Protesting for your rights works—and it always has. Since the Industrial Revolution reshaped the economy in the late 19th century, workers have been forced to organize and mobilize in response to increasingly exploitative labor practices. The system was designed to...
ed. note: This piece was featured as "The Last Word" in RVA Volume 1 Issue 4, published in August 2005. I decided to give it a proper title. When I moved to Richmond last summer from New York, I hated it. I thought it was boring, run-down, and devoid of character. I was put off by how un-Northern, yet not quite Southern, it is. I scoffed at its...
In a university gymnasium on a hot Saturday afternoon, parents and their teenage children gathered in excited anticipation for a high school graduation ceremony. This threshold of adolescence offers hope for a future and a belief in a justified path. Five miles away, on a street corner in a trendy shopping district in Richmond, Virginia, sat two...
Back at Last to Beat Your Ass. Fucking Blood Everywhere. Blood, Sweat, and Chairs. These are all names of past Richmond Lucha Libre shows. In case you’re not familiar with RLL, the city’s own wrestling alliance, let me describe a typical show for you. Imagine a burly wrestler suplexing someone into a crowd of spectators, or a costumed...
The good people at Turnstyle recently spent some time with RVA’s own Donny George to talk about Richmond, the electronic music scene, and trying to bring the two together. Briefly introduce yourselves. Names, DJ names, position, etc.JO: I’m Jesse Oremland, also known as DJ Jesse Split. I’m the co-owner of Turnstyle, a house and techno aficionado,...
The James River Park System is a 550-acre natural refuge in the heart of Richmond. This collection of shorelines and islands is the largest—and, some consider, the most diverse—park in the city. It offers a refuge to those who long to escape the concrete symmetry of square buildings and asphalt streets. The park system was once a site of stagnant...
Amanda Robinson is a woman on a mission. She wants to change how you experience a gallery. She aims to expose you to new art and music in an environment where creative minds can gather, exchange ideas, and have fun at the same time. To begin her mission, she is opening the doors to The Virginia Fire & Police Museum / Gallery 5. This enormous...
Early in the morning, Tim Roland arrives at the methadone clinic. I meet him outside the unassuming building, and he greets me in a preoccupied manner.“Just let me get my dose,” he says. “I won’t be much good to you until then.” He is inside the building for half an hour, meeting with a counselor, as he must always do for a brief talk before...
