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Prince Edward schools that helped usher in Brown v. Board of Education still in disrepair
A small group of Robert Russa Moton High School students in Farmville began gathering in secret months before an April 23, 1951, walkout to protest the unequal conditions of school facilities for Black students. “It was the same type of secrecy that was developed during the Manhattan Project,” said John Stokes, one of the walkout’s organizers. “We had to trust everyone so we could pull this thing off.” Students decided to report a fake disturbance downtown, luring Moton Principal M. Boyd Jones away from school on the day of the protest. … When Jones returned to school, the strike was in full force. About 400 students gathered in the auditorium to hear a speech from 16-year-old student Barbara Johns before walking out of the school in protest.
Henrico to dedicate data center revenue to affordable housing fund
The Henrico County Board of Supervisors has expanded its reach in the tech industry with the approved rezoning of a new data center campus located near East Williamsburg Road at the intersection of Technology Boulevard. The board held a public hearing on May 14, as supervisors burrowed through every detail of the plan submitted by Hourigan, a construction and development firm based in Richmond. . . . On May 16, Nelson along with County Manager John Vithoulkas announced that Henrico will establish its first Affordable Housing Trust Fund with money sourced solely from revenue generated by Henrico’s data centers.
Virginia Beach sergeant’s lawsuit claims he was demoted for speaking against discrimination
A Black Virginia Beach police officer who claims he was investigated and demoted after he tried to assist a Black recruit who believed she was being discriminated against is suing the city. Michael Banks first filed his lawsuit in March in U.S. District Court in Norfolk, naming the city and several members of the police department as defendants. He submitted an amended complaint this week in which only the city was listed as a defendant.
Richmond inspector general investigating city’s elections office
The Richmond Electoral Board met with the city’s inspector general in a closed session Wednesday following allegations of nepotism and financial improprieties in the election office led by Registrar Keith Balmer. Inspector General James Osuna and members of the electoral board declined to comment when they emerged from the closed-door meeting, saying an investigation opened by the inspector general’s office is not yet complete.
Fairfax County teachers voice frustration over reduced pay raises in new budget
With just days to go before Fairfax County Public Schools finalizes its fiscal year 2025 budget, teachers voiced frustration this week with the news that school employees will get lower-than-expected pay raises. As it stands, the Fairfax County School Board is on track to adopt a revised budget that includes a 3% pay increase for all school employees, down from the initially proposed 6%, starting July 1.
Report: Arlington’s homeless population is up 14% since 2023, despite improved shelter access
Arlington’s homeless population grew by 14% in the past year, according to a recent report. However, the county’s efforts to expand shelter capacity and enhance outreach have led to more homeless individuals gaining access to shelter and fewer homeless survivors of domestic violence and transition-age youth, per a report released on Wednesday by the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (COG)
Friday Read She left the CIA in frustration. Now her spy novel is racking up awards.
She felt each boom like an electric jolt as she was trying to sleep in her Alexandria, Va., apartment. It was August 2006, and Ilana Berry was then a 30-year-old Central Intelligence Agency case officer. Outside, construction crews were beginning work on the Woodrow Wilson Bridge, knocking down the old expanse to make way for a new six-lane roadway. But each rumble threw Berry off the steady anchors of time and place, hurling her back to her last year stationed in war-rocked Baghdad.
GOP primary battle turns Va.’s 5th District into a political Tilt-a-Whirl
Republican John McGuire took his upstart bid for Congress to a spring carnival here that mixed small-town charm with MAGA fervor, where children who mustered a bell-ringing whack in the strongman game went home with toy assault weapons. Buttonholing voters on the midway in this red central Virginia town one recent Friday night, the Virginia state senator made a pro-Trump, anti-establishment pitch fit for an ordinary GOP primary fight, the kind with a moderate incumbent challenged from the right. But the Republican whom McGuire wants to oust in the June 18 primary is Rep. Bob Good, chairman of the hard-right House Freedom Caucus.
Proposal to increase Richmond City Council members’ salaries by $20K in 2025 moves forward
A proposal to increase the salaries for Richmond City Council members starting next July looks all but certain to be approved. Three council members who sit on the council’s Finance and Economic Development Standing Committee — Cynthia Newbille, Ellen Robertson and Katherine Jordan — voted Thursday to recommend the approval of the proposal when it’s set to go before the full city council in June.
Governor's Office Spurns FOIA Request
Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s office is withholding in full 16 pages of records responsive to a request under the Freedom of Information Act, citing the exemption provided for “working papers and correspondence of the Office of the Governor.” The request was for correspondence between the University of Mary Washington, the Governor’s Office and the Virginia State Police that occurred between April 25 and the April 27th arrest of 12 individuals—including nine students—who were participating in a pro-Palestinian encampment on the university campus.