Tackling hate crimes: Attorney general, local leaders discuss new bills

Attorney General Mark Herring has spent the past few years studying the issue of hate crimes and white supremacist violence across the commonwealth and advocating for new legislation to combat it. On December 5—coincidentally during the state’s murder trial against the neo-Nazi who drove his car into a crowd on August 12, 2017—Herring hosted a […]

Anniversary weekend ends peacefully, with sad remembrances

A year after white supremacists and neo-Nazis marched with torches through UVA and violent clashes in the streets left one woman dead and dozens injured, it was with some trepidation that locals commemorated August 11 and 12. The weekend ended without serious injury and with a handful of arrests on misdemeanor charges. By late Sunday […]

Not ‘finger pointing’: State task force weighs in on August 12

  Almost immediately after the violent clashes in Charlottesville August 12, Governor Terry McAuliffe established a task force to review the events of that weekend, and consultants presented a preliminary report November 15. The top two takeaways: This is a new era of protests—and a stronger permit process for those seeking to use public facilities […]

In brief: Feeding hungry bellies, prison censorship and more…

The fight against hunger September is Hunger Action Month, when people across the nation raise awareness for empty bellies by supporting the country’s network of food banks. Locally, we have two main groups fighting the good fight—the Emergency Food Network and the Thomas Jefferson Area branch of the Blue Ridge Area Food Bank. Here’s a […]

Show of force: Police tear gas protesters after KKK leaves rally

Charlottesvillians pulled out the unwelcome mat for the Loyal White Knights of the KKK July 8 in Justice Park. An estimated 1,000 people surrounded the park before the arrival of the 50 or so out-of-town Klansmen, and the event was loud, but aside from the arrests of protesters who refused to move, without incident. It […]