In October 2023, nearly seven years after the deadly Unite the Right white supremacist rally, the statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee in Charlottesville, Virginia, was melted down. Since then, two more major Confederate monuments have been removed: the...
In October 2021, the mural of Arthur Ashe in Richmond’s Battery Park was vandalized with advertisements for the white supremacist group Patriot Front. The graffiti was removed after the park was temporarily closed but some community members of the Battery Park neighborhood felt unsafe. Months later, the media outlet Unicorn Riot was able...
Twining unseen within the loamy soil of Richmond’s Shockoe Bottom are the stories of the enslaved who unwillingly traversed this low-lying land that once distinguished itself by the sheer volume of Black bodies it saw sold into slavery. Here, across 10 acres that rooted Richmond as the nation’s second-largest flesh market of the American slave...
An interview with Viola Baskerville, who is holding a rally to save the historic Richmond Community Hospital at 1 p.m. Sunday, March 3, at 1209 Overbrook Road. What, and how, we honor reveals a lot about our society. When the Confederate statues came down on Monument, much of Richmond saw their beloved city get its Rebel flag tattoo removed....
In April 2023, I had the opportunity to take a tour with William Martin, the director of the Valentine Museum, and Christina Swanson, the Director of PR and Marketing. They guided me through what appeared to be a significant renovation project within the building. This project involved the installation of a new cataloging system on the upper...
Last Wednesday, the Virginia General Assembly kicked off its 2024 session, now under the fresh leadership of a Democratic majority in both chambers and one of the first things we want to mention is new bill, HB 698, introduced by Del. Paul Krizek (D) and backed by Sen. Adam Ebbin (D), aimed at legalizing marijuana sales. This move is a big...
A few hours before midnight, about two dozen protesters held a noise demonstration outside of the Richmond City Justice Center where the city’s jail is located. This annual event in Richmond happens every December 31st, going back a few years. The focus of the event is for the demonstrators to provide the people held inside the jail the...
Hidden beneath the foliage at East End Cemetery are gravestones split in half, sunken into the earth and grave markers divorced from the bodies they honor. The Richmond cemetery is littered with fallen trees and debris. East End is not the only cemetery to find this fate. Historically Black and African American cemeteries across Virginia have...
Have you ever this before, “this is the most important election in your life.” Perhaps this has been declared during a Presidential election, maybe in a Governor race, but almost certainly will you never hear someone claim that for state legislator race. Virginia has a unique election calendar, with state elections on odd years instead of...
This article has been edited to correct the timeline of events since its publishing. The Commonwealth Club, on September 15, contacted RVA Magazine to report they had canceled hosting the Andy Ngo event due to a conflict of interest with the values of the club and then asked for the article to be taken down. Richmond, Virginia is in a...
