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Gun Control Advocates Rally At Capitol, But General Assembly Quickly Adjourns

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The crowd of protesters outside Virginia’s Capitol numbered in the hundreds, but the Republican-controlled General Assembly did nothing to appease them.

Chants echoed off the buildings in front of Virginia’s State Capitol as protesters rallied for stricter gun control laws Tuesday morning. 

Hundreds of protesters representing various organizations came from across the state and up and down the east coast to participate. 

The protest was scheduled around the General Assembly’s special session, where Democrats proposed a slate of bills to address gun violence in Virginia. The session had been called by Governor Ralph Northam after a mass shooting in Virginia Beach on May 31 left 12 people dead.

National organizations like Moms Demand Action, March For Our Lives, and the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence brought large crowds and led most of the chants. 

“Today is an opportunity to end an epidemic that has claimed 10,000 lives in Virginia since [the Virginia Tech mass shooting in 2007],” said Kim Brown, President of Brady, and a native Virginian. The organization came down from their office in Washington, DC to rally for the historic vote.

Smaller organizations like Black Top Basketball, a non-profit youth basketball organization from Portsmouth, also came to demonstrate. Carlton Copeland, founder of the organization, brought players along with him, and was accompanied by Dr. Julius Hayes, who advocates for stricter gun laws in the Hampton Roads area.

“We’re out here to stop the shootings,” said DaMon Maio, a 14-year-old Black Top player. 

Carlton Copeland, founder of Black Top Basketball, stands with one of his players behind a sign that reads “NRA: Going out of business.” (Photo by Hadley Chittum)

Opponents of gun control legislation were present in smaller numbers, and quietly waited outside the capitol after lobbying.

Tammy Lee and the group she came with travelled from states like Pennsylvania, Maryland, and South Carolina to lobby and rally on behalf of what she called “the American patriots.”

Ultimately, the special session ended after 90 minutes, when Republicans in both chambers decided to postpone a vote on legislation until November. Governor Northam released a statement condemning the quick adjournment.

“I expected lawmakers to take this seriously. I expected them to do what their constituents elected them to do — discuss issues and take votes,” Northam stated. “It is shameful and disappointing that Republicans in the General Assembly refuse to do their jobs, and take immediate action to save lives.”

A woman shouts at a counter-protester. (Photo by Hadley Chittum)
Women representing Moms Demand Action from Loudon County travelled to Richmond to rally. (Photo by Hadley Chittum)
Richard “Dickie” Bell, a republican delegate from Staunton and Waynesboro, enters the capitol before the special session. (Photo by Hadley Chittum)
Players from Black Top Basketball, an organization from Portsmouth, protest in front of the capitol. (Photo by Hadley Chittum)
Protesters brought signs calling for the banning of specific types of guns. (Photo by Hadley Chittum)
Counter-protesters sit under a tree. (Photo by Hadley Chittum)
Delegate Chris Hurst, a Democrat representing Blacksburg, shouts into a megaphone. (Photo by Hadley Chittum)
A protester with Brady Campaign To Prevent Gun Violence leads a chant. (Photo by Hadley Chittum)
The Boys and Girls Club of Richmond City enter the Virginia State Capitol building to sit in on the General Assembly’s Special Session. (Photo by Hadley Chittum)
A man opposing gun regulations speaks to a facebook live video while a protester shouts behind him. (Photo by Hadley Chittum)
Women representing Moms Demand Action rest in the shade during the rally. (Photo by Hadley Chittum)
Delegate Jennifer Carroll Foy, a Democrat from Woodbridge, hugs a supporter before the special session. (Photo by Hadley Chittum)
Protesters of all ages and backgrounds came to advocate for stricter gun laws in Virginia. (Photo by Hadley Chittum)
Lobbyists advocating against legal restrictions on guns walk up a hill to the front of the state capitol. (Photo by Hadley Chittum)
A lobbyist opposing gun legislation stands and watches the rally. (Photo by Hadley Chittum)
Some representatives from Moms Demand Action brought their children to the rally. (Photo by Hadley Chittum)

Top: The rally took place on the corner of 9th and Bank Streets. Protestors were restricted to the sidewalks and grass. (Photo by Hadley Chittum)

A More Complete History

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Virginia Museum Of History and Culture’s Determined exhibit sheds light on four hundred years of black Virginians’ struggles to be seen as equal.

The Virginia Museum of History and Culture’s latest exhibit, Determined: The 400 Year Struggle for Black Equality, sets out to educate and inspire the public by highlighting the hardships, resiliency, and triumphs of African Americans throughout history. 

“African American history, black history, is American history. And the way that we teach that history is inadequate (and) inaccurate,” said Virginia Governor Ralph Northam on Saturday, June 22, during the dedication ceremony for Arthur Ashe Boulevard. “(That) makes exhibits like this all the more important as we continue the work to rewrite the narrative.” 

The exhibition is part of American Evolution, a 2019 statewide commemoration of the events of 1619 in Virginia. These included the arrival of the first enslaved Africans in English-occupied North America to Fort Monroe. The opening of Determined coincided with the dedication of Arthur Ashe Boulevard on June 22, and will remain on display until March 29, 2020. 

During his speech at the dedication, Ashe’s nephew David Harris Jr, shared his thoughts on the museum’s new exhibit. 

“There are many who avoided this building right here behind me because of what is inside,” said Harris, referencing the fact that parts of the museum were originally built in 1913 as a shrine to Confederate dead. “I want you to consider this building as now fully integrated by the city of Richmond.” 

Photo via Virginia Historical Society/Facebook

The exhibit features approximately 100 artifacts, as well as text, graphics, and an interactive section. Throughout the exhibit, historical information is punctuated with questions designed to prompt visitors to reflect upon the reality of slavery, racism, and the systemic oppression of black Americans. 

“Black history in Virginia is very complex and multifaceted,” said Karen Sherry, the curator at the Virginia Museum of History Culture.

“One unifying thread across this long chronology is that black people have been fighting for freedom from enslavement and oppression,” said Sherry. “[African Americans] have been struggling for equal rights and equal justice and equal access to opportunities” and “other forms of equity and full consideration of their humanity.”

Sherry said arriving at the title of the exhibit was a not an easy task. 

“Coming up with a word like ‘determined’ that encapsulates 400 years of African American history in Virginia, that was a big challenge,” she said. 

Then, over the course of her research, Sherry came across the text of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s final speech, where he discussed the need for the civil rights movement. 

“[King] said that the civil rights movement was not about getting into arguments with anybody,” said Sherry. “He talked about how ‘we are determined to gain our rightful place in God’s world. . . we are determined to be people.’” 

Photo via VirginiaHistory.org

She said King’s use of the phrase ‘determined’ “resonated” and “struck” her.

“‘Determined embodies the strength, the resilience, the courage, the agency of black people across history,” said Sherry. “The word also connotes a sense of predetermination, of the way that a person’s position and status in American society is often determined by the color of one’s skin.” 

According to Sherry, the exhibit is organized chronologically so visitors can “see the development of certain historical forces over time… track changes, and compare” progress from generation to generation. 

An important theme of Determined is the struggle for social and political equality. The exhibit is organized into four eras: “First Generations,” covering the years from 1619 to 1775; “Slavery At High Tide,” from 1775 to 1865; “Progress and Backlash,” from 1865 to 1950; and “Equality Achieved?,” from 1950 to present day.  Determined also includes an interactive section, in order to broaden the scope of the exhibit and create room for visitors to share their own stories.

Furthermore, Sherry said, the exhibition focuses upon 30 “key individuals” who are representative of  the “diversity of black Virginians” as well as their experiences and accomplishments. 

“These 30 individuals have what I think are very inspiring and incredible individual stories,” said Sherry. “Yet they are stories that also reflect broader historical trends and phenomena.”

A few examples of the individuals included in the exhibit are: 

  • Angela, one the first Africans brought to Virginia in 1619. 
  • Anne Spencer (1882 – 1975), a well-known poet and activist. During the Harlem Renaissance, Spencer was often visited by prominent humanitarians and activists, such as W.E.B. DuBois, Zora Neale Hurston, and Langston Hughes. 
  • Zyahna Bryant (2002 – ), a student who, when a freshman at Charlottesville High School, began a petition to the City Council asking the city to remove a monument dedicated to Confederate general Robert E. Lee. Because of this petition, white supremacist groups held rallies in Charlottesville that culminated in the Unite The Right event that left Heather Heyer dead in 2017.
Photo by Morgan Edwards

“We recognize that one exhibit cannot cover the full richness and complexity of 400 years of black history in Virginia,” said Sherry. “We want people to think about today and tomorrow, what we need to do as a nation to push ourselves to be better, to push ourselves to a state of true and meaningful equality.”

Determined is the first exhibit Sherry has curated at the Virginia Museum of History and Culture, and she hopes that visitors will walk away with a sense of new or renewed appreciation for African American history. 

“Despite the phenomenal progress we’ve made as a society, despite the phenomenal achievements of black Americans, we are still faced with daily reminders that inequities still exist,” said Sherry. “America is a society that still struggles with systemic racism [and] socioeconomic disparities between white people and people of color.”

During the dedication of Arthur Ashe Boulevard, Governor Northam, who was embroiled in his own scandal earlier this year after a racially offensive college yearbook photo of him surfaced, said that exhibits like this are necessary in order to better educate and empower the public. 

“I am grateful for the Virginia Museum of History and Culture for taking up this important conversation,” said Northam. “We need to continue to have this kind of dialogue — because when we know more, we can do more.”

“I very much hope that visitors who come through the exhibition (are) inspired and determined to continue the fight and to continue pushing our society towards our ideal of universal equality,” said Sherry. 

Determined: The 400-Year Struggle For Black Equality is currently on display at the Virginia Museum of History and Culture, located at 428 N. Arthur Ashe Blvd. The exhibit is open 10 AM to 5 PM daily, and will be on display through March 29, 2020. A piece of advice for all those planning to visit the exhibit – make sure you bring a notebook along so you can fill it up with information that has been left out of Virginia’s history textbooks.

Top Photo by Morgan Edwards

A Cause For Celebration: The Dedication of Arthur Ashe Boulevard

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Last weekend, government officials, civil rights leaders, and people from all across Virginia joined together to celebrate Richmond’s next step toward racial reconciliation.

It took nearly 30 years, but Richmond has officially renamed the street once known simply as Boulevard to Arthur Ashe Boulevard, in a symbolic action that elected officials hope will help advance Richmond towards becoming a more racially inclusive and representative city. Last weekend, the city celebrated on a bright, sunny Saturday morning with a dedication ceremony on the steps of the Virginia Museum of History and Culture.

“This stretch of State Route 161 will never be the same after today,” Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney said at the event. “Today Route 161 is getting an upgrade.”

Mayor Levar Stoney. Photo by Morgan Edwards

“By naming this boulevard here today after Arthur Ashe we are once again parting with our darker past and embracing our brighter future,” Stoney continued. “We are making a pledge, that’s not simply in paint and steel street signs, but in our hearts.”

Hundreds of people gathered on the lawn of the Virginia Museum of History and Culture on Saturday in near 90 degree heat to witness the dedication of Arthur Ashe Boulevard and celebrate Richmond’s latest step toward racial reconciliation. 

Leslie Stevenson from Glen Allen, Virginia said that attending the event felt like “witnessing history.” 

“It was amazing,” said Stevenson. “I think everything was done really well… I think [the dedication] is just great for the community. I love how it’s brought the community together.” 

Photo by Morgan Edwards

According to Stoney, renaming the boulevard is an action that “brings both symbolic and real change” to the citizens of Richmond. 

“Our city is transforming — it is changing its future and triumphing over its past.” 

During the event, the Elegba Folklore Society gave two performances; the first kicked off the day’s celebrations and the second performance was given just before the unveiling countdown.

Additionally, the Sixth Mount Zion Baptist Church choir performed during the event. Sixth Mount Zion was founded in 1867 by Reverend John Jasper, for African-Americans after the Civil War. 

Sixth Mount Zion Baptist Church choir. Photo by Morgan Edwards

In addition to Stoney, several other elected officials, including Virginia Governor Ralph Northam, Senator Tim Kaine, and Congressmen Donald McEachin gathered on the steps of the museum to share in the commemoration. 

Georgia Congressman John Lewis, a noted civil rights leader who helped organize the 1963 March On Washington and was one of the original Freedom Riders, gave the keynote address. As he walked up to the mic, Lewis received a standing ovation from the crowd. Lewis then began an impassioned speech in which he urged the public to fight and speak up against injustices by getting into “good trouble, necessary trouble.” 

Senator Tim Kaine described the boulevard as “a principle gateway into our city: and described the renaming as an “act of healing.”

“Naming is important, this is not a minor thing we are doing today,” said Kaine. “So many of the names that we live with were chosen by a tiny, tiny subset of people who do not represent the full community of our city, or state, or nation today. This is an act to rectify that.”

“Arthur Ashe Boulevard is a name chosen by and ably representing Richmond’s full community and that makes this a very great day for our city and hopefully a day that will be followed by many more such days.” 

Congressman John Lewis. Photo by Morgan Edwards.

The new signs bearing the name “Arthur Ashe Boulevard” were unveiled on the steps of the Virginia Museum of History and Culture after a loud group countdown, at the end of which cannons shot purple streamers into the air.

Arthur Ashe was born in Richmond, Virginia in 1943. He was the first and only African-American male tennis player to win the U.S Open, Wimbledon, and the Australian Open. In 1968 he was ranked the number one tennis player in the world by the United States Lawn Tennis Association — the first African-American to be named so. Ashe is not only remembered for his accomplishments as a tennis player, but is also as an author, activist and humanitarian. 

Growing up in Richmond, Virginia during the era of ‘separate but equal’, Ashe faced racial discrmination, exclusion, prejudice and segregation. As a child he was denied access to the tennis courts at Byrd Park, which was deemed whites only. As a result, Ashe had to practice on the segregated courts near his home instead. As a kid, he was also forbidden from competing against white youth in Richmond, and was unable to practice on the whites-only indoor courts. 

During his career and throughout his retirement, Ashe was a zealous advocate for civil rights and racial equality worldwide. He worked to break down color lines and racial barriers in athletics and promote social change. 

In addition to fighting racial discriminaion at home, Ashe also protested against apartheid, a political system of institutionalized racial segregation,  in South Africa. 

“Despite the adversity he faced right here in his hometown, by sheer talent courage (and) perseverance, Arthur Ashe brought change to the game of tennis, he brought change to this country…. And he brought change to this world,” said Stoney. 

Governor Ralph Northam. Photo by Morgan Edwards.

Unfortunately, Ashe’s health issues forced him to retire early. He underwent his first heart bypass surgery in 1979 at the age of 36. Then in 1983, he had to undergo a second bypass surgery and contracted HIV following a blood transfusion. In 1993, Ashe founded the Arthur Ashe Foundation for the Defeat of AIDS, helping to raise awareness and combat the misconceptions and stigma surrounding the disease. 

During his retirement, Ashe also worked on a number of advocacy projects, and helped found the Association of Tennis Professionals and the National Junior Tennis League. 

After his death on February 10, 1993, Ashe was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Bill Clinton. 

“Today we also honor a man who challenged the limitations society placed on men of his skin color and by doing so advanced the struggle for equality,” Governor Northam said Saturday.  

“By breaking down racial barriers in tennis, Arthur Ashe achieved much more than sports fame. That legacy is why we are here to honor him today.”

Renaming the boulevard to Arthur Ashe Boulevard, was an idea that was previously introduced and defeated in 1993 and 2003. The latest and finally successful effort to rename the street was carried by Councilwoman Kim Gray.

David Harris Jr. Photo by Morgan Edwards.

David Harris Jr., Arthur Ashe’s nephew, who was also instrumental in the renewed push for the boulevard’s renaming, took the mic Saturday and shared an emotional speech with the crowd. 

“Richmond, this is truly a spectacular and momentous day,” said Harris. “Today we are letting the world know racism, discrimination, exclusionary tactics, lack of investment in our children, education, and people is bankrupt.”

The dedication also coincided with the opening of a new exhibit, Determined: The 400 year struggle for Black Equality, at the Virginia Museum of History and Culture, which will run until March 20, 2020. The museum exhibit is part of the American Evolution program, a General Assembly program that recognizes the 400th anniversary of the arrival of the first enslaved Africans at Fort Monroe in 1619. According to American Evolution, they “partnered with the Virginia Museum of History and Culture to commission Determined to explore the African-American experience” in Virginia.

Virginia Congressmen Bobby Scott and Donald McEachin at the State Of Black America town hall meeting. Photo by Morgan Edwards.

Later that evening, members of the Congressional Black Caucus held a State of Black America town hall meeting to discuss various issues affecting the African-American and black community in America today. 

According to Mayor Stoney, June 22, 2019 is a day that represents hope for a new Richmond with a brighter and more inclusive future. 

“And now at the intersection of our city’s past and present, it is our duty to take the next steps in our journey down the right path to lead the way for future generations,” said Stoney.

 “We already have a map with a road to follow that will take us in the right direction. Let us follow it together. It’s called Arthur Ashe Boulevard.”

Top photo by Morgan Edwards

Fighting Joe Is Back On The Ballot

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Tomorrow’s Democratic primary, pitting incumbent Rosalyn Dance against notorious Richmond political figure Joe Morrissey, will likely decide the 16th District’s next State Senator.

In the past decade, Joe Morrissey has brandished an AK-47 on the floor of the House of Delegates, spent three months in jail after being convicted of sex crimes, and placed third in Richmond’s 2016 mayoral election. Now he may be heading to Virginia’s Senate.

Voters in Virginia’s 16th Senate District will go to the polls on Tuesday, June 11. With no Republicans filed to run in the district, the Democratic primary between Morrissey and incumbent Rosalyn Dance will likely decide who will be representing the district for the next four years.

Senate District 16, comprised of parts of Petersburg, Hopewell, and Richmond’s East End, as well as parts of Chesterfield, Dinwiddie, and Prince George Counties, has been represented by Dance since 2014.

Currently seeking her third term as state senator for the district, Dance has a long history in public service. She served as mayor of Petersburg from 1992 through 2004. The following year, she was elected to represent the 63rd district in Virginia’s House of Delegates, an office she held through 2014 when she won a special election to replace Henry Marsh, who retired that same year.

Dance speaks at Replenish Richmond’s I Have A Dream Festival on June 1 (via Senator Rosalyn R. Dance/Facebook)

Dance is perhaps best known in Virginia for a bill introduced in 2019 to raise the state’s minimum wage to $15 per hour by 2021. Dance has been introducing similar legislation over the last three legislative sessions, but never to any success; the most recent bill was defeated along party lines 21-19 in January.

Though the legislation didn’t pass, Dance has been able to tout the attempt during her re-election campaign.

“I have always strived to make a difference, to put my constituents first, to improve their lives and to govern with our values and principles,” Dance said in a press release at the launch of her re-election campaign.

Securing the funding for the construction of a hospital in Dinwiddie County and co-sponsoring a bipartisan bill to clean up coal ash ponds in Chesterfield County have also been achievements Dance is emphasizing as the primary election nears. A member of the Senate Finance Committee, Dance has built up status during her time in Virginia’s capital that makes her attractive to voters.

Dance with Governor Northam at a May 2 campaign stop. (via Senator Rosalyn R. Dance/Facebook)

While she is a member of the Virginia Legislative Black Caucus, which repeatedly called for the governor to resign during his blackface scandal in February, Northam’s The Way Ahead PAC has donated $10,000 to Dance’s re-election campaign. Northam and Dance have publicly accompanied one another several times in the past few months, including an appearance at a luncheon for the United Negro College Fund. Other prominent Virginian Democratic figures, including Senator Tim Kaine and Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney, have lent their support to Dance.

Despite some big names backing Dance, Joe Morrissey is staging a competitive run against the incumbent.

Morrissey has a long and storied history in Virginia politics. In addition to running for state Senate and hosting his Fighting Joe Morrissey morning radio show on WJFN, he is also currently appealing his second disbarment. His first disbarment came in 2003 on account of “frequent episodes of unethical, contumacious, or otherwise inappropriate conduct,” according to the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. He was reinstated to the bar in 2011.

Morrissey was disbarred a second time in 2018. The disbarment followed a highly publicized scandal in which Morrissey was jailed for three months after being convicted of contributing to the delinquency of a minor in 2014.

Morrissey with wife Myrna on his wedding day in 2016. (via Joe Morrissey For Senate/Facebook)

The conviction came after it was discovered Morrissey was having sex with a 17-year-old receptionist employed at his Henrico law office. A member of the House of Delegates at the time, Morrissey was pressured by members of his own party to resign. Today, Morrissey and his former receptionist are married with three children.

Though clearly controversial, Morrissey has a reputation in the district of being able to get things done. He enjoys strong support from working class African-Americans who see him as someone that can improve material conditions in the district.

“I think I can make Senate District 16 better,” he is quoted by the Village News as saying at an event in Richmond last month.

As his campaign kicked off, Morrissey vowed to push for the decriminalization of marijuana, increased funding for infrastructure, and more representation for Petersburg, a city the Richmond Times-Dispatch quotes the candidate as saying is in need of more advocacy.

Like Dance, Morrissey has also come out in favor of a higher minimum wage.

Morrissey meets with voters on the campaign trail in Hopewell. (via Joe Morrissey for Senate/Facebook)

The final week of the race has been characterized by controversy regarding the Morrissey campaign’s finance reports. Dance criticized Morrissey’s claim that his campaign only had two expenditures to report. “Everyone knows campaigns are filled with expenditures, large and small,” the Progress-Index quotes Dance as saying.

The Morrissey campaign responded to the attack, saying that a processing error made by campaign manager Whitney Spears is to blame.

The finance report incident is the latest in a series of controversies that has been rattling the Virginia Democratic Party in 2019. Governor Northam’s blackface scandal was the catalyst for the unveiling of sexual assault allegations directed at Lieutenant Governor Justin Fairfax, as well as Attorney General Mark Herring’s admission of having worn blackface in the 1980s. Some in the party fear that a figure like Morrissey in the Senate could create problems for Virginia Democrats who are looking to win back the full trust and support of voters.

The primary is being held on Tuesday, June 11 from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. All registered voters regardless of party are eligible to vote in Virginia’s primaries. To find out if you live in the 16th State Senate District and are eligible to vote in this primary, enter your address into the “Who’s My Legislator?” database at whosmy.virginiageneralassembly.gov.

Top Photos via Facebook (Joe Morrissey For Senate/Senator Rosalyn R. Dance)

Virginia National Guard States Intent To Comply With Trans Military Ban

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Virginia’s National Guard not only said they’d enforce the trans military ban in the Commonwealth, but also backed the deceptive anti-LGBTQ reasoning for the ban given by the Trump administration.

On Tuesday, Major General Timothy P. Williams, the Adjutant General of Virginia’s National Guard, told ThinkProgress that the Virginia National Guard would comply with the transgender military ban instituted by the Trump administration earlier this year. This decision might seem unsurprising, but with five different states so far — California, Washington, Oregon, New Mexico, and Nevada — publicly announcing that their state National Guards would not comply with the ban, it was a question that needed to be asked.

What is more important is the way the answer to ThinkProgress’s question was phrased by Major General Williams. “The new DOD policy doesn’t ban transgender individuals from service, and transgender members may continue to serve,” Williams wrote. “The DOD policy states that anyone who meets military standards without special accomodations can and should be able to serve, and this includes transgender persons.”

So what does this statement actually mean? To understand its doublespeak nature, one must fully understand the phrase “without special accomodations.” In April, when the ban was officially instituted, Pentagon spokesperson Lt. Col. Carla Gleason told The Washington Blade that currently-serving transgender members of the military will not be discharged, saying, “Transgender members currently serving will be able to continue serving so we do not anticipate any discharges.”

However, according to the Blade, the policy does state that service members who have been diagnosed with gender dysphoria or prescribed transition-related care in the future will be discharged. It also, according to the Blade, refuses enlistment for any individual with a history of gender dysphoria, unless they are willing to serve in the sex they were assigned at birth. People who have already transitioned are banned outright.

Clearly, the statement that transgender persons can still serve is deceptive. Major General Williams’s phrase, “special accomodations,” encompasses everything from future surgery to hormone replacement therapy to psychological treatment, as well as many other aspects of the transgender experience. Saying that transgender people aren’t banned from military service because they do have the right to serve in the sex they were assigned at birth is no different from anti-marriage equality activists in years past telling us that gay people aren’t prohibited from getting married on the basis that a gay man can marry a woman anytime he wishes. It’s technically true, but it’s a statement made in bad faith by someone who’s actively trying to miss the point.

On the same day that Williams confirmed Virginia’s intent to comply with the trans military ban, the Fairfax County Democratic Committee released a statement calling on Governor Northam to intervene and allow transgender troops to serve in Virginia’s National Guard. “A 2016 study by the RAND Corporation found that allowing transgender Americans to serve openly in the Armed Forces would ‘have minimal impact on readiness and health care costs’ and ‘little or no impact on unit cohesion, operational effectiveness or readiness’,” they stated, also mentioning that thousands of transgender troops currently serve in the US Armed Forces without negative impact on the military as a whole, and that everyone from the American Medical Association to the five military Chiefs Of Staff in the president’s cabinet oppose the ban.

Governor Northam has in the past voiced his opposition to the trans military ban via Twitter, tweeting in response to President Trump, “Anyone who wants to serve our country in the military should be welcomed. They’re patriots and should be treated as such.” However, he has not yet responded to requests for comment on the Virginia National Guard’s decision. And in the meantime, transgender Virginians hoping to serve in their country’s military meet with yet another roadblock.

Image via Virginia National Guard/Facebook

Op-Ed: The “Inconclusive” Northam Yearbook Report Is No Surprise

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This report was commissioned by Northam’s alma mater, not the state of Virginia, and we shouldn’t be surprised when it serves its client’s aims, writes Rich Meagher.

Eastern Virginia Medical School (EVMS), Ralph Northam’s alma mater, was not able to figure out if Governor Ralph Northam wore blackface in an old yearbook photo. That’s the conclusion of a report the school commissioned, which was released on Wednesday.

No one should be surprised about this result, for two big reasons.

First of all, that’s just how these things go. When educational institutions like EVMS go wrong, they want an “investigation” to dig into their history, but not TOO deep. They are trying to close the door on the past without getting anyone important fired. We can best see this with the recent travesties concerning sexual assault and abuse: Penn State and child rapist Jerry Sandusky; Baylor University and their football team’s history of sexual assault; and Michigan State’s gymnastics program. The goal of any of these investigations, past and present, is not so much to find out the truth as it is to preserve the reputation of the university.

If anyone wants to criticize the Northam investigators from law firm McGuire Woods, they should focus on that mandate, and not any motivations due to Democratic partisanship. Yes, I’ve seen a few people note that McGuire Woods has given Northam’s thousands in campaign cash, and even hosted a fundraiser for him as recently as December.

But the head investigator for McGuire Woods, former Virginia Attorney General Richard Cullen, supported Ed Gillespie in the last election, not Northam. The law firm’s partisan leanings are less important than the medical school’s; the current and former President are also Northam donors. And both of these men knew about the racist photo on Northam’s yearbook page. Both kept quiet, they say, to avoid any appearance of trying to “influence” Northam.

The bottom line: this report was commissioned by the medical school, not by Northam, and definitely not by Virginia citizens. So it should be no surprise that it ends up serving the needs of its clients, not the truth.

Still, we shouldn’t drag EVMS and McGuire Woods too much, because proving Northam’s guilt or innocence one way or another would always be a daunting task. And that’s the other big reason the investigation’s lack of a conclusion is not a surprise: we would need someone to show way more courage than we can reasonably expect.

If Northam is NOT in the photo, we would need someone — probably a respected and successful doctor at this point — to admit they were in the photo instead. And as much as honesty is the best policy, most doctors I know would have a hard time jeopardizing their lucrative medical practice or prestigious hospital position, not to mention public reputation, by explaining how they used to dress up in Klan robes or blackface.

If Northam IS in the photo, we would need someone, possibly a longstanding friend, to throw his pal under the bus, AND probably implicate themselves as well. “Sure, Ralph and I are in the photo together; my mom was real progressive, taught me how to sew, so I made my own hood.” Not likely.

So we get somewhat of a nothingburger of a report. This leaves Virginians exactly where they were before: every one of us has to decide who and what they believe.

If you believe Northam, he panicked when he first saw the photo and rushed to “take responsibility.” He quickly realized that it wasn’t him in the photo and backed off his earlier claims. He was never in the photo, and never really said he was.

The report actually does a nice job of explaining how this kind of response might have developed in the chaos following the photo’s reveal in February. It contains interviews with both Northam and his chief of staff, and they reveal a not-terribly sophisticated pol letting events get the better of him. There have been worse instances – President Bush reading about goats while thousands were being murdered comes to mind – so this scenario isn’t that hard to believe.

But you do NOT have to believe it. A competing story recognizes that Northam did not immediately deny he was in the photo, suggesting it was at least a possibility. Once he figured out that no one could PROVE it was him, he started lying. Maybe Northam is more sophisticated of a pol than he lets on; he’s still in office, isn’t he? And the report only contains interviews by the Governor and his chief of staff, so why wouldn’t it show us a poor, overwhelmed Ralph?

In the end, the opinions of smallfolk like you or I do not really matter; we don’t get a vote on Northam anymore.

He is term-limited by Virginia law, with no real institutional mechanism to remove him. The opinions that matter are those of Democrats across the state with the title “Delegate” or “State Senator,” or those candidates who want one of those titles. With primaries next month and the fall elections looming, what do they do? Continue to reject the Governor, or embrace him? Most are still trying to figure it out, but they are running out of time.

No matter what this investigation tells us, Governor Northam remains Governor Northam. We’d all better get used to that fact.

Note: Op-Eds are contributions from guest writers and do not reflect RVA Magazine editorial policy.