In a recent opinion essay, a former Charlottesville police officer, who reached the rank of captain, asserted that there is and has been no racism in the Charlottesville Police Department for decades. He’s wrong, and this... More

Jeff Fogel

I served in the Charlottesville Police Department from 1981-2012. During my thirty-one year career, I held the rank of patrolman, detective, sergeant, lieutenant, and captain. I want to push back on the false narrative I hear... More

Bryant Bibb

Like no time before, the past 18 months have shown us all just how important our homes are.  Speaking from personal experience, I’ve spent more time at home during the course of the pandemic than in the past 20... More

Sunshine Mathon

While we are just beginning to learn all the ways the pandemic has affected the mental health of children, there is a growing consensus among child development and health experts that the best way to promote recovery is simple: Play. Children... More

As the critical dialogue around future land use in Charlottesville heightens, Cultivate Charlottesville Food Justice Network  partners reflect on the urban agriculture land lost to necessary redevelopment at Friendship Court, South First Street and, after this season, Sixth Street.... More

Cultivate Charlottesville Food Justice Network

I am a lifelong resident of Charlottesville who grew up in the Vinegar Hill neighborhood before it was destroyed. I have been disappointed in recent weeks by reactions from Charlottesville residents to the proposed land use map. These reactions... More

Carmelita Wood

I was born to a family of educators, domestic workers and laborers. My parents were raised during the Depression under the tyranny of Jim Crow, where they faced racism in education, economic opportunity and their ability to vote. But... More

Jennifer McClellan

I grew up in Petersburg, Virginia, one of the poorest communities in our commonwealth. Petersburg is a strong community thanks to the people I grew up with: our faith leaders; my teacher, Sgt. Maj. Frost; and my grandmother, Mary... More

Jennifer Carroll Foy

I have a clear memory of the first Earth Day. It was April 22, 1970. I was in seventh grade, and rather than riding the bus to Hubbard Trail Junior High in Crete, Illinois, I walked to school, along with my... More

Nancy Hiles Johnson

What if you could grow your money by investing in companies whose missions align with your own? Whether that means improving the environment, housing, education or health care, “impact investing” is appealing because it combines the traditional ideas of... More

Christine Mahoney

We are a wealthy nation with vast resources, yet we have been walloped by a microscopic thing that doesn’t have a single living cell. It certainly doesn’t process with a brain like us. How could such a simple thing... More

Philip Cobbs

By now, truth is hard to find. It’s elusive and hidden in a world of attractive falsehoods. One must go looking for it with unselfish intent, otherwise they will be wowed by sirens singing irresistible tales. The search is... More

Philip Cobbs