Protest Family Separation Policy at U.S. Rep Dave Brat's Office

U.S. representative for Virginia's 7th district Dave Brat recently came out on Fox News to explain that the Trump administration's new policy of separating children from their parents at the Southern border and putting them in prison camps could be resolved if only the Democrats would "play ball" and concede to his party's policy demands. IE, Republicans don't want to cage and torture children, they're just doing it to for political expediency. That's not any better than just copping to open sadism.

Various groups are getting together for a demonstration near Brat's local office this Friday, June 22nd, from 5-7pm, at 10901 W. Broad St., Glen Allen VA. The address is for a CVS store near, Brat's local office.

For more info and to RSVP, see the event page.

Richmond Times-Dispatch: "Modern-day Confederate from Tennessee in battle with Gov. Terry McAuliffe over Lee monument rally in Richmond"

To read the Richmond Times-Dispatch story, see this link.

Thomas Crompton, some guy from Tennessee who styles himself as the "commanding general of CSA II: the New Confederate States of America" and whose Facebook profile indicates affiliation with with the right-wing militia group the three-percenters, wants to stage a neo-Confederate rally at the Lee Monument. He can't, for now, because in the wake of the August 12th Charlottesville white supremacist rally which left one counterprotester dead, McAuliffe issued an executive order temporarily barring the issuance of permits at that site.

That's not especially noteworthy— a lot of people want to hold rallies on Monument avenue to defend the shrines to white supremacy there— but I'm pointing out this case to say this: there's going to be a fight over those monuments, and the far-right is going to show up for them.

It's long past time to take them down.

2nd Annual RVA Breastfeeding Symposium: the Intersection of Health, Race, Policy, and Practice

Friday, August 4th 2017, from 8am-4:30pm, at the Virginia Historical Society (428 North Boulevard, Richmond VA), the 2nd Annual RVA Breastfeeding Symposium will be held. This year's theme is "First Food: The Intersection of Health, Race, Policy, and Practice."

Free, but you must register through the link.

For more information and to RSVP, see this link.

Get Out: a Panel on the Horror of Racism

Today, April 18th 2017, from 1:15-3pm, at the Depot (814 West Broad Street, Richmond VA), there will be a panel discussion on horror, representation, race, and think pieces inspired by the recent hit horror film Get Out (2017, directed by Jordan Peele). Panelists include the VCU professors Tressie McMillan Cottom, Brandi Summers, Chioke I'Anson, Cara Benedetto.

Free, open to the public. 

Counter Protest: Corey Stewart's Anti-Immigrant Rally

This Saturday, March 4th 2017, at 1pm, at the Bell Tower at the Virginia Capitol (101 North 9th Street, Richmond VA), gubernatorial candidate Corey Stewart will be holding a rally against sanctuary cities, cities which have taken steps to shield their immigrant populations from the brutality of ICE raids. There will be a counter-demonstration. 

Corey Stewart, who is running for Virginia governor, was the chair of Donald Trump's Virginia campaign, until he was fired for staging a protest against the Republican National Convention, alleging that the "establishment pukes" were insufficiently pro-Trump. Stewart has made a name for himself promoting persecution of immigrants in Prince William County, where he is the chairman of the Board of Supervisors. He frequently boasts that he "was Trump before Trump."

For more info and to RSVP, see this link. 

Undocumented Immigration and Trump's Executive Order: What we know as it pertains to Richmond

Jackie Kruszewski of Style Weekly has written this very useful article, "Giving Sanctuary: What We Know About Richmond’s Role in the Immigration Debate,"  about where the city of Richmond stands right now in regards to immigration. You should read the article, but I've included some of the most important take-aways in my explanation below. 

What is a sanctuary city, and why?

In the broadest sense, a "sanctuary city" is a municipality that has policies in place to avoid using local resources to prosecute undocumented immigrants for violation of federal immigration law, and to make public services available to people regardless of their status. This can mean different things: in some sanctuary cities, the police and sheriff's departments are instructed simply not to inquire about citizenship when they interact with the public, in others they're directed not to furnish Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) requests for information or assistance on enforcing immigration laws, and in a minority of places, local law enforcement is directed not to surrender undocumented people for deportation. 

Generally, municipalities implement sanctuary policies because they understand that the system for legal immigration to the U.S. is broken such that obtaining status as a permanent legal resident is just not possible for many people; undocumented immigrants are here, they're going to be here are long as a legal option is out of reach, and since they're here, it's on our local governments to treat them humanely. Terrorizing communities where undocumented people are suspected to live with ICE raids, detentions, and deportations isn't humane. 

What did Trump do to threaten sanctuary cities?

On January 25th, Trump signed Executive Order 13768, titled "Enhancing Public Safety in the Interior of the United States." The order's couched in the assertion that undocumented immigrants are dangerous criminals whose presence in the country threatens the fabric of society. (The order doesn't suggest a region of origin or race for this wave of criminals, but the subtext provided by Trump's entire campaign makes it pretty clear that they mean for us to think of Latinos and people from the Middle East here.) 

What the order does is declare that: 1. sanctuary cities will have their federal funding cut off (and the Director of Homeland Security can decide which municipalities count as sanctuary cities), 2. deportations will be sped up, and 3. prioritizes the deportation of anyone convicted of, charged with, or suspected of a crime, or anyone an immigration officer judges to "pose a risk to public safety or national security." This appears to be broad enough to mean "anybody undocumented."

What is the situation of Richmond, and of Virginia as a whole?

Richmond is not a sanctuary city at the moment. Richmond Police Chief Alfred Durham says that it is not the practice of RPD to ask about immigration status during routine policing, but this may not be reflected in the actions of officers on the ground. Mayor Stoney released a statement about inclusion and equal protection in the city last week (you can read it here), in which he outlined Richmond's existing policies and criticized the Trump administration's anti-immigrant rhetoric and two anti-sanctuary city bills going through the state legislature. It's a very solid statement.  

There are two bills currently in the Virginia General Assembly which pertain to sanctuary cities. HB 2000, sponsored by Del. Charles Poindexter (R), would make sanctuary city policies illegal under state law. SB 1262, sponsored by Sen. Dick Black (R), would make sanctuary cities legally liable for any crimes committed against a person or property by an undocumented immigrant. Both bills are still alive as of this writing. 

How do I help?

This section is not comprehensive. 

ICE Out of RVA, a grassroots group, is working on (among another things) getting Stoney's inclusion statement parlayed into policy changes. If you want to help, they are who to talk to.

At Virginia Commonwealth University, PLUMAS (Political Latinxs United for Movement and Action in Society) has been conducting Undocually trainings for people within the institution, and is promoting a petition to President Rao, urging him to support VCU's immigrant community by standing up to Trump (here's my post on the petition, which gives some additional context if you're not up on DACA). People unaffiliated with the university are encouraged to sign, too. 

That's the situation as I understand it so far. Did I miss something? Comment or shoot me an email at activerva@gmail.com.  

Screening of Ava Duvernay's "13th"

Saturday, February 18th 2017, from 2:30-5pm in Room 1107 of the VCU Academic Leaning Commons (1000 Floyd Avenue, Richmond VA), there will be a screening of Ava Duvernay's documentary film, "13th." From the event description: In this thought-provoking documentary, scholars, activists and politicians analyze the criminalization of African Americans and the U.S. prison boom."

Free, open to the public. The venue is wheelchair accessible with accessible bathrooms. 

For more information and to RSVP, see this link. To add this event to your Google Calendar, click here. 

Mark Warner: Are you with us to fight Trump?

Tomorrow, December 1st 2016, from 9-10am, at the corner of North 10th Street and Bank Street in Richmond, there will be a demonstration to encourage Virginia's Democratic senator Mark Warner to oppose the agenda of the Trump presidency, beginning by publicly denouncing the appointment of Jeff Sessions, a man so racist the senate voted not to confirm him for a federal judgeship. I usually include only an excerpts of event descriptions, but in this case, I think you really have to read everything the organizers put together:

As our nation looks towards the next four years, we need to fight tooth and nail to oppose Trump's agenda. But are Democrats with us? For too long, Democrats like Mark Warner took young voters and people of color for granted, and sold out working class people in favor of Wall Street. Once again, they’re putting our lives and democracy on the line by considering compromises with Trump. They may be bought by Wall Street - but we won’t let them sell us out to an authoritarian.

Our Demands:
1. Democrats - like Mark Warner - must pledge to block Donald Trump's racist and fascist agenda.
2. Warner should publicly denounce Jeff Sessions’ appointment.
3. As long as Bannon is Chief Strategist, refuse to meet with Trump.

For a year and half, Donald Trump pushed a hateful vision of America. Now, Donald Trump is appointing a leadership team whose values align with Trump’s dark and dangerous promises. 

Democrats, you must pick a side: Trump or all of us. If you negotiate with a racist fascist and his klan, we will support primary challengers against you.

For more info and to RSVP, see this link. 

Anti-Trump Rally Tonight, Monroe Park

Tonight, 9pm, Monroe Park. Get together, make some new equally-angry friends, and get ready to roll up your sleeves.

Book talk, "Scalawag: A White Southerner's Journey through Segregation to Human Rights Activism" with Edward Peeples: Book People Richmond

Friday, November 11th 2016, from 5-7pm, at Book People Richmond (536 Granite Avenue, Richmond VA), Edward Peeples, author of the Civil Rights movement memoir "Scalawag: A White Southerner's Journey through Segregation to Human Rights Activism," will speak on his book and sign copies.

"Scalawag" is a personal memoir of a white working-class man joining the struggle for collective liberation, but also presents a political history. A white man born to a single mother in Richmond in 1935, Peeples was raised under Jim Crow and taught the brutal ideology of white supremacy. But by nineteen, he rejected it, and became a "race traitor". He joined the Black freedom struggle, and began a life of political work.

Free, open to the public. For more information and to RSVP, see this link. 

Richmond Times-Dispatch Public Square #68: Mark Holmberg's "Act Right Movement"

Mark Holmberg - WTVR CBS 6 has an idea for ending police shootings that’s as simple as it is insulting: people should just learn to be well behaved so that cops won’t murder them. If for some reason you’ve always wanted to see a white man stand in front of an audience and present a patronizing Facebook status as though it was a policy solution, here are the details on where that will be going down:

Thursday, October 27th, from 12-1:30pm, at the Richmond Times Dispatch headquarters (300 East Franklin Street, Richmond VA), the paper is holding their 68th public square discussion. RTD columnist Mark Holmberg will propose his solution to the problem of police violence- an “increase in responsible behavior” he is calling the “Act Right Movement”- and three additional panelists will discuss it with him. Those panelists are local #BlackLivesMatter activist and educator Osita Iroegbu, Richmond Police Department Chief Alfred Durham, and Claire Gastanaga of the ACLU of Virginia.

Mark Holmburg outlines his “movement” in a September 2016 op ed you can read here: goo.gl/Bk8S6d. The highlights: police shootings are primarily the result of the victim’s behavior rather than officer misconduct, so if people just behaved themselves, police wouldn’t have to kill them. There is no race problem in America, just a poverty problem which is somehow not related to race. Talking about racism just gives Black kids “an excuse” to “feel like the victim.” In a somehow even worse op ed from July 2016 (goo.gl/w4TRe4), Holmberg flatly denied that police shootings have anything to do with race, wrung his hands about how “divisive” Black Lives Matter is, and finally declared that the movement against police shootings is actually responsible for as least as many deaths as killer cops. 

Free, open to the public. Contact Robin Beres at 804-649-6305, or mberes@timesdispatch.com, for more information.

Black Panther Party for Self Defense 50th Anniversary

Yesterday, October 15th 2016, was the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Black Panther Party for Self Defense. 

Established in Oakland, California by Huey Newton and Bobby Seale, the BPP was a Marxist Black liberation organization. They fought against the overt violence of racist cops and the covert brutality of poverty, hunger, and degradation. They established survival programs to do the work the government wouldn’t, worked to oppose American imperialism abroad, published a newspaper, and agitated for their Ten Point Plan which ended “We want land, bread, housing, education, clothing, justice and peace!”

The FBI targeted the Panthers under the COINTELPRO program, subjecting them to surveillance, infiltration, perjury, harassment, smear campaigns, and assassinations. Despite fighting valiantly, the party was dissolved in 1982. 

From left to right: a BPP poster, Bobby Hutton (the first recruit, murdered at 16 by police), Elaine Brown (Party Chair from 1974-1977), Kathleen Cleaver (Party Communications Secretary), Bobby Seale and Huey Newton, and a gathering of the Free Breakfast Program. 

Teen Dialogue on Race and Policing with the Richmond Peace Education Center

Monday, October 17th 2016, from 4:30-6:30pm, at the First UU Church of Richmond (1000 Blanton Avenue, Richmond VA), the Richmond Peace Education Center is hosting a discussion on race and policing, open to teens. 

For more information and to RSVP, see rprec.org. 

Abolish Columbus Day

Image from the American Indian Movement of Colorado.

"Community Conversations: Linking Trauma to the African American" at the Black History Museum and Cultural Center

Tomorrow, October 6th 2016, from 6-8pm, at the Black History Museum & Cultural Center(122 West Leigh Street, Richmond VA), the museum is partnering with Civitas for a community conversation relating to trauma, the African American community, and law enforcement. From the event description:

“Jimmie Lee Jackson. Eric Gardner. Tamir Rice. Sandra Bland. Philando Castile. The list grows and the hashtags are numbing. How are we coping? What conversations are we having with our children? How do we show compassion to our African American co-workers? In partnership with Civitas, we will take an in-depth historical and mental health look at the crisis between law enforcement and the African American community, developing cross-sector solutions through a Collective Impact approach.”

This is the first of three iterations of this event; it will be held again on October 20th and 27th. The event is free, but registration is required.

To register, see the link for further instructions.

Black Lives Matter Youth Forum and Open Mic

Tomorrow, Friday July 22nd 2016, from 4-8pm, at Atlas (114 West Marshall Street, Richmond VA), ART 180 is hosting two events for teens to discuss police brutality, racism, violence, and recent events. The first event is a poetry workshop, and the second is the Black Lives Matter Youth Forum and Open Mic.

4-6pm, Poetry Workshop with John Blake: Teens will write poems to express their hopes, fears, dreams and frustrations surrounding issues of police brutality, institutional racism, and social justice. John Blake, an experienced poetry teacher and National Poetry Slam finalist, will lead the session.

6-8pm, Black Lives Matter Youth Forum and Open Mic: This month’s open mic at Atlas will include a forum for teens in the community to openly discuss their concerns and feelings behind the recent events around the country. There are are a number of events around the community for adults to express themselves, but this one is just for teens. ART 180 teen leader Sydney Vick and community leader and ART 180 friend Robert Dortch will facilitate the conversation, which will include a chance for teens to perform poetry, music and stories in an open mic format.

For more information or to RSVP, see the link. This event is for teens.