Category Archives: politics

VCU SDS: “Defend Your Right to Peaceful Assembly and Protest”

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From a statement for the VCU Students for a Democratic Society:

VCU recently proposed amendments to its student code of conduct. The proposed rules prohibit demonstrations that disrupt the normal functions of the university, but the language is so vague that, if interpreted by a trigger-happy administrator, you could be punished for non-disruptively, peacefully, and legally exercising your First Amendment right to peaceable assembly and protest.

“Demonstrations/riot – Participating in an on-campus or off-campus demonstration, riot or activity that disrupts the normal operations of the University and/or infringes on the rights of others; leading or inciting others to disrupt scheduled and/or normal activities within any campus building or area.”

VCU is not alone in this crackdown on active citizens; measures are being taken to criminalize free speech throughout the city and country.

On the 3rd of March, 30 peaceful protesters were arrested by Virginia State Police in riot gear for sitting on the steps of the Virginia Capitol building. They were demonstrating for an end to anti-choice reproductive legislation. In a further attempt to scare citizens away from expressing their First Amendment right to peaceful assembly, the female arrestees were held for nearly nine hours in a paddy wagon and prevented access to restrooms and drinking water.

In Georgia, members of the state legislature unsuccessfully attempted to restrict the right of protesters and union members with SB 469. The bill would have made it a felony to protest near a private business. Imagine being charged with a felony for simply holding a sign!

VCU’s Monroe Park is also significant. Last Spring, several activists were arrested for camping out on the corner of Main and Laurel in protest of City Council’s attempt to gentrify the park and criminalize homelessness. Later in 2011, members of Occupy Richmond were brutalized by Richmond police and denied access to Monroe Park after being forcefully removed from Kanawha Plaza, a camp that passed the City’s sanitation standards.

And so, we, the VCU chapter of Students for a Democratic Society are protesting today to publicly exercise and protect our freedom to peacefully assemble, to stand against the unjust and unprovoked attacks on civil disobedience, and to demand transparency in American society.

**This is an orderly, peaceful demonstration. We are practicing what we are trying to defend. Behavior that is harmful or disruptive to our fellow students or homeless won’t be tolerated.**

There is a Facebook page for a protest this Friday in Monroe Park at 1 pm:

https://www.facebook.com/events/429199907105958/

Citizen Watch Dog Takes On The City’s Special Use Permit (SUP) Process

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C. Wayne Taylor, who has been doing a lot of digging’ on behalf of the neighborhood, recently sent this missive:

PLANNING COMMISSION

To the Honorable Council of the City of Richmond, Virginia
April 3, 2012

At its meeting of April 2, 2012, the Planning Commission voted (7-0) to APPROVE of:

Resolution of Intent:

To Amend the Zoning Ordinance Special Exception Provisions for the Purpose of
Reducing Reliance on the Special Use Process. All Council Districts

Summary dates:
Proposed Council paper introduction: April 23, 2012
Proposed Planning Commission public hearing: May 21,2012
Proposed City Council public hearing: May 29,2012

I recommend that all of you who are interested in sound land use policies for the city make sure you understand this proposal. While the title of the resolution sounds as if the proposal would move the city toward a more rules-based system, it would actual give the Board of Zoning Appeals broader authority to waive existing zoning and subdivision rules.

You should note that the BZA members are appoint the circuit court and can only be removed by the circuit court. Decisions of the BZA are not reviewable by City Council. The only course of action to challenge a BZA waiver would be a circuit court suit.

In my view, this is a very bad proposal. Richmond City Council is the only municipality in the Commonwealth of Virginia that has been given the authority to grant a special use permit that waives zoning and subdivision rules for a property owner. Over the years, City Council has granted thousands of waivers. As a result, the city has thousands of sets of rules for properties in the city and has failed to follow sound land use planning practices. The proposed ordinance perpetuates this situation and moves the process further from the citizens.

I submit that the fair and wise course of action is to have a set of rules that apply to everyone the way it is in all other municipalities. The city should stop granting special use permits. Unfortunately, this would require a charter amendment by the General Assembly. In the meantime, we appear poised to move further away from a rule-based system.

Please make sure you understand the immediate and long-term repercussions of this proposed ordinance. If you are concerned, please forward this information to your friends.

C. Wayne Taylor

1. Planning Commission “Letters” with notice of adopted resolution.
2. Planning Commission Agenda with full text of draft ordinance.
3. Code of Virginia § 15.2-2309. Powers and duties of boards of zoning appeals.

Read more on his blog at CityHallReview.com

Happy World Water Day….and local water issues

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I hope everyone has had a nice World Water Day.

While there are a lot of international water issues, its as good as time as any to bring up water as a local issue.

So, a couple of things:

Despite all the earlier attempts to bring attention to the City of Richmond’s water rates, as far as I can tell this city still has the highest minimum residential water rate in the country.

Richmond continues its regressive water rates, offering a discount to those using vast amounts of water while maintaining the highest minimum water/sewer service charge in the country. Meanwhile, Henrico County’s minimum service charge is a third of Richmond’s while promoting conservation by offering a one-third discount in water/sewer volume charge for those using 6 ccf (hundred cubic feet) or less.

Continue reading →

MARCH to End Dominion’s Power MADNESS This Coming Saturday

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Given some earlier editorials, it makes sense to follow up with an announcement from the Chesapeake Climate Action Network:

On Saturday, March 24th, hundreds of Virginians will take a stand against fossil fuel corruption. Will you join us at the MARCH to End Dominion’s Power MADNESS?

For years, Dominion Virginia Power executives have been raking in millions while using their dirty energy money to buy political power. They’ve been making backroom deals to rig the rules for fossil fuels and for themselves. They generate ZERO electricity for us from wind or solar power but they’ve bamboozled our state-mandated electricity rates to include a whopping $76 million renewable energy reward.

We are outraged and Dominion needs to know it. If this is what business as usual looks like, then business as usual isn’t acceptable and has to stop before the planet cooks. It’s time for Virginians to stand up to Dominion’s exploitation and fight for a massive shift to wind and solar power.

Momentum is building for this action. Last week, leading climate activist Bill McKibben released a video urging Virginians to sign up for the MARCH. Will you join us?

When: Saturday, March 24th, noon
Where: Richmond, VA- Kanahwa Plaza across from Dominion’s corporate headquarters, which takes up an entire city block
What: A rally and march to take a stand against Dominion’s dirty energy money and for a massive shift to wind and solar power

Just last week, Dominion displayed its fossil fuel madness in a number of ways: Dominion lobbyists blocked a bill to expand solar power access for schools and churches, Dominion CEO Tom Farrell unveiled a proposal for another humongous carbon-polluting power plant and we learned that company executives sent a letter to the federal government opposing a transmission backbone for offshore wind power.

Please sign up to join us on the 24th. Together, we can fight back against Dominion’s corporate greed and take a stand to stop climate change!

Congressman Scott’s Health Care Forum On March 15

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Congressperson Bobby Scott sent notice to constituents about his upcoming health care forum:

This March marks the two year anniversary of Congress passing and the President signing into law the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. On Thursday, March 15, 2012 from 6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., I will be holding a community forum in Richmond to provide an update on the implementation of the new health care reform law. The forum will be held at the General Assembly Building, Senate Room A, located at the intersection of Ninth Street and Broad Street in downtown Richmond.

Joinining me at the forum will be Ms. Joanne Grossi, the Regional Director for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and Ms. Jill Hanken, a health attorney at the Virginia Poverty Law Center. Director Grossi will provide information on what provisions of the Affordable Care Act have already been implemented and what the public can expect to be implemented in the next few years. Ms. Hanken will provide insight on what has been happening at the state level in regards to implementing the new health care law. We will also be joined by constituents who have already benefited from the Affordable Care Act.

Seating is limited, so those who plan to attend may want to contact his office.

In additional health care policy news, the Green Party had this press release (click on title for full statement):

The Green Party urges the Supreme Court to strike down the Affordable Care Act’s health insurance mandates, sees a chance for Medicare For All

“F29: SHUT DOWN THE CORPORATIONS”

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From announcement:

Occupy Richmond answers the national call put out by Occupy Portland to
Shut Down the Corporations on Wednesday, February 29 with a day of action
against corporate influence in politics.

At 1:00 PM, a press conference
will be held at the corner of N. 3rd
St. and E. Franklin St. in front of the Richmond Times Dispatch and Media
General buildings.

Afterwards we will march to actions throughout the city to bring attention
to the ways in which bribery are business-as-usual in the corporate
world.

This day of action focuses on the American Legislative Exchange Council
(ALEC) and one of its member corporations, Richmond-based Altria. Not
only is Altria one of the largest contributors to ALEC, but several
Altria executives occupy key positions of power in the organization. The
current National Chairman on ALEC’s corporate board is
Mr. W. Preston Baldwin III, a former tobacco lobbyist and Vice President
of State Government Affairs at U.S. Tobacco Inc., a company now owned by
Altria. Daniel Smith, a lobbyist, is Altria’s representative on ALEC’s
corporate board. Like other corporate members who spend thousands of
dollars to join, Altria lobbyists
use the platform provided by ALEC to develop special relationships with
legislators. ALEC works with corporate interests to craft
ready-to-introduce bills to provide
lawmakers. By providing cover for the purchase of influence in the halls
of government, ALEC whitewashes patronage and makes bribery seem
respectable.

Event Schedule:
• Rally at the Media General/Richmond Times Dispatch corner at 12pm (N.
3rd St. and E. Franklin St.)
• Demonstration at Altria at 2pm (N. 5th St. between Leigh and Jackson)
• Rally at Richmond Federal Court House at 4pm (N. 7th St. and E. Broad St.)
Contact: Occupy Richmond Media Group
Tel: (903) 203 – 7358
Email: occupyrichmondva.media@gmail.com
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEResources for further information:
• http://f29.occupyrva.org
• http://www.facebook.com/events/253092951433469/
• http://www.shutdownthecorporations.org

About Occupy Richmond:
Occupy Richmond considers itself a part of a growing economic and human
rights Movement that recognizes and affirms the essential dignity and
inherent value of all human beings and life.
We seek to create a safe space for free speech and civil dialog because we
believe our society and the earth are in crisis, and we recognize the need
for imminent change.
About Shut Down the Corporations:
Occupy Portland calls for a national day of non-violent direct action to
reclaim our voices and
challenge our society’s obsession with profit and greed by shutting
down the corporations. We
are rejecting a society that does not allow us control of our future. We
will reclaim our ability to
shape our world in a democratic, cooperative, just and sustainable direction.

# # #
* No one person has been elected to speak on behalf of the entire
organization. The contact information provided is
given only for verification and follow-up purposes.

This Council Race Is On.

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At last week’s Oregon Hill Neighborhood Association meeting, David Gammino announced he was challenging Marty Jewell for his 5th District Council seat.

The Times Dispatch is now reporting that Jewell has failed to account for his fundraising.

From the article:

While he said he doesn’t plan to make it an issue, Gammino said Jewell’s “inability to file election campaign disclosures and reports speaks to his organizational skills or lack thereof, and his transparency, or lack thereof.”

Gammino said he has been working to build relationships in the district’s South Side precincts, where a challenge by Woodland Heights civic leader Lee Shewmake split the vote in a three-way race with Jewell and Randolph neighborhood businessman Mark Brandon.