By Karen Kirk: School safety, diversity and challenges facing Fairfax County Schools were the top issues at a forum Saturday featuring at-large candidates for the Fairfax County School Board. The forum was held at Luther Jackson Middle School in Falls Church and early voting followed. Here are the four candidates’ views: Safety in schools in an era of mass shootings:…
By Diane Burkley Alejandro: After this year’s elections, Fairfax County may finally have a board of supervisors ready to stop voluntary cooperation with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), which has made our region a national leader in deportations. This would benefit not only immigrant families, but our community as a whole, as crime is statistically significantly lower in jurisdictions…
Affordable housing and social and racial equity are the most important issues facing Fairfax County, according to the Democratic candidates for chair of the county Board of Supervisors. The four candidates, who will face off in a primary on June 11, met at a forum sponsored by the Fairfax County NAACP on May 11 at the Heritage Fellowship Church in…
U.S. Rep. Jennifer Wexton (VA-10) received a Hope Award from Calvary Women’s Services Wednesday night for her work to end domestic violence and addiction at the organization’s 18th Annual Hope Awards Dinner in Washington, D.C. The event honors leaders who uplift and empower women and celebrates the success of women at Calvary who are achieving their goals and moving out of homelessness.…
By Chap Petersen: One of the things I’ve learned from twenty plus years in elected office is that ordinary voters are smarter than politicians. This reality was never better illustrated than in the 2019 General Assembly session, when the Commonwealth and, more specifically, the Democratic Party, was rocked by a series of scandals which attached to our highest state office…
By Alicia Plerhoples: I often tell my daughters that they are not growing up like I grew up. As a child, I experienced housing instability and food insecurity, just as many hardworking Fairfax County families do today. I was 9 when my father lost his job. Without his income, we were evicted from our home. I spent much of my…
“One Community. One World.” This vision was more than just a slogan at the annual Centreville Immigration Forum dinner on April 13, showcasing the talent and cultural diversity of our region. A Parade of Flags ceremony representing some of the many nationalities resident in northern Virginia opened the evening, complemented by a demonstration of indigenous weaving and embroidery. The 9th…
Gov. Ralph Northam (D) cancelled a campaign stop in Burke on Sunday in the face of protests organized by groups that normally have little in common — the Fairfax County NAACP and the Fairfax County Republican Committee. After the cancellation, Farfax NAACP President Kofi Annan commented on Facebook, “Virginians deserve a governor that does not have ties to the KKK.…
By Susan Laume: A current investigation into allegations of cruel treatment at a Fairfax pet store highlights the importance of improving legal protection for animals. Nevertheless, about a dozen pro-animal bills failed to win approval in the state legislature in the last session, concluding in March Four Democratic lawmakers who support better protection for animals met recently in a panel discussion…
By Sean Perryman: In August of 2017, James Alex Fields, Jr. intentionally drove his Dodge Challenger into dozens of people, mowing them down and murdering Heather Heyer. In response to the day of violence surrounding the “Unite the Right” rally, President Trump infamously said there are “very fine people on both sides.” The president had apparently equated unabashed white supremacists…
By Lainie Singerman: A convicted murderer turned legal scholar was honored in Fairfax on March 24 for his contributions to criminal justice reform, including helping to exonerate a fellow death row inmate. The Citizen Advocate of the Year award, from Virginians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty (VADP), went to Joe Giarratano, who served 37 years in prison, during which…
By Trisha Rahman: As a student currently attending a Fairfax County Public high school, I am familiar with many of the issues high school students care about. Yes, we think about test scores, our football team stats, even Ariana Grande’s new song, but we also contemplate problems impacting our schools on a large scale. When public schools all over the…
By Susan Laume: As the Fairfax County Commonwealth Attorney’s office handles thousands of civil and criminal cases every year, and touches many thousands of lives in northern Virginia, the social policies of the elected official running the office demand the attention of voters. This is why the Fairfax County NAACP sponsored a debate on March 16 between the two Democratic…
By Paul O’Shea: Following recent passage in the state Senate of a bill to ban the death penalty for criminal defendants with severe mental illness, northern Virginia welcomes a leading proponent of a national movement against the death penalty on March 24th. Mike Farrell, founder and president of Death Penalty Focus, will keynote the annual awards luncheon of Virginians for…