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.
Monday, October 10, from 6:30-10p.m., at the Shockoe Bottom African Burial Ground in downtown Richmond, the Sacred Ground Historical Reclamation Project will host the 20th Annual Gabriel Gathering. This yearly observation marks the date that the great slave rebellion leader Gabriel was executed.
The Summer 2022 issue of The Virginia Defender was published on July 27, 2022.
Close to 200 people gathered May 1 outside Richmond’s United Nations Church on Cowardin Avenue to support a Black teenager who says he was the victim of a vicious hate crime – one that was then covered up by the Powhatan County police force.
Feed the Streets RVA is a nonprofit organization that provides food and other essentials to the Richmond community. With eight members on the executive board, it was started by a close group of friends who all shared a passion for giving back.
On the evening of May 2, a draft opinion written by U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito and leaked to the public suggested that the court would overturn Roe v. Wade. Alito wrote, “Roe was egregiously wrong from the start.” The next day, rallies erupted across the country.
RRFP, the Richmond Reproductive Freedom Project, has been funding abortions in Virginia for almost 20 years. In addition to helping people finance their abortions by paying clinics directly, RRFP provides “practical support,” such as rides to appointments and funds for childcare.
After more than 20 years, the Richmond city government has finally committed to memorializing Shockoe Bottom, the downtown district that once was the epicenter of the U.S. domestic slave trade. Many outstanding questions remain the current plan, however. Here are some of ours.
The Virginia Defender 