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Here’s a recap of the top stories on the morning of Thursday, October 7, 2021:
Chesterfield state Senator Amanda Chase is calling for an election audit in all 50 states, including Virginia. As Ben Paviour reports, she’s also stepping up appearances with Republican Glenn Youngkin as he seeks to become Virginia’s next governor.
Virginia's junior U.S. Senator is among those sponsoring new voting rights legislation in Congress. The John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act would restore the federal government’s power to review potentially restrictive changes to voting. Virginia Senator Tim Kaine says they are still trying to get more Republicans to support it. Some Republicans have criticized the act, saying it gives the federal government too much power over states’ electoral process.
State officials say they have not decided when to take down the fence around the traffic circle where the Robert E. Lee statue once stood. According to the Virginia Mercury, officials with the state and City of Richmond are still determining what to do with the site. It’s been almost a month since crews removed the massive statue of the Confederate general. The state put up fences around the monument in January. The grassy area around the monument was transformed by activists into a community space. It was renamed Marcus-David Peters Circle, after a Black man who was shot and killed by a Richmond Police officer in 2018.
The Something in the Water festival looks like it won’t return to Virginia Beach. The reason frustrations from celebrity organizer Pharell Williams over Virginia Beach’s atmosphere and leadership. Our partner station WHRV spoke to several fans about what Pharell’s message to city leaders said and what it left unsaid.
Members of the Congressional Black Caucus have joined Virginia Representative Donald McEachin’s ongoing campaign to rename Fort Lee after a Black retired army general. According to the Progress-Index, the caucus sent a letter this week to a Pentagon panel in charge of assigning new names to military installations. The letter is McEachin’s latest push to get the fort named after Lieutenant General Arthur Gregg. Gregg started his military career at then-Camp Lee and retired after 35-years of service.
