Author
Calendar exposes history of racial violence, degradation that can’t be ignored
Collected in a 2024 calendar, in brutal and excruciating detail, is a litany of violence and dehumanization against people of color spanning this nation’s existence. Some incidents aren’t even that old. Many state legislatures and governors (including Virginia’s) – howling diversionary terms like “critical race theory” and “wokeness” – wouldn’t want the information in the […]
There’s no logical reason to deny all localities a funding tool for school-building
This is the story of two localities in Virginia. The General Assembly has granted the first community the ability to raise sales taxes to help build new schools or pay for major renovations. But the legislature, in its dubious wisdom, has denied that same lifeline to the second – and to most other cities and […]
Administration’s inertia on decertifying officers sets troubling precedent
Let’s say you order a washing machine online. The manufacturer admits the appliance is in short supply, but pledges to deliver the item in a couple of months – tops. You pay the hefty cost. You wait. And wait some more. In the meantime, you keep schlepping your dirty clothes to the laundromat, fishing around […]
Deeds’ relentless work has bolstered Virginia’s mental health system
The scars state Sen. Creigh Deeds carries — both physical and psychological — since that awful day 10 years ago have propelled him to overhaul the commonwealth’s imperfect mental health system. It’s a work in progress. Successes and setbacks continue to occur around the state: A new mental health hospital for children, a rarity nationwide, […]
Teacher’s lawsuit should force needed re-examination of workers’ comp, classroom violence
Beyond the arguments over whether a former Newport News teacher can sue for damages, or should instead be limited to the remedies in Virginia’s restrictive, century-old Workers’ Compensation Act, lies this reality: No educator should ever be the victim of a shooting by a student – especially when the child is only 6 years old. […]
Governor’s mismanagement of voting process continues as Election Day looms
Officials in Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s administration, including the de facto state Republican Party chief himself, can’t get voting right in Virginia. The latest piece of evidence is the purging of nearly 3,400 citizens who, as former felons, had had their voting rights restored. They were then incorrectly taken off the rolls because of probation violations […]
Helping panhandlers involves more than just easing bans on begging
Alexandria’s City Council recently voted to repeal some restrictions on panhandling, noting the regulations violated federal court rulings involving free speech. Other localities around Virginia have taken similar actions over the past decade. The unanimous council vote in Alexandria, a city of 155,000, evinces compassion for people often struggling to find food, shelter – and […]
Current state law on traffic stops protects motorists and police officers, too
Virginia Municipal League members recently voted to revisit a 2020 law that sharply limits the opportunity for police officers to pull over drivers for minor equipment violations, including broken taillights and expired registration stickers. The law had passed in the aftermath of the horrific, videotaped police killing of George Floyd. The league is a nonprofit […]
Kerfuffle over Christian prayer at board meeting is overblown
Publicity surrounding the temporary shutdown of a recent school board meeting in Suffolk – sparked by a citizen asking if she could pray publicly for the division as the 2023-24 year approached – is yet the latest example of some Christians complaining they’re under siege in America. They’re not. Especially when Christians account for nearly […]
Eminent domain’s long-ago racism still hinders African Americans today
More than a half-century ago, several colleges in Virginia benefited by usurping the onetime properties of Black people. The cruel irony? Those African Americans whose homes were snatched, often legally by utilizing eminent domain, weren’t welcomed at those same universities. Those property seizures are a stain on the commonwealth. They were racist in result – […]
Labor market should be applauded, not lamented
Ever so slowly, people around Virginia and across America are going back to work. A constant trickle of laborers has returned to restaurants, retail outlets and offices since the worst of COVID-19 forced Americans to quit their jobs or work remotely. Businesses, chambers of commerce and lawmakers say the hoped-for flood of workers hasn’t reappeared […]
New U.Va. video an unfortunate, necessary tutorial about carnage on campuses
You never see the face of the handgun-wielding attacker in a new instructional video that all University of Virginia students must now view. In that way, the glove- and hoodie-wearing assailant stalking people on campus is unknown, mysterious. Sadly, suspects in many real-life campus attacks in the commonwealth and elsewhere revealed disturbing signs that something […]