Gwen Cassady has lived a lot more life than could fit into a half-page newspaper profile. She’s been homeless four times, and spent a period living out of an office on the Downtown Mall. She’s been to 64 countries, as well as a royal Saudi compound, earned two degrees from UVA, and is currently enrolled […]
“Fifteen years ago, at the age of 16, I was told that I’d spend the rest of my life behind bars,” activist Cyntoia Brown-Long told hundreds of UVA students February 6 at Old Cabell Hall. As a teenager, Brown-Long was in an abusive relationship with a man known as Kut, who forced her into prostitution. […]
In August 2006, 24-year-old William Charles Morva made national headlines when he sent the Montgomery County Police on a manhunt unlike any the town of Blacksburg had seen before. While awaiting trial for an attempted armed robbery, Morva was taken to Montgomery Regional Hospital for minor injuries. After using the bathroom, he knocked out the […]
Monumental movement in Richmond Bills allowing localities to move or remove Confederate monuments passed through the Virginia Senate and House of Delegates on February 11. The Senate bill passed 21-19, a party-line vote, and the House bill passed 53-46. The bills aren’t law just yet, but their passage represents a significant victory for those who hope to […]
In the days since a 74-year-old white man confessed to the theft of Charlottesville’s former slave auction block, city residents and officials have sought to make sense of his actions. On Friday, C-VILLE broke the news that Richard Allan, an amateur local historian, author, and environmental activist, claimed responsibility for prying the bronze marker out […]
Albemarle County resident Richard Allan, an amateur local historian and longtime environmental activist, has admitted to taking the bronze slave auction block marker from Court Square in the early morning hours of February 6. Charlottesville police would not confirm whether Allan was in custody. “I did not remove the metal slave plaque in the ground…with […]
Whether you think in terms of “random acts of kindness” or “points of light” or “it takes a village,” all around Charlottesville there are people who go out every day and do their part to make this city a more human place. It’s not their job, but it’s their work. While we, as a community, […]
With a new decade comes a new census. Starting March 12, every household across the country will receive a letter in the mail, explaining how to respond to the 2020 census by phone, mail, or—for the first time ever—online. Census data is used to redraw legislative districts, determining the amount of seats each state is […]
Stop spreading the news Billionaire Warren Buffett has thrown in the towel on his newspaper empire. Last Wednesday, Buffett’s multi- national conglomerate, Berkshire Hathaway, announced it was selling all of its newspapers to Lee Enterprises Inc. for $140 million. Lee will acquire BH Media Group, which owns more than 100 weekly publications and 30 daily […]
A report from a private consulting firm has concluded that Charlottesville and Albemarle disproportionately arrest black people, and that race-based disparities exist in the treatment of individuals in otherwise similar situations. The report analyzes adult arrest data from the beginning of 2014 through the end of 2016. During that period, more than half (51.5 percent) of […]
Health is vital to well-being, but not everyone gets the care they need. Here’s a look at some local efforts to help underserved populations, from new moms to new arrivals. BY Brielle Entzminger, Ben Hitchcock, Erika Howsare, Laura Longhine, and Jennifer MacAdam-Miller. ‘A medical home:’ Treating Charlottesville’s refugees Seven-year-old Aakriti Tamang sits on an […]
Blinded by the light Everyone’s afraid of the dark. But night is fundamental to the delicate balance of life on Earth—so says UVA astronomer and artificial light expert Ricky Patterson, who gave an illuminating presentation on the dangers of light pollution at a Sierra Club event at the downtown library this week. More people, more […]
LaTita Talbert is a single mother of six, a city bus driver, and a commissioner on the Charlottesville Redevelopment and Housing Authority—and now, she’s a homeowner. On January 25, Talbert’s friends and family gathered in the backyard of the neat gray house on Sixth Street SE that Talbert renovated with Habitat for Humanity, to celebrate. […]
For years, the Albemarle Charlottesville Historical Society and the city’s visitor’s center have been distributing a pamphlet that guides guests on a walking tour of downtown Charlottesville’s historic sites. There’s one problem, though: the map hasn’t been updated in ages. Robert Watkins, the city’s assistant historic preservation and design planner, says the old map is […]
Kaine argues for peace War with Iran may well be on the horizon—but U.S. Senator Tim Kaine has a few objections. He spoke about his new war powers resolution and his hopes for a return to diplomacy during an event at UVA’s Batten School of Public Policy on January 17. Kaine has recently managed to […]
With the newly expanded Goodwill on 29 North, SPCA Rummage in Seminole Square, and boutique favorites like Darling, Charlottesville has no shortage of spots to score second-hand goods. But the newest arrival, Uplift Thrift, comes with a unique mission: all of its proceeds support the work of On Our Own. Since 1990, On Our Own […]
Mayor Nikuyah Walker was re-elected on January 6, after a short but intense discussion at a City Council meeting that left part of the new council feeling put out. Two councilors, Heather Hill (who made her own bid for mayor) and Lloyd Snook, abstained from the vote rather than cast their support for Walker. Just […]
“We were scattered all over the country, never to meet each other again until we were in another world,” wrote enslaved laborer Peter Fossett after his family and friends were sold in Monticello’s 1827 and 1829 estate sales. Thomas Jefferson died in debt, and soon after his death his family auctioned off the crops, furniture, […]
“No pipeline.” “Climate action now.” “That awkward moment when you burn your own planet.” On December 6, a crowd of about 70 sign-carrying protesters gathered at Charlottesville’s Free Speech wall to demand the city and state government take immediate action against climate change. Carrying their handmade posters, musical instruments, and reusable water bottles, the activists […]
Snowy roads didn’t stop about a dozen people from making their way to the Carver Recreation Center last Tuesday for a brainstorming session on something that’s been in the works for nearly 10 years: the Three Notched Trail. The Rivanna Trails Foundation is spearheading the effort to build a 25-mile-long paved pedestrian and bicycle path […]
You wouldn’t notice the cameras if you didn’t know what to look for—but once you see the first one, the others are easy to spot: black balls hanging from telephone poles like sinister Christmas tree baubles. Rosia Parker noticed the camera near her house in Westhaven when the city installed it over the summer. She […]
Two busloads of activists from Charlottesville, plus several dozen from Richmond and Norfolk, brought their campaign for local control over Confederate monuments to Richmond this week, rallying in front of the state Capitol Wednesday. Six legislators were scheduled to speak, but the first day of the session interfered, and only Delegate Sally Hudson managed to […]
Building a better city New Year’s is a time for resolutions, but this year, we decided to focus our attention on city improvements, not self-improvement. So we asked a bunch of community leaders about their hopes for Charlottesville (and added a few of our own). Here’s to a new year, a new decade, and new […]