Editor’s note: On Feb. 16, The Virginia Defender received the following email from Team AFL-CIO, pertaining to the postal pension fund.
AFL-CIO to Biden: ‘Stop the raid on the postal pension fund!’
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.
Rashid update: Hunger Strike leader in critical condition
The following is an updated version of a Fact Sheet the Defenders have sent to the media and are sending to all 140 members of the 2024 Virginia General Assembly. We are asking that they – and you, our readers – contact VADOC Director Chadwick Dotson and express support for Rashid.
Open Letter to VADOC Director Dotson (February 2024)
An open letter to Virginia Department of Corrections Director Chadwick Dotson regarding the hunger strike at Red Onion Supermax Prison, which began December 2023.
Red Onion Hunger Strike spotlights lack of transparency by VADOC leadership
Last year, a lot of incarcerated folks in Virginia thought the General Assembly had passed a law banning the use of solitary confinement. They had not: in fact, that law made some things worse. A group of men at Red Onion Supermax took matters into their own hands Dec. 26.
VMFA honors Community Makers
Five local community advocates were honored Feb. 15 at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts as the museum held its sixth annual RVA Community Makers Award Program.
Federal judge: RPD discriminates against Black drivers
In an unusual move, a federal judge has found that the Richmond Police Department engages in discriminatory stops of Black drivers.
Community Advisory Group proposes use for vacant building at African Burial Ground
Inspired by the community effort that has artistically transformed an old abandoned building at the Shockoe Hill African Burying Ground, the Defenders’ Shockoe Bottom Community Advisory Group is proposing a similar redoing of the old sandwich shop that sits at the corner of East Broad Street and the CSX railroad tracks.
The Virginia Defender 