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By ELI ROSENBERG, Washington Post (Metered Paywall - 3 articles a month)
Virginia took a big step on Wednesday toward ushering in a new set of coronavirus-era safety rules that companies would be forced to implement to protect workers from infection — a first in the country and potentially way forward for other states in the face of federal inaction.
By GREGORY J. GILLIGAN, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 25 articles a month)
Kings Dominion and Busch Gardens Williamsburg — two of Virginia’s biggest tourist attractions and economic boosters — won’t be reopening when Virginia moves next week into the third phase of the state’s plan to gradually reopen businesses amid the coronavirus.
By ALAN SUDERMAN, Associated Press
Political newcomer Cameron Webb says he didn’t plan it this way, but his campaign was made for these unprecedented times. With the country gripped by a pandemic and racial unrest, Webb is a Black doctor and lawyer from Charlottesville who is the director of health policy and equity at the University of Virginia.
By GRAHAM MOOMAW, Virginia Mercury
Banning chokeholds. Restricting the use of tear gas against crowds. Making it a hate crime to falsely call 911 for racial reasons. Ending no-knock warrants. Reducing police budgets and replacing some law enforcement services with trained mental health experts. Requiring courts to release racial data on people charged with minor crimes. Legalizing marijuana. It might not all happen. But the Virginia Legislative Black Caucus says it should.
By ETHAN BROWN, Flat Hat
Following alleged threats to campus safety, the College of William and Mary enlisted security personnel to protect the university’s Thomas Jefferson statue for six days. The College’s decision to hire additional security for the purposes of protecting the monument attracted criticism from students, and was announced amid ongoing demands for administration to remove statues and building designations that commemorate slave owners and Confederate leaders.
By KEN BELSON, New York Times (Metered Paywall - 1 to 2 articles a month)
George Preston Marshall, the original owner of the N.F.L. team in Washington that was the last franchise to integrate its roster, will have his name removed from the team’s stadium and website. The decision comes amid pressure on the team to acknowledge Marshall’s resistance to signing and drafting African-American players and his decision in 1933 to name the team the Redskins, which some Native Americans and others consider a racist term.
By CHARLES WILBORN, Danville Register & Bee
South Boston Speedway officials announced Wednesday afternoon they are canceling Saturday’s races acknowledging restrictions with Virginia’s phased reopening plan. The speedway still was planning to host Saturday’s race program even after Gov. Ralph Northam announced Tuesday the state won’t move into Phase Three until next week.
The Full Report
53 articles, 29 publications
Read Online10 Most Clicked
The Virginia Public Access Project
More than 300,000 ballots were cast in a statewide Republican U.S. Senate primary. VPAP takes a look at how Tuesday's voter participation compares to other GOP statewide primaries held over the last 31 years.
The Virginia Public Access Project
Statewide, turnout in the Republican U.S. Senate primary was down slightly compared to a Senate primary held two years ago. Turnout was up west of the Blue Ridge. But it was down in Northern Virginia, where Republicans opted to select a 10th congressional district candidate at a convention rather than a primary open to all voters.
The Virginia Public Access Project
Our COVID-19 dashboard makes it easy to track the latest available data for tests performed, infections, deaths and hospital capacity. There's a filter for each city and county, plus an exclusive per-capita ZIP Code map. Updated each morning around 10:00 am.
By MEL LEONOR, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 25 articles a month)
The Virginia Legislative Black Caucus on Wednesday released a wide-ranging list of legislative proposals to reform the state’s law enforcement system, urging “a bold swing” toward racial equity and social justice in the state.
By JACKIE DEFUSCO, WAVY
A somewhat wonky legal term is now central to calls for police reform in Virginia. Some state lawmakers say ‘qualified immunity’ presents a huge hurdle for people trying to sue police for violating their constitutional rights. Others argue eliminating the protection would make it difficult for officers to act in situations that require split-second decisions.
By LAURENCE HAMMACK, Roanoke Times (Metered Paywall - 18 articles a month)
A total of $700,000 in state funding has been awarded to three projects in the Roanoke and New River valleys designed to help rebuild a regional economy crippled by the coronavirus pandemic. The GO Virginia state board recently approved the grants, which will be supplemented by nearly $500,000 from other public and private sources, for initiatives proposed by the Roanoke Regional Partnership, the New River Health District and Virginia Tech.
By JONATHAN CAPRIEL, Washington Business Journal (Subscription required for some articles)
Amazon.com Inc. managed to nearly hit a hiring milestone in the middle of the coronavirus pandemic. Even amid the region's economic shutdown, Amazon has still been staffing up its HQ2 offices in Arlington, quickly approaching its 1,000th hire at the second headquarters campus, said Brian Kenner, head of HQ2 policy.
By DAVID MACAULAY, Daily Press (Metered Paywall - 1 article a month)
Busch Gardens will remain closed after Virginia moves into the third phase of the state’s reopening from COVID-19 on July 1, the park’s president told James City County’s Board of Supervisors on Tuesday night.
By ABIGAIL CONSTANTINO, WTOP
A music venue in Alexandria, Virginia, is reopening with limited capacity. The Birchmere on Mount Vernon Avenue announced that the Billy Price Charm City Rhythm Band will perform July 10.
By RICHARD FOSTER, Va Business Magazine
Metalworx Inc., a manufacturer of highly-engineered and precision-manufactured components, assemblies and products for industrial uses, is investing $7.6 million to relocate its headquarters and manufacturing operations from South Carolina to the former Core Fitness Complex in Grayson County, Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam announced Wednesday.
By JEFF LESTER, Coalfield Progress
Eight organizations have told a federal bankruptcy court that Blackjewel LLC has not yet transferred most of the mine permits that were to change hands when the company sold its assets last year. In Virginia, only 34 of Blackjewel’s 71 permits have been transferred, according to a June 17 press release. In Kentucky, there has been no transfer activity on 149 of 213 permits.
By ASHLEY HOPKO, Reston Now
After construction-related closures, commuters can expect several Silver Line stations to reopen ahead of schedule, according to a press release from the Washington Metropolitan Transit Authority. On August 16, WMATA plans to reopen the McLean, Tysons Corner, Greensboro, Spring Hill and Wiehle-Reston East stations along with the West Falls Church station.
By EVA SUROVELL, Cavalier Daily
Nationwide protests in response to the death of George Floyd and police brutality have reignited debate over the removal of statues commemorating Confederate war generals and other insensitive depictions in both Richmond and Charlottesville. Both Gov. Ralph Northam, D-Va., and Charlottesville’s City Council have announced commitments to removing their statues of Confederate General Robert E. Lee.
By ALISON GRAHAM, Roanoke Times (Metered Paywall - 18 articles a month)
Washington and Lee University will expand its admission of low-income students by 33% and declare Juneteenth a university holiday after hearing stories of racism and exclusion from students and alumni.
By ELIZABETH BELL, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 25 articles a month)
Washington and Lee University faculty discussed a resolution to remove all references to the Confederacy from the campus of the small liberal arts college in Lexington as well as to the school’s name. No action was taken during the virtual meeting Wednesday evening. But the more than 100 undergraduate and law school professors who attended the meeting plan to send a formal request to the school’s president and its Board of Trustees by the end of the month.
By ELANA SCHOR AND SARAH RANKIN, Associated Press
As the nation wrestles with how to do more for racial equality, Liberty University — a school whose leadership has said it doesn’t have a problem — is facing its own tough questions.
By BRHETT VICKERY, WSET
Liberty University spoke to WSET explaining why a professor was terminated after two football players announced they would be entering the transfer portal because of the professor's comments.
By JUSTIN MATTINGLY, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 25 articles a month)
The University of Richmond has rescinded an admissions offer to a student who the college said posted an “offensive and racially charged” video on social media. In a statement Wednesday, the university did not identify the student nor did it elaborate on the content of the video.
By LAUREN LUMPKIN, Washington Post (Metered Paywall - 3 articles a month)
Leaders at James Madison University are urging the school’s governing body to rename three campus buildings that honor Confederate leaders, officials announced this week, the latest attempt by a university to reckon publicly with the country’s legacy of slavery and racism.
By JESSICA NOLTE, Virginian-Pilot (Metered Paywall - 2 articles a month)
The Chesapeake campus of Tidewater Community College is closed after the school was notified Tuesday of an employee who tested positive for the coronavirus.
By NICK IANNELLI, WTOP
As coronavirus numbers surge elsewhere in the U.S., the D.C. region has been making steady progress, according to the latest information from local health departments. Numbers released Wednesday in D.C. show that the District recorded 10,128 cases and 541 deaths, an increase of 34 cases and four deaths since Tuesday.
By HOLLY PRESTIDGE, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Access to this article limited to subscribers)
The Virginia Department of Health reported Wednesday that the statewide total for COVID-19 cases is 59,514 — an increase of 520 from the 58,994 reported yesterday.
WSLS
As we get closer to Phase 3 of Virginia’s reopening plan, more businesses will continue to open their doors and that may sometimes come with scrutiny. “We don’t take action based on what somebody tells us on the phone or via email,” said Jim Bowles, environmental health manager for the Lynchburg Health District. Bowles said from March to the end of May, they’ve gotten about 70 complaint calls from customers who claim employees and patrons are not wearing masks or practicing social distancing.
Associated Press
A northern Virginia couple has been charged with fraud after prosecutors say they received nearly $1.5 million in federal funds meant for businesses struggling under the coronavirus pandemic.
By ALI SULLIVAN, ZACH JOACHIM AND LILY BETTS, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 25 articles a month)
Hours after police dispersed peaceful demonstrators from the grounds of the Robert E. Lee statue, about 300 protesters returned Wednesday evening vowing to defy this week’s announcement that police would enforce closure of the space at sunset.
By JOSH REYES, Daily Press (Metered Paywall - 1 article a month)
Before deciding the future of the Confederate monument in Denbigh, the Newport News City Council must get permission from a state agency, hold a public hearing and vote on the issue, according to a presentation made at Tuesday’s work session. Following that process, the monument may be moved as early as October, City Manager Cindy Rohlf said.
By ADELE UPHAUS–CONNER, Free Lance-Star (Metered Paywall - 10 articles a month)
The group that marched along Caroline Street on Wednesday evening was perhaps a little more brightly colored than other groups that have been seen in the streets of downtown over the past few weeks. They wore rainbow-colored shirts, tutus, socks, tights, capes, headbands and even false eyelashes.
By LUCY TOMPKINS AND NICHOLAS BOGEL-BURROUGHS, New York Times (Metered Paywall - 1 to 2 articles a month)
Clayton Wickham, 28, said he used to think of the statue of his great-great-great-grandfather as “just a statue that had my name on it that was kind of cool to walk by every now and then.” But as Mr. Wickham learned more about his ancestor, the statue became a source of discomfort, and then of shame.
By ALLYSON WALLER, New York Times (Metered Paywall - 1 to 2 articles a month)
NASA announced on Wednesday that it would name its Washington, D.C., headquarters after Mary Jackson, the organization’s first black female engineer and a pivotal player in helping U.S. astronauts reach space.
ArlNow
Arlington’s new superintendent says Arlington Public Schools is focusing on a potential hybrid model for the return to school in the fall. Dr. Francisco Durán is scheduled to update the School Board on back-to-school planning on Thursday. He said an APS Task Force this week “is reviewing hybrid instructional models that blend in-person and distance learning for student.”
By HANNAH NATANSON, Washington Post (Metered Paywall - 3 articles a month)
Fairfax County Public Schools, one of the country’s largest districts, is asking families to choose between 100 percent virtual learning or part-time in-person schooling next year, one of the first concrete plans for fall released by schools nationwide.
By FATIMAH WASEEM, Reston Now
Dranesville District Supervisor John Foust is joining an effort by Fairfax County officials to help people avoid evictions during the coronavirus pandemic. Foust teamed up with Chairman Jeff McKay and Mount Vernon District Supervisor Dan Storck on a board matter to address rent relief options. The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors approved the proposal Tuesday.
By FATIMAH WASEEM, Reston Now
A report showing that Black people are disproportionately involved in use-of-force incidents is prompting familiar calls for reform. Fairfax NAACP president Sean Perryman is calling on the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors to address the disparity, which has been on the books for six years.
By JOHN BATTISTON, Loudoun Times
The Loudoun County School Board plans to vote next week on whether to change Loudoun County High School’s mascot from the Raiders, a moniker with Confederate roots. Loudoun County Public Schools Superintendent Eric Williams proposed the potential renaming as part of a presentation during Tuesday’s board meeting.
By TOM LAPPAS, Henrico Citizen
The Henrico Division of Police has been assisting the city of Richmond Police Department during recent daily protests and rallies in the city through a mutual aid agreement that the two localities share, but Henrico Police officials don’t have any record of how many hours their officers have spent on duty in the city or how much that service is costing Henrico County, a Henrico Police spokesperson told the Citizen.
By JIM MCCONNELL, Chesterfield Observer
In a resolution adopted at its June 9 business meeting, the Chesterfield School Board condemned racism and committed to“actively acknowledge, address and prevent racial bias that occurs as a result of division policies, practices and actions.” On the same night, the board’s consent agenda included a proposal to shift a high-end residential subdivision in the Matoaca District from the attendance zone of a predominantly Black school (Ettrick Elementary) to one that is predominantly white (O.B. Gates).
By IAN M. STEWART, WCVE
Chesterfield School Board members heard six options Tuesday on what the first day of school could look like in the fall. This comes after months of remote learning due to the coronavirus pandemic. Chesterfield Superintendent Merv Daugherty told the school board that guidelines outlining how classes will be taught are changing rapidly.
By KENYA HUNTER AND C. SUAREZ ROJAS, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 25 articles a month)
The Hanover County School Board abruptly adjourned in a split vote Tuesday after a two-hour closed session, putting off an expected decision on a pair of schools named for the Confederate leaders Jefferson Davis, Robert E. Lee and “Stonewall” Jackson.
By SARA GREGORY, Virginian-Pilot (Metered Paywall - 2 articles a month)
Granby High School’s new principal will be Norfolk City Council member Tommy Smigiel, who has led one of the city’s specialty, lottery-based schools since its founding in 2014. One Norfolk School Board member abstained from the decision and another voted against his promotion, which was approved last week in an unusually secretive fashion.
By CATHY JETT, Free Lance-Star (Metered Paywall - 10 articles a month)
Complaints about the Fredericksburg police’s treatment of people protesting racial injustice drew an apology from Mayor Mary Katherine Greenlaw this week. “I never thought I would hear the words ‘tear gas’ in the same sentence as Fredericksburg. I am personally sorry,” she said at Tuesday’s City Council meeting.
By DON DEL ROSSO, Fauquier Now
After a three-month shutdown because of the coronavirus pandemic, Fauquier County government office buildings reopened this week. For now, county government departments housed in the Warren Green, the county courthouse and the Alice Jane Childs Building — all in Warrenton — won’t provide walk-in service but in some instances will allow limited in-person staff contact with citizens.
By EVAN GOODENOW, Winchester Star (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)
City Council on Tuesday discussed possibly changing the name of Jubal Early Drive in response to an online petition that suggests a major city thoroughfare shouldn’t bear the name of a Confederate general. City resident Jason Murray started the change.org petition, calling Early an “unrepentant” supporter of slavery. As of Wednesday afternoon, the petition had more than 250 signatures.
By PETE DELEA, Daily News Record (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)
A dispute between a local immigrant advocacy group and Rockingham County Sheriff Bryan Hutcheson continues to linger in Rockingham County General District Court. In March, the group asked a judge to issue a court order to force Hutcheson to release information about detainers on inmates booked into the jail.
By RICHARD CHUMNEY, News & Advance (Metered Paywall - 18 articles a month)
Local activists Tuesday called on Lynchburg City Council to redirect city dollars used to fund military-style police weapons and equipment to increased training for law enforcement officers. Echoing demands made in recent weeks by local protesters over the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis, residents asked city leaders to significantly reevaluate the role of police in the Hill City.
By BILL WYATT, Martinsville Bulletin (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)
A member of the Martinsville City Council and a business owner from Henry County had a private cellphone conversation about finger-pointing racial issues in which they disagree about what was said. But at least the council member’s version of that conversation has prompted Martinsville Assistant City Manager and City Attorney Eric Monday to make this a public issue by threatening the business owner with a lawsuit at taxpayers’ expense to force him to stop his comments about the council member -- the propriety of which some could question.
Daily Progress Editorial (Metered Paywall - 25 articles a month)
A couple of weeks ago in this space (“COVID data report results disappoint,” June 11), we noted discrepancies in the official reporting of COVID-19 numbers — one of several editorials about difficulties in obtaining and releasing data on the coronavirus. At the time, a nursing home in Bedford County was reported to have had 90 COVID-related deaths. That’s a huge number — so huge, in fact, that it would have wiped out virtually the entire population of residents.
Washington Post Editorial (Metered Paywall - 3 articles a month)
"But how, in these times, do you raise kids in the nation’s capital, ask them to look at the pain and the strife racial injustice has caused in their hometown and their home country, walk them through steps they can take to make things better, and then have them Hail to the Redskins on Sundays? It’s so incongruent it makes your head hurt.” So wrote Post sports columnist Barry Svrluga in calling on Washington football team owner Daniel Snyder to rename the team in light of the national reckoning over racial injustice that has been sparked by the killing of George Floyd.
Roanoke Times Editorial (Metered Paywall - 18 articles a month)
Hey 5th District voters, are you ready for your close-up? Because ready or not, you’re going to get one. The political events of the past two weeks guarantee that the congressional district stretching from the North Carolina line to the outer suburbs of Northern Virginia will be in the national spotlight in ways it wouldn’t have been if “normal” politics had prevailed.
Free Lance-Star Editorial (Metered Paywall - 10 articles a month)
If the recent spat between members of the Spotsylvania Board of Supervisors and the School Board over the likeness of a U.S. flag embedded in the football field at Massaponax High School seems like a trifle to you when cities around the country are in turmoil and statues of historical figures are being toppled daily by unruly mobs, you’re not alone. But symbols matter.
Virginian-Pilot Editorial (Metered Paywall - 2 articles a month)
A recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling favoring construction of the Atlantic Coast Pipeline recalls a Virginian-Pilot editorial published almost two years ago. As editorials go, it was more obvious than profound, more practical than idealistic: Ensure a reliable, safe power supply, tend to issues of water quality and environmental protection and make sure we get a “robust, informed and public debate” over the necessary choices.
Richmond Times-Dispatch Editorial (Access to this article limited to subscribers)
This past Friday, on the morning of Juneteenth — the day that Americans mark as the end of slavery — residents in Farmville discovered that the Confederate statue in the town’s center was gone from its pedestal. The previous evening, Farmville Town Council voted unanimously to remove the statue, located at the intersection of High and Randolph streets. Within an hour, it was removed without fanfare by a crane and trailered away for safekeeping, according to The Farmville Herald.
By JEFF E. SCHAPIRO, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Access to this article limited to subscribers)
The Congressional Record notes that laughter rippled through the U.S. House chamber when in 1964 a wily, 80-year-old Virginia congressman proposed adding one word — sex — to landmark civil rights legislation for which he and his fellow Southerners had no use.
By ELIZABETH JANIK, published in Virginian-Pilot (Metered Paywall - 2 articles a month)
In a June 7 column, Gordon C. Morse expressed his ambivalence about plans to remove the Robert E. Lee statue from Monument Avenue in Richmond, which Gov. Ralph Northam announced following protests that have swept the country over the previous two weeks. Morse notes that the Confederate monuments “went up for multiple reasons, sentimentality being prominent in the mix.”
Elizabeth Janik is an independent writer and translator in Norfolk.
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