels that day. I realized as a journalist, I would always keep a change of clothes and boots in my car,” says Monica Richardson. Courtesy of Richardson.

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If you think about all the industries that have failed or not survived — there’s not a day that the paper didn’t come out. There’s not a day that the website wasn’t updated. When I was in Atlanta, when our leadership team said, ‘We’re not coming back tomorrow,’ I remember me and another editor thinking, ‘How are we ever going to do this?’ And then a year later I said, ‘Look at what we did.’ I was working with a lot of different newsrooms around the country when things first shut down. It showed me that we can change how we do things, and we probably should have a long time ago. While it’s been really hard, it also made clear that the well-being of journalists is clearly a problem. Can we change how we operate to make this a more humane profession for people? I think mental health in newsrooms is something that has really come forward since the pandemic hit. There’s so many different sides of it. I feel for the single journalists with no children — the newsroom is sometimes all they have, Journalists move around a lot so we’re not typically in places where we have our families. And so I think that’s difficult. I think you have journalists who are caregivers. That’s difficult. And then you have journalists who have to homeschool and they’re like, ‘How do I manage that?’ So we’ve learned to try to strike a balance with it. You know, when we won the Pulitzer, typically we would be in a room celebrating together. We had to have a really small group together to celebrate our Pulitzer win. So it’s created challenges, but it’s also created

opportunities. The Surfside condominium collapsed in June 2021, just six months after you started at the Miami Herald. That’s the reporting that won you and the Miami Herald the Pulitzer Prize for breaking news this year. Did you feel like you and the newsroom were ready to cover that catastrophe? I actually had COVID when the building collapsed on June 24. I was fully vaccinated, but I had it pretty bad — I was on my back. I remember my managing editor calling me pretty early in the morning, around 5 o’clock, a few hours after we already knew what happened. Normally — my mama would say this about me — at two and three in the morning, I’m up. It’s a bad habit, I’m that journalist who works 24/7. But I was sick so I was actually sleeping. So I got that call and suddenly, it felt like I didn’t have COVID anymore. It’s like a big rush when you have big news like that. And our newsroom responded — we had reporters who live close enough to take their bikes or hop on their child’s scooter. This was our community, our backyard. We just went into immediate planning mode. It was difficult in the sense that you’re managing through a pandemic and trying to get information and get everyone into position. We got through that by being very organized. We had a hotel room that we got right on the beach that became our headquarters for several weeks. We also said from day one, we knew at that moment that this wasn’t a story that was going to be with us for a few days or a few weeks or months even. We knew this was going to be with

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us for years. And so we needed to structure our thinking and organization around how we were going to sustain the coverage. The same people are working the story and they’re tired, and they’re hot. We covered it from three perspectives: breaking news; daily news from the victims perspectives, and the investigative side. And all three of those things together got us the kind of coverage we needed — and the thing I think that led to the Pulitzer. To this day, we’re working that story as if it happened a month ago. Now we’re coming up on the one year anniversary. After we won the Pulitzer, the first thing that I did was a 98-second moment of silence for the 98 victims in that building. Because we’ve always tried to be very thoughtful about our approach to the coverage. We want to make sure we’re here to help bring accountability to what happened. That is still our number one goal in the story, while at the same time being very respectful and honoring the family members and the first responders, too. Last question: When I first started at Charlottesville Tomorrow, I went on the radio program, In My Humble Opinion. One of the questions they asked me — which I hadn’t really considered — was, what is it like to be a woman of color leading an organization? I saw the press release that says you are the first Black executive editor of the Miami Herald. It’s weird to get that label, isn’t it? It is so weird. I remember they sent the press release to me, and I saw that it said, “first Black executive editor in the

Monica Richardson as a student at Charlottesville High School. She graduated in 1988. Courtesy of Richardson.

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newspaper’s 117-year history.” I thought, um, I do have some skills too — can’t you just say, digital leader or something? And it was my father who said to me — reminded me — how important this was. This wasn’t just about me. It was bigger than me. I was amazed how excited people were, even though they didn’t know me. It wasn’t about me, it was about them feeling like there was someone who would understand the path. That’s a big assumption, right? Because being Black or a person of color is not monolithic. But that someone who looked like them was at a place where they might be able to have a voice. I believe what Cicely Tyson said, that we don’t just stand on the shoulders of our ancestors, we stand on their backs. I truly believe that. I have a picture of my great great grandmother Olivia on my bedroom desk. That picture is a reminder for me that this is a woman who didn’t have the opportunity to read and write. And here I’m leading one of the biggest newspapers in the country.

I think being a woman of color means that I have a responsibility to make a difference, to live in my purpose. I have a responsibility to show up when someone says they want to celebrate the work that I do. It’s an awesome responsibility and honor that comes with being in this role. Every day is not easy — this has been a tough day. But you know, there have been other tough days and I’m still standing. Monica’s parents, Roger Richardson, Emilie Jackson Richardson and brother Roger Richardson, Jr. still live in the Charlottesville area. Monica is also a single mother raising her 10-year-old daughter, Lyric Richardson. -Angilee Shah is the first editor-in-chief of Charlottesville Tomorrow, a nonprofit news organization. Shah has a 20-year career in journalism, including six years as a founding editor of Global Nation, The World’s coverage of immigration in the US. As a reporter and editor, her work has been read and heard around the world, including a book about everyday lives in China and a trio of investigative stories about the end of Sri Lanka’s 30-year civil war.

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Black Playmaking Is

The Thing by Leslie M. Scott-Jones Assisstant Curator of Education & Public Programs Jefferson School African American Heritage Center Five years ago, as what was called The Summer of Hate began, I wasn’t sitting in the space I am now. In 2017, like most Black folx, I was thrust into the middle of a societal crisis moment. My art came with me. The structure that I had used in order to create art had been baked into me since I was a teenager. There’s nothing wrong with it, and until that summer it had served me

well. It had been the only way I knew and even when it was restrictive and unforgiving - even when it didn’t make sense to me- I used it. On the evening of August 14, 2017 at 7 p.m. I stood in front of a room of Black men and women that had walked the streets of their town in defiance of white supremacy. I stood in front of them, knowing that they did not want to be there. Knowing that they had

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healing they needed to do. Knowing that none of us were particularly excited to be in a room full of people at all. Myself included. Yet there I stood, all of them looking at me to give them a reason to be there. All I could think about was how all of the actions taken against us were based in the belief that we were somehow less than human. All I wanted to do was continue to show that Black

swers and found more questions. The shift that started on that fateful weekend, birthed a new direction. After this time of searching, I found an answer I had been looking for, possibly all my life. A way to engage with theatrical practice divorced from what we normally think of as traditional theatre. The Africana Perspective offers Black artists a new way of entering the art, the work, the world. It’s a change that opened doors I never knew existed. A change that shaped everything that has come after it. It is a process which demands critical thinking and interrogation of information given to you. It demands that you ask questions which you may never have the answers to. It demands that you embrace the concept of duality, how that works within the human psyche and how it plays out in our world. Most importantly it favors story and revelation over plot and achieving the answer. It reinforces the continuous cycle of transformation we all should be going through as we change and grow. This is the heart of creation and therefore the foundation with which the Black aesthetic is built.

people were not an accident. That we were, in fact, divine. “This is no longer about doing a play,” I said, “This is about proving that we are human.” Those two sentences started me on a journey that has been more satisfying and exhilarating than I could’ve hoped for.

Five years later, after A11 & 12, after Jitney and Gem of the Ocean, after a shutdown of the world and the We See You White American Theatre Movement, there are still questions. There is still work to be done for true conciliation and repair to occur. Theatrical organizations need to realize that the issues they have just discovered about themselves will take time and work to solve. Equally realizing that there may never be a solution, as they are (as we all are) fruits of the poisoned tree of this society built on white supremacist ideology. However, the Charlottesville Players Guild has found a direction that feels more like home. CPG has begun to carve out an ideology of its own, as divorced as it can be from the theatrical perspective that has historically chained Black artists. As the guild grows, so will the perspective and the practice. It has to, because it’s all about transformation. We may never get to take that specific bow. But we will continue to play, learn and transform. James Baldwin once said, “It took many years of vomiting up all the filth I’d been taught about myself, and half believed, before I was able to walk on the earth as though I had a right to be here.” This is our journey, constantly and consistently.

Charlottesville Players Guild began as the Dramatic Club of The Jefferson School. In 2016, after gaining permission from one of the original founders, we revived the name and the organization. We began a project to produce all ten of August Wilson’s American Century Cycle. Of course, in 2019 we were derailed by a global pandemic. While we did not abandon our project, we postponed it until we could come back to in person performances. In that virtual year, we produced five shows all written by Black playwrights from Charlottesville. We pulled on actors from as far away as California. One artist that joined us during that season is on Broadway starring in For Colored Girls… by Ntozake Shange. Last season something else changed. It became more about what Black artists had to say (or not say) and who they wanted to say it to. The true spirit of Wilson’s work was revealed. The true genius of his construction, and the intricate and layered work became illuminated by a new light. I began reading. I had conversations and questions. I looked to my mentors for anw w w. v i n e g a r h i l l m a g a z i n e . c o m | V I N E G A R H I L L M A G A Z I N E 2 1

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Public Violence Our Trusty Companion by Katrina Spencer

This story was published as a part of Charlottesville Inclusive Media Project’s: First Person C-Ville “A billion people died on the news tonight But not so many cried at the terrible sight… Who’s the one to decide that it would be alright To put the music behind the news tonight… So baby close your ears On the news tonight… The unobtrusive tones in the news tonight… Why don’t the newscasters cry When they read about people who die At least they could be decent enough To put just a tear in their eyes”

I thought that my earliest memory of a public act of violence was Columbine in 1999. I was wrong. Was it the Oklahoma City Bombing of 1995? No. I was too young to decipher the Gulf War, so it was likely the Los Angeles Riots of 1992, about 7 miles away from my home. I was 7 and a half. I knew that Rodney King was a Black man and he’d been beaten by several police officers and it was filmed and those officers weren’t to be punished. I understood that Black folks were upset at the ruling and that looting, —Jack Johnson fires, property damage, and violence followed. “News Tonight” from Brushfire Fairytales The riots and their aftermath were aired on TV. (2001) The chaos reached us, my family, in a symbolic way, as we were (and are) Black folks, but it w w w. v i n e g a r h i l l m a g a z i n e . c o m | V I N E G A R H I L L M A G A Z I N E 2 3

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didn’t make it to our zip code. Wikipedia-- something we didn’t have then-- tells me that 63 people were killed and over 2,300 were injured over a 6-day period. “Can’t we all just get along?’’ became the refrain we held onto from that era. What stands out in my mind from that time? Mostly the reigning Disney princesses of the 90s: Ariel, Belle, and Jasmine. I remember my unhealthy reliance upon circulating ice cream trucks for my sugar fixes. Michael Jackson’s “Remember the Time” would be released and we’d all lose our minds. Soon enough thereafter my father would invest in a navy-blue bound World Book Encyclopedia set for us consisting of over 15 hardback volumes. We would consult them when we had questions about world events, animals, historical figures, and the like. Then we could not get enough of Sade, and Boyz II Men was about to captivate the world.

scene. And Monopoly was still around. Kato Kaelin, Marcia Clark, and Johnnie Cochran had become household names. Robin Williams was a phenomenon unto himself. Cassette tapes and VHS, too, remained in daily use. And Discmen, the latest, were soon to come. AOL was just being advertised on television, and when it did make it into our homes, a telephone call would throw us unceremoniously offline. You remember? We can still hear the chipper “You’ve got mail!” We still called our parents using payphones to pick us up from social events.

get braces, so we did. HIV awareness was a big part of science class. I consumed as many Hot Cheetos and Reese’s peanut butter cups as possible. Seinfeld, Everybody Loves Raymond, and Friends were dominant, without question. This was long before Netflix became popular and before streaming was even possible. It was the time of the Backstreet Boys and Busta Rhymes. We weren’t texting then, and for those with cell phones, we were still trying to make calls late nights outside of peak times. Do you remember? J. K. Rowling was known in a major way. Ricky Martin gyrated his I learned that if we shared hips on TV to “Livin’ La Vida seemingly heartfelt words in a Loca.” The Macarena was a fad public way, the extent of our that held awhile and eventually civic duty would be complete. aged. “Talk to the hand” was the height of sass. Home Alone I was a 5th grader in Santa was long in our wake but Ana when 168 people were still very much in our hearts. killed in the Oklahoma City MySpace would soon make its bombing and 608 were injured. way into our homes, and Tom My class was really engaged in was all of our friends. None discovering the world and all it of us knew of the unrelenting had to offer. We were into all chokehold social media would We were with Mommy for types of activities like planting have on us for the next 20+ a portion of ‘95 when the a garden, reenacting life on years. Oprah was still on TV Oklahoma City bombing the [actual] Oregon Trail, and five afternoons a week. We occurred. This was a time staging a rendition of Charlie remained in love with Mariah following Hungry Hungry & The Chocolate Factory. We Carey, a veritable hit factory. Hippos and Skip-Its, and after 9, 10 and 11-year-olds also Titanic had already come out, the height of Supersoakers. wrote into the local newspaper making Leonardo DiCaprio the This was before Giga Pets expressing our condolences new blond to drool over-- not arrived and Pokémon [“Gotta and lament, mentally to exclude Jonathan Taylor catch ‘em all!”] was just over incapable of understanding Thomas aka “JTT” and the the horizon. Nintendo and the magnitude of loss and MmmBoping Hanson, who Sega would soon bring our destruction. I didn’t know what were new on the scene. Tupac play and recreation indoors. domestic terrorism was then or and Biggie were gone. But We were still mesmerized mental illness, but over time, Aaliyah and Left-Eye were still by Jurassic Park. Pogs were the media would introduce with us. Kazaa, Limewire, and fading into the background. me to both. I learned that if Napster made a way for us to We still remembered jumping we shared seemingly heartfelt download all the number ones. rope, and playing foursquare words in a public way, the No more recording them from and handball at school. The extent of our civic duty would the radio. We’d start burning Babysitters’ Club, Sweet Valley be complete. CDs soon. Ricki Lake would High, and Goosebumps were come to an end, as did Jenny in the midst of their heyday. It When we moved in with Daddy Jones, but Jerry Springer held was near the time we waved at the beginning of middle on. The Ellen DeGeneres show goodbye to the antics of Zach school, he used to bring us would pop up a few years later Morris, but before we were loose gummy bears home to and Judge Judy endured. As wizarded awake by Harry Potter. share that were sold by weight we waited for them to beat “Hit Me, Baby, One More at the store where he worked. each other senseless, Mike Time” had yet to arrive on the His benefits allowed us to Tyson would bite off a piece w w w. v i n e g a r h i l l m a g a z i n e . c o m | V I N E G A R H I L L M A G A Z I N E 2 5

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A new song came out recently by Aliah Sheffield and en masse we reluctantly agreed with its lyrics: Earth is ghetto I wanna leave Can you beam me up? I’m out on the street By the corner store You know the one on 15th Got a bright shirt on so I’m easy to see I been down here stranded indefinitely I can’t reach my planet, But I need to leave You should see these people It’s hard to believe How they treat each other It’s hard to conceive of Evander Holyfield’s ear as we watched in awe. Punching someone in the head in a controlled environment was fine but biting an appendage was not. There are rules to this, after all. As we waited for them to beat each other senseless, Mike Tyson would bite off a piece of Evander Holyfield’s ear as we watched in awe. As we churned towards the turn of the century, I became a first-year student in high school, and that’s when the massacre at Columbine happened in 1999. Two students, Eric and Dylan, walked into their high school and killed a dozen classmates and a teacher, injuring many others. And not long thereafter, the date “9/11” would take on new meaning. Two thousand nine hundred ninety-six would die and an estimated 25,000 would be injured. Both events made violence and loss an ever more intimate albeit unwelcome companion. I remember not knowing what the Twin Towers were-- I’d never been to New York. Now, a structure I’d never seen in real life, was seared into my memory as the media

played spooling reels of planes crashing into the buildings. I had to turn the TV off. The visuals were a constant assault and networks were indifferent or unaware of their traumatizing impact. I was conjugating verbs then: hablo, hablas, habla, hablamos, habláis, hablan. I was graphing parabolas then. I was detaching from the onslaught of grief that struck the nation then. Was this what they called a “coping mechanism”? If we subtract the War on Terror, which, of course, we cannot, domestic attacks seemed quieter and farther in between while I was an undergrad. Bush #2 was searching for WMDs in Afghanistan and Iraq and I was enrolling in more general ed requirements than I can count, waiting for somebody’s son to take me out, studying abroad, or sometimes both at once. Destiny’s Child was shutting down and Beyoncé was on the rise. John Mayer couldn’t miss. I got my first cell phone and a diploma in exchange for a couple decades’ worth of debt. Music no longer came primarily in formats you could physically handle. We came to forget James Van Der Beek,

yet another blond heartthrob presented to us. Steve Jobs was an icon. We were introduced to Adele, Taylor Swift, the Biebs, and reggaetón. The Obamas then stood at the helm. We lost James Brown and Michael Jackson. And later Prince, Whitney, and Aretha. Fifty Shades of Grey had us hot and bothered. The age of the “influencers” was born. Ta-Nehisi Coates would start publishing things the hegemony paid attention to. Jay-Z introduced Tidal. Ibram X. Kendi was embraced. And Will Smith remained fresh but would get a bit less princely. And things started to get blurry. Adulthood felt like an amorphous mass with no crisp edges and no blueprint for a neat way forward. Grad school determined a great deal of what I read as I tried to form the foundation of a career. I wasn’t issued report cards anymore to tell me whether I was doing well. The days, months, and years bled into one another with hardly any first-time experiences left that made them feel unique. But the violence didn’t go away. As my knowledge of the world

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increased, so did my awareness of a variety of violences in a variety of places. They were widespread and it became impossible to maintain a mental catalog of which were to be considered the most significant, memorable, distinct, “worthy” of our attention, our grief, our collective pésame. I continued to block it out. A backlog of unprocessed violence stacked up. My mental health couldn’t afford to be sensitized to that much despair. Sorry. Who was killed? Why? What was the motive this time? Did he kill himself or did the police shoot him? Was he apprehended? How many casualties? Where this time?

I’ve lost track of certain public acts of violence. They come so fast and so furious, I literally cannot keep up. FYI this isn’t stopping. There have been [more than] 18 mass shootings SINCE Uvalde. You need to know this. Because it’s not going to stop until we do something. In the 15+ years that have followed my college days, I’ve lost track of certain public acts of violence. They come so fast and so furious, I literally cannot keep up. My mind can only hold so many at any given time. And as my awareness of world geographies and events grew, so did my sense of being overwhelmed and ashamed, inundated by knowledge that would hurt me if I tried to hold onto it. Which causes was I supposed to fight for? What conflicts was I to be against? When? How? A fraction of events, ours in bold: Madrid train bombings (2004) Virginia Tech shooting (2007) Norway attacks (2011) Sandy Hook shooting (2012) Murder attempt on Malala Yousafzai in Pakistan (2012)

Gang rape and murder of Jyoti Singh in Delhi (2012) Boston Marathon Bombing (2013) Westgate shopping mall attack in Nairobi (2013) Schoolgirls’ kidnapping in Nigeria (2014) Church shooting in Charleston (2015) Terrorist attacks in Paris (2015) Orlando nightclub shooting (2016) White supremacist terrorist attack in Ch’ville (2017) Mass shooting in Las Vegas (2017) Murder of Ahmaud Arbery (2020) Homicide of Breonna Taylor (2020) Murder of George Floyd (2020) United States Capitol Attack (2021) Shooting in Buffalo (2022) Shooting in Laguna Woods (2022) School shooting in Uvalde (2022) Chattanooga shooting (2022) Henderson shooting (2022) Tulsa shooting (2022) Houston murders (2022) Philadelphia shooting (2022) Ondo, Nigeria shooting and bombing (2022)… I’m not sure I have any more reserves of grief. I’m depleted. I have fatigue, pity, hopelessness. But no fresh tears. I don’t want to be heartless. I also don’t want to be heartwrenched every few days coping with the emotional turmoil of another news story as we send “thoughts and prayers” to the families and victims. I’ve been doing this for 30 years. Thirty years as we moved from print to digital. Thirty years as we went from in person to online. Thirty years as my knowledge of the world ballooned and my capacity to manage the emotional legacies and traumas in turn shrank. According to the Gun Violence Archive, we’ve had over 230 mass shootings this year alone. At this rate, we can expect about 500 in 2022. And that’s to say nothing of rape, beatings, brawls, homicides, domestic abuse, stabbings, drug-related violence, etc. Is this the profile we want for “the greatest nation in the world”? And if I say we are a nation that glorifies guns and violence, I run the risk of being called unpatriotic. How does one win? I’m not 7 anymore. The door to my youth is tightly closed. There is no button to rewind. I’m 37, but perhaps just as lost in managing the incessant barrage of violence confronting me non-stop. My moments now are spent reading the ingredient labels on beverage bottles like Simply Light’s because my sugar intake is regularly too high. I pass the Hot Cheetos with longing knowing that they’ll taste great, but I will live a fiery, moaning regret the morning following consumption. I take glucosamine now to keep the joints mobile. And the only men who come close to activating my salivary glands go by “Mahershala,” “Idris,” and sometimes “LaKeith”-- not “Johnathan,” not “Taylor,” and not “Leo.” The music that moves me represents throwback sounds to classic R&B like H.E.R.’s, Giveon’s, and Khalid’s. I haven’t owned a television in 14 years, but am glued to screens, nonetheless. The only new phenomenon that has excited

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Scholarships are available me in a while comes in three-letter form: WFH. Friends from college send me Christmas cards with their kids on them. I have white hairs. The era is new, yet some things haven’t changed. How well adjusted can a citizenry be after witnessing non-stop violence? When you think of how we started, how could it be any different? When will we stop pretending ours is a peaceloving nation? Three decades have taught me that part of being an American from the United States is fishing deep down in your purse for the right platitude to deliver at the right moment when faced with yet another tragedy that numbs you. It’s brushing your brow in relief and thanking God that it didn’t happen in your town or on your block or to you or the people you love this time around. It’s hoping that politicians will use their power to enact change when decades of records tell you they won’t. It’s understanding that though they’ve told you that you live in the freest democracy on the planet, you haven’t got the time, energy, attention, or know-how to take off of work and dedicate yourself to testifying before Congress on behalf of your beliefs and the interests of your loved ones. It’s preparing to memorialize 19 lives we failed to protect and obligating women into birthing new ones into the same circumstances that will not guard

them. It’s seeing the cycles and not being able to wrest yourself from them. It’s understanding that “society” is a misnomer we use because we don’t have another to better describe the scenarios in which we live. It’s somehow, uncomfortably, begrudgingly, keeping public violence as our trustiest companion on a journey called life where the scenery constantly shifts but the backdrop somehow remains stubbornly -violently-- the same. If you appreciated this piece and want to donate to the author, please use one of the following methods. CashApp: $katleespe or Venmo: katleespe

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9 Charlottesville officials and police union head named in 73-page lawsuit alleging racism in firing of police chief by Charlotte Rene Woods @charlottewords cwoods@cvilletomorrow.org (Originally Published by Charlottesville Tomorrow)

Former Police Chief RaShall Brackney announces she is suing the city of Charlottesville, nine of its top officials and a local police union leader over her Sept. 1, 2021 firing.

Sept. 1 dismissal, she alleges, was in retaliation for her disciplining white officers for “racist and departmentally inappropriate behaviors.” “The city of Charlottesville and CPD was and still is so invested in its racial paternalism, misogyny, and nepotism,” Brackney said during a Wednesday morning news conference outside of Charlotteville’s federal courthouse, during which she announced she was suing the city. “They would rather conspire to oust me than dismantle or confront violent individuals in CPD and still in city government.”

Mayor Lloyd Snook (who is named in the lawsuit) along with Councilor Brian Pinkston and Councilor Michael Payne (who are not) declined to comment on the suit. No other councilors responded to Charlottesville Tomorrow’s requests for comment. Snook did say that if Brackney wins the case, the city’s insurance would likely cover any damages she is awarded. Read more: The unprecedented turnover in Charlottesville government could have ‘enormous consequences’ for the community — this is how

Former Charlottesville Police Chief RaShall Brackney is suing the city for $10 million over alleged wrongful termination. The 73-page lawsuit levies eleven charges against the city and specific people on Council, in city hall, the police department and outside of local government. Brackney alleges that she was disparaged and discriminated against because of her race, color and gender. Her w w w. v i n e g a r h i l l m a g a z i n e . c o m | V I N E G A R H I L L M A G A Z I N E 3 3

Photo Credit: Charlotte Rene Woods/Charlottesville Tomorrow The suit says that Brackney’s employment was terminated after she took disciplinary action against officers for “misogynistic, harassing, and racist behaviors” during the summer of 2021. The lawsuit does not give details, but city news releases about those personnel issues at the time said the officers were members of the city’s SWAT team. They had threatened to kill command staff in text messages, had held “unauthorized trainings” with department gear (in some of which their children were involved), and had used department-issued phones to circulate nude images and sexual simulations. Brackney terminated or suspended the officers involved and disbanded SWAT. At Wednesday’s news conference, Brackney’s lawyer, Charles Tucker, defended her actions as doing “the job that she was hired to do, that the city hired her to do.” “She needed to fire these officers for their

conduct, as the law allowed her to do and this is exactly what she did,” he said. “This was a victory for the police department and the people of Charlottesville, a sign of real change. But for the officials named as defendants and Dr. Brackney’s complaint, this was a bridge too far.” Following her termination, Brackney and her attorney attempted to negotiate a settlement with the city outside of court, asking officials to pay her $3 million in damages and publicly apologize, or to reinstate her as chief. If the city did not settle by Nov. 26, she said, she would sue. By the end of November, Tucker said the city had not responded to Brackney’s request and Brackney filed a charge with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, EEOC. The EEOC is responsible for enforcing federal anti-discrimination laws. Before someone can sue for discrimination, they must first file with the EEOC.

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“The first step is that we try to mediate between both parties,” said Joseph Olivares, a spokesperson for EEOC. “If they don’t agree, we can investigate if we believe the discrimination ocurred or not and make a determination on that.” The EEOC must issue a “right to sue” letter before a suit can be filed. Olivares would not say whether the EEOC issued one in this case. The City of Charlottesville is listed as the main defendant in Brackney’s lawsuit along with 10 individuals. The lawsuit centers around the actions these 10 individuals took in the short period leading up to Brackney’s termination. After she disciplined and disbanded the SWAT team in the summer of 2021, the Police Benevolent Association — a law enforcement union — conducted a survey that 64 officers responded to. That survey indicated dissatisfaction and low morale in the department. It also accused Brackney of poor leadership.

with City Manager Boyles in which he said the PBA president, Wells, wanted to remove Brackney from her position. “This Wells guy, all he has in his sights is the chief’s badge,” Boyles was recorded saying. “He is living 24 hours a day, seven days a week to try and get her fired. He can say all he wants to, I think he could care less about the officers. For him, it’s a mission.” The day after the Benevolent Association released its survey, Brackney, her Assistant Chief Mooney, City Attorney Robertson and the City Manager Boyles (all named in the lawsuit) collaborated on an Aug. 20 news release supporting Brackney’s actions and detailing the “disturbing behaviors” of the disciplined officers. Eleven days later, Boyles fired Brackney with no initial explanation. Read more: Boyles says that two CPD surveys influenced his decision to fire the police chief — here’s what those surveys say Boyles later said that the PBA-conducted survey and a separate internal police department survey influenced his decision to terminate her.

Boyles said he examined both surveys, spoke with area stakeholders and six police officers, then chose to terminate her. Five Charlottesville City Councilors, as well as city spokesperson Brian Wheeler (bottom left) and city manager Chip Boyles (top center) listen to public comment criticizing the city’s decision to fire Police Chief RaShall Brackney during the Oct. 4, 2021 Council meeting. “In order to dismantle systemic racism and eliminate police violence and misconduct in Charlottesville, we need a leader who is not only knowledgeable in that work, but also is effective [at] building collaborative relationships with the community, the department, and the team at City Hall,” Boyles said in a statement published on the city’s website. “While very good work and progress has been made, I ultimately decided new leadership was required to continue the City’s progress towards building a new climate and culture within the department.”

During a City Council meeting weeks later in which members Brackney’s lawsuit alleges that questioned Boyles decision, he the survey was “targeted” to added that, “I knew that there paint her in an unfavorable would be expected changes light. within the department that It was “specifically intended to should be remedied — and it target and highlight [Brackney] The internal survey indicated was my position that the only in a negative manner … after, that 55% of officers felt overall way to remedy that would be a and because of, [Brackney’s] negative toward the departchange in the chief. It was that recent investigation and disciment. Many officers indicated direction. It was no fault. There plinary actions against former they were either actively lookwere no particulars but that that and current employees.” ing or planned to look for a new direction needed to change job. The survey had few specific to preserve the department so Former Mayor Nikuyah Walker grievances against Brackney. that it could continue to prolater recorded a conversation vide the safety and protection w w w. v i n e g a r h i l l m a g a z i n e . c o m | V I N E G A R H I L L M A G A Z I N E 3 5

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that our citizens deserve.” The suit references an audio recording Brackney allegedly made during a meeting with Boyles five days before she was fired. Brackney’s attorney declined to share the full recording at this time, but the suit includes a quote from it. “I know without a doubt that you will make a great chief in many places, I am just convinced that this community will not allow you to be a great chief here,” Boyles was allegedly recorded as saying. “They never gave you a chance from day one and you came into an impossible situation and given a nearly impossible vision to meet.”

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Entertainment Lawyer/ Manager, Elva Mason talks about Growing up in Charlottesville, Her ties to Vinegar Hill and Giving Back

by Sarad Davenport

Elva Mason is a native of Charlottesville, whose mother grew up on Vinegar Hill. She is a UVA undergraduate and Law grad, and an attorney/manager to high-profile clients in the entertainment/media industry. For attorney/manager Elva Mason, home has always been where community, faith, and family are. Raised in Charlottesville, and attending elementary school at Jefferson Elementary School, much of what she knows and understands today has been inspired by her upbringing there and in the larger Charlottesville community. From church to school,

she recounts a childhood experience that, although having taken place at times of deep racial tension, provided her with a connection to her town, family, neighbors and led her to represent many highprofile clients and artists in the entertainment industry. Elva represents arts and entertainment folks far and wide. She has worked with and continues to work with several members of Latin artist Marc Anthony’s band and including his music director and road manager. According to Ms. Elva, “I have probably worked with half of his band members.” She also represents

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and has worked with Carlos Santana’s former trumpeter, Bill Ortiz, his bass player and music director Benny Rietveld, jazz great Ahmad Jamal, and a Stu Gartner who composed the theme song for the “Cosby Show”, “A Different World”, “Living Single”. She has worked with Stu on many projects, including “The Little Bill Show” on Nickelodeon. Ms. Elva has a strong commitment to working on issues of mental health in communities of color and represents and has been the longtime manager of Dr. Jeff Gardere, “America’s Psychologist” who appears

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regularly on national television and radio as well as on many television shows on Bravo, E, TV One, BET, VH1, and others. Figuring It Out Equipped with a law degree from UVA and no ‘blueprint’ on how to make it as a lawyer in the entertainment industry, she credits much of her success to being in the right places at the right time and maintaining a consistent practice of being able to simply figure things out. On moving to Washington, D.C. right after receiving her B.A degree in Government and French, Ms. Elva said, “I graduated from UVA on a Sunday. I had already gotten a job in D.C. at the World Bank. I packed my bags and my parents moved me to D.C. a week later.” She went on, “It was certainly a lot of figuring it out, figuring it out on my own”. She went on to work at a major law firm in D.C., Arnold & Porter prior to returning to UVA to attend law school. At the beginning of her career as an attorney, Elva admits she didn’t see herself becoming an entertainment lawyer, and certainly not a manager. “I thought I’d just do litigation and corporate law.” Through connections, experiences, and seeds planted, however, it was her exposure to what the industry had to offer that ultimately led Elva to consider work as an entertainment attorney. “When I was living and working in northern Virginia, the firm where I worked encouraged us to do pro-bono work. I thought it would be cool to do something in entertainment law.

I also thought it would be a way to get my feet wet.” Elva decided to do her pro bono work with Washington Area Lawyers for the Arts and started by offering her pro bono services to young music performers and producers in the DMV area, eventually seeking to grow her connections and network. Despite being told she’d need to move to Los Angeles or New York in order to be successful as an entertainment lawyer, Elva

saw potential in working from Virginia and expanding her reach through new and existing connections. Many of her clients found her stance of not moving to the big cities to do business refreshing, and they would be the ones to introduce her to her next connections. Much of that success has been because of word of mouth and people telling others about the positive experiences they have had with Elva.

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Origins of Success But where did this success come from? For her, it greatly relates to her identity and character, much of which was formed during her upbringing. Elva credits most of her character to the environment in which she grew up, citing a lovely ensemble of community members and family who have shaped who she is today. She recounts growing up in a town with a close-knit community where everyone felt safe, knew each other, and consider others as family. Whether was through her connections to Trinity Episcopal Church, the church that she attended , or through her grandparent’s church Zion Union Baptist Church, or Jefferson Elementary School, she conveys that her Mother’s upbringing in Vinegar Hill which extended to her upbringing in Charlottesville, had a big impact on her childhood and ultimate values as a person. This became most notable for her only after she actually left her home community and was able to put it and everything else into perspective. Faith and Community As stated before, another major part of Elva’s life has been church. Faith is very much involved in all aspects of her life, not just Sunday mornings. For her, it’s a part of daily living and the foundation upon which she finds meaning in the trials and blessings she experiences. Elva recalls her first real spiritual awakening at Trinity Episcopal Church. Reverend

“Growing up, you think, especially as you get older, you can’t wait to leave your hometown, and move to the big city to do this and do that, then you realize how blessed you were to have been raised where you were. The values that were instilled in you.” Henry Mitchell and his wife Gertrude Mitchell were two of her Godparents. They were pillars in the community. ”Reverend Mitchell had this commanding presence and big voice that just resonated in that small church that was located at 10th and Grady Avenue at the time. One verse that stuck in my mind was, “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light. “Matthew 11:28-30. “I don’t know why that stuck with me about that verse at the time. It was more his voice. It wasn’t the words, but I became curious about it, so I started studying the Bible and scripture, and my faith just grew over time.” Through a consistent devotion to learning more about her faith, Elva was able to establish a strong spiritual life, inspiring her to consider her faith in everything she does. She cites it as an intimate thing, as a comfort she can turn to when life gets tough. Giving Back Despite her numerous successes and the accolade-defined career she has built for herself, Elva has drawn upon her past experiences and values in moving forward through her life, with which she has expressed an interest in giving back. Whether it’s through mentoring, representation, or random acts of kindness, Elva has been a part of numerous efforts in support of the local community and beyond. Ms. Elva stated that, “Achieving success is a means of helping create more opportunities

for others.” She went on to state, “I am a father’s advocate, and do a lot of representation of fathers on custody cases. It’s my way of giving back. People think it is an odd mix, entertainment law and family law, but it works for me.” Moving forward, she places a particular emphasis on helping women and girls in her community, acknowledging the sensitive situations and turning points they often face, and the support they need in getting ahead in life. “I know there are women who are struggling in Charlottesville, and I want to connect with to help them in any way that I can.” Few people know about the greatness that emanates from Vinegar Hill. “My mother was raised on Vinegar Hill, attended church on Vinegar Hill as a child, was educated at Jefferson School and returned to teach there for many years. I spent the first four years of my education at Jefferson School. The seeds of some of the most valuable lessons of my life were planted from my experiences and the wonderful village that nurtured and protected me there.” Fewer know about the great and powerful people who came from there. Elva Mason has made a name for herself in a big way, working with some of the biggest names in entertainment, but still considers herself a small-town girl. When it comes to what really matters, however, she’s clear on the notion that her community truly is where her heart is —”I feel that I was immensely blessed to have grown up in Charlottesville.”

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VINEGAR HILL MAGAZINE SUMMER 2022

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VINEGAR HILL MAGAZINE SUMMER 2022