Virginia has two detention centers used solely to hold people kidnapped by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Where are immigrants taken after being kidnapped?
The Virginia Defender
Established in 2005 as The Richmond Defender, The Virginia Defender is a free community newspaper, published quarterly for the Virginia Defenders for Freedom, Justice & Equality. Print distribution is currently 12,000 and statewide. The online publication launched in Summer 2020.
Good presentations, poor turnout
At a public meeting held Dec. 10 at the Black History Museum & Cultural Center of Virginia, the community was offered the first public progress report on the design of the Shockoe Bottom African Burial Ground memorial.
‘Test Pits’ at Lumpkin’s jail site
The next time you visit the Lumpkin’s Jail site, there will be archaeology happening.
River North guard death raises many questions
Until Nov. 17, it had been 50 years since a Virginia prison guard had been killed by an inmate. According to VADOC, that changed when a corrections officer was severely injured by an inmate at the River North Correctional Center in Southwest Virginia. The guard later died of his injuries.
23rd Annual Gabriel Gathering, 225th Anniversary of the Plan
This year marked 23 years of honoring the memory and legacies of “Gabriel’s Rebellion” and the Shockoe Bottom African Burial Ground.
Model prisons, mental health, staff shortages: An interview with Margaret Breslau
An interview with Margaret Breslau, a co-founder of the Virginia Prison Justice Network and chair of the Coalition for Justice. The Coalition produces a monthly newsletter for the VAPJN that is sent to thousands of prisoners, reaching virtually every Virginia facility.
Update: Shockoe Institute
Construction continues on the 10,000-square foot Shockoe Institute at Richmond’s Main Street Station, but programs have been underway since early this year, either as virtual events or in collaboration with other cultural institutions
The Virginia Defender 