Tag: Bob Good

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Flip the script: In conversation with Cameron Webb

In Virginia's 5th Congressional District, Dr. Cameron Webb fell to Bob Good in a highly contested race. PC: Eze Amos

In 2016, Donald Trump won Virginia’s 5th Congressional District by 11 percentage points. Two years later, as a blue wave saw Democrats pick up 41 House seats nationwide, Republican Denver Riggleman beat Democrat Leslie Cockburn by 7 percent. 

Virginia’s 5th District runs from Fauquier County to the North Carolina border. The huge district encompasses the blue enclave of Charlottesville, but also hundreds of miles filled with more conservative rural communities. Democrats have no business competing here, and for the last decade, they haven’t.

Enter Cameron Webb. 

Webb is a practicing doctor, teacher, and Director of Health Policy and Equity at the UVA School of Medicine. He worked in the White House under former President Barack Obama and decided to stay on after the 2016 election, working on drug pricing during the Trump administration. If he wins, he’ll be the first Black representative in the history of the 5th District, and the first Black doctor to serve in U.S. Congress.

Meanwhile, Webb’s opponent, Bob Good, is a self-proclaimed “biblical conservative.” He’s been a member of the Campbell County Board of Supervisors, a Liberty University athletics fundraiser, and a wrestling coach. Good challenged the incumbent Riggleman after some district Republicans were upset that Riggleman officiated a gay wedding. Good then won the nomination in a bizarre, COVID-altered drive-through convention of Republican delegates. 

Webb’s red-hot campaign has turned the district into a tossup. A late October poll from Public Policy Polling showed Webb leading 46-43, and FiveThirtyEight now gives each candidate an exactly 50 percent chance to win the district.

C-VILLE spoke with Webb last week, in hopes of figuring out what it is about the young doctor that’s got everyone talking. The following interview has been edited for length and clarity.

 

C-VILLE: As if this final stretch of the campaign wasn’t busy enough, I hear you have some shifts in the COVID unit coming up this week. What’s that like these days?

CW: You never really know until you get there. The way this virus is, everything changes quickly. But all over the commonwealth, all over the country we’re seeing an uptick in cases. Everybody who’s there can get pretty sick pretty fast—especially working overnight, as the only doctor on the COVID unit, you want to make sure you’re ready to respond at a moment’s notice.

 

Well, Congress will be a breeze after that. 

It’ll be a different kind of exercise. I’m looking forward to the challenge, though. There are some similarities—it’s a similar skill set, especially when you’re out and about talking to folks. It’s asking folks where it hurts and listening for an answer.

People don’t realize this all the time, but a lot of medicine is a negotiation. Many times, with treatment recommendations, folks may say, ‘I hear you, but I don’t like X, Y, or Z.’ So, okay, how do we find out way forward? That idea of finding consensus is something I expect to lean in to. You meet people where they are—that’s what medicine is about. 

 

You’re running a very close race in a solidly Republican district. On a basic level, flipping a district means convincing people who don’t agree with you on very much that you’re the person for the job. How have you been doing that?

I would start off by saying we actually agree with each other on far more things than we don’t. On education, for instance, we all want kids to have a great education. On health care, we all want folks to have access to the care they need. 

Now, the manner of execution is different, but the agreement is on the outcome. In this race, with folks across the political spectrum, we’re able to have common conversations about what we want to see. Then I’m able to show people what I think is the course forward. I haven’t really felt that tension of folks disagreeing with me. 

[Finding] those points of commonality takes a lot of work, it takes a lot of time, and it takes a lot of trust. But [we’ve been] spending the time to build that trust…I think that’s why this race is where it is.

 

Do you think those strategies will work at the next level? I mean, time and trust have been in short supply in the federal government recently. 

Listen, I’ve seen these strategies work in the Trump White House. I led a drug pricing task force, and I saw this strategy work right there in the executive office of President Donald J. Trump. 

I also think there’s strength in numbers. Any member of Congress who’s willing to work with folks who see the world differently from them—they’re part of our path forward as Americans. Luckily, we’ve got someone in the adjacent congressional district, Congresswoman Spanberger, who talks about that same thing.

I talked to [her] before I decided to run, because one of my questions was, “What’s it like trying to be in that space, in Congress, advocating for building consensus?” [She] reassured me that this is possible, you can be that kind of legislator…The more people we have who think like that, the better off we’ll be. 

 

Speaking of people on the other side of the aisle—what do you make of your opponent, Bob Good?

I still have yet to sit down in a room with Mr. Good. Even though we’re on opposite sides of the ticket, I don’t have the mindset that there’s nothing Bob Good and I would agree on.

But I think he’s taken an approach in this race where he’s tried to misrepresent some of my positions on key issues. It’s important for me to set the record straight. We’re very different—my whole focus since the beginning has been trying to unify people, and bridge divides, and bring folks together. And his approach has been to stand in his position, saying this is a bright red district and everyone should get on board. 

 

What are some of your positions that you feel have been misrepresented by the Good campaign?

Oh, shall I count the ways. Top of mind of course is this conversation around policing. I think they’ve definitely tried to label me as a radical of some sort, which couldn’t be farther from the truth.

Part of why we have the momentum that we have is that people across the district actually see me, and they hear what I say. All of that disinformation—it’s not sticking. What is sticking with folks is how it reflects on him, and less about how it reflects on me. 

 

You’re a doctor. Does that mean that health care will be one of your top legislative priorities if you win?

You can’t be a legislator heading in to the 117th Congress and not prioritize COVID recovery. And certainly there’s a public health component to that, but there’s also an economic component.

I really prioritize the economy in all of my conversations, because I can build a lot of conversations around that. Our health care conversation is an economic conversation—[health care] is one-fifth of our economy, it’s the largest sector in our economy. Our climate crisis conversation is an economic conversation, it’s about creating jobs, it’s about recognizing that renewable energies are cheaper than fossil fuels—even the free market is telling us that’s the direction we should be going. The frame here in the district does tend to have more of an economic focus, and we’re able to rise to that conversation.

 

What are your election night plans?

Believe it or not, I haven’t spent a tremendous amount of time thinking about that, because I’m so busy doing the work. It’s going to be something that honors the work that our team has put in, that my family has put in, but at the same time acknowledges that even though we want to celebrate we’re still in the midst of a global pandemic.

 

It’s good you’re calm—I’m a nervous wreck.

Well, it’s hard to shake me at this point—I was [in Washington] in November of 2016, I was up until 3 o’clock, finding out who my future boss was going to be. One thing I tell people often: President Obama’s calm the next day in the White House—I will remember that forever. I remember going to the Rose Garden the next day, and him walking out and saying, “Hey, America’s going to be okay. We just need to keep fighting, and making our argument.” And that’s what we’ll do. 

 

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In brief: UVA returns in spring, COVID hits Wintergreen, and more

PC: Rick Stillings

Back again?

After a semester that featured dorm lockdowns, gathering limits, maskless masses flooding bars, and more than a thousand positive tests among students, staff, and contract employees since August, UVA announced last week that students will return to Grounds in person for the spring semester.

The university will essentially replicate its fall reopening plans next semester. Most classes will be held online, but there will be a limited number of in-person offerings. Students will continue to be required to wear masks, practice social distancing, and comply with testing requirements while on Grounds.

The school’s January term will take place online. And while these courses usually cost extra, this year students can take one class for free.

To reduce the threat during peak flu season, the first day of spring classes has been pushed back from January 20 to February 1. The semester will still end at the beginning of May.

And to discourage students from traveling in and out of Charlottesville, the typically weeklong spring break—originally scheduled for March 6 through 14—will be replaced with multiple shorter breaks.

Before students leave for Thanksgiving and finish out the rest of the semester from home, they will all be required to take and submit a COVID test, like they did before returning to Grounds this fall. No word yet if they will be tested again before the start of the spring semester.

By March 15, the university will announce its plans for Final Exercises, for both the classes of 2020 and 2021. The Class of 2020 is currently scheduled to have its delayed celebration from May 21 to 23. The Class of 2021 is slated to walk the Lawn the following weekend.

Follow the money

In elections for the House of Representatives, the candidate who spends more money wins 90 percent of the time, according to FiveThirtyEight.

There are multiple reasons for that correlation: Large war chests help candidates put together effective campaigns, and candidates with winning pedigrees attract more donations. In any case, it bodes well
for Cameron Webb, who has run rings around Bob Good in
the money race. As of October 25, Webb has raised $4.6 million; Good, a former fundraiser for Liberty University athletics, has raised just $1.1 million. The difference in small-dollar donations is even starker: Webb has earned $1.3 million to Good’s $180,000 from donations of $200 or less.

Across the state, Democrats have thumped Republicans in fundraising. U.S. Senator Mark Warner has raised $16.6 million, compared to opponent Daniel Gade’s $3.9 million, according to OpenSecrets. Warner’s senate seat was a tossup six years ago, but now the Dem, seeking a third term, is a comfortable favorite. Warner’s 2014 opponent, Ed Gillespie, raised $7.9 mil, but Gade hasn’t been able to come anywhere near that amount this year. Virginia Republicans haven’t won a statewide race since 2009.

In this cycle, Virginians have given $23.2 million to Joe Biden and $11.1 million to Donald Trump, according to the Federal Election Commission. Nationally, Biden has far outraised what Hillary Clinton did in 2016, and Trump has almost doubled his totals from last time around. That dynamic is visible on the state level too—in 2016, Virginians gave $16 million to Hillary Clinton and just $3.7 million to Trump.

CC License: Mark Warner Flickr

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Quote of the week

“I strain to recall ever before witnessing such disdain for precedent, such disrespect for the legacy of an American giant, such disregard for the will of the voters.”

—Senator Tim Kaine on Monday’s confirmation of Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett

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In brief

You’ve Piqua’d my interest

High rates of turnover in Charlottesville city government continue. Former public works director and Deputy City Manager Paul Oberdorfer is leaving for the greener pastures of Piqua, Ohio, where he’s been offered the job of city manager, reports The Daily Progress. Oberdorfer, an Ohio native, will finish in Charlottesville on December 31.

Snowball effect

Multiple staffers at Wintergreen Resort have tested positive for COVID, and 20 have been asked to quarantine, after an October 10 wedding party introduced the disease to the ski resort. Wintergreen currently limits its events to 50 guests at a time, and has assured the public that it’s been adhering closely to all relevant guidelines. Still, once the virus takes hold, things can go downhill quickly.

The horror continues

As if the world wasn’t scary enough, Halloween is just around the corner. Trick-or-treating isn’t officially canceled this year, but the city is encouraging hosts to “avoid direct contact with trick-or-treaters and give treats away outdoors if possible.” Hopefully, for one night at least, no one will mind walking around in a mask.

Carson unmasked

Bob Good keeps popping up in headlines for the wrong reasons—this time, he hosted a private fundraiser in Fauquier County where doctor and high-ranking Trump official Ben Carson was caught sauntering about without a mask. Carson’s appearance continues a pattern of inconsistent mask use from Trump’s inner circle, despite the repeated assertion from medical experts that masks save lives.

Ben Carson PC: Gage Skidmore
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Ballot breakdown: Get to know what’s on the ballot before casting your vote

Early in-person voting began in Virginia on September 18. According to the Virginia Public Access Project, more than 1.4 million Virginians have already cast their vote or requested a mail ballot. Still, there are plenty of us who haven’t voted yet. If you’re unsure what you’ll see when you stop by the registrar’s office or open that letter from the city, take a look at the sample ballot on the right for a refresher.

Though the end of the election period is fast approaching, it’s not too late to get on board. The deadline to register to vote is October 13. Vote-by-mail ballots can be requested until October 23 and must be postmarked by November 3. In-person early voting ends on October 31, the Friday before the Tuesday, November 3, general election. If you’ve been putting it off and you’re looking for a sign—this is it.

Senate

Democrat Mark Warner is running for his third term in the Senate. His Republican challenger is Daniel Gade, an Army veteran who lost a leg in Iraq before working on veterans’ issues in the Bush administration. In 2014, Warner staved off a tough challenge from Republican Ed Gillespie, winning reelection by 0.8 percent. This time around, he’s expected to win more comfortably—polling consistently shows Warner ahead by double digits, and he’s raised $13.9 million to Gade’s $900,000.

Congress

UVA’s director of health policy and equity, Dr. Cameron Webb has been running a strong race in the sprawling 5th Congressional District, which voted for Donald Trump by 11 points. Republican Bob Good is a self-styled “biblical conservative” and a former Liberty University athletics fundraiser—though he himself has fundraised poorly, and may in fact have broken campaign finance laws last month by holding a raffle for an AR-15 rifle at a campaign event.

Amendment 1

Take a look at “Party Lines” for a deep dive into this year’s important gerrymandering amendment.

Amendment 2

The second amendment on the ballot this year would give disabled veterans a tax break on one car or pickup truck owned by the veteran or their spouse. The amendment was introduced in 2019 by Democratic Delegate Eileen Filler-Corn, and passed by the Virginia state legislature with near-unanimous bipartisan support.

President

If you’re still undecided on this one, that’s on you, my friend.

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In brief: “Crying Nazi” faces prison time, neo-Nazi stickers spotted downtown, and more

PC: Eze Amos

Locked up

The “Crying Nazi” faces up to 22 years in prison. You have to make a lot of bad decisions in life for the local newspaper to write that sentence about you—and that’s exactly what Chris Cantwell has done.

The New Hampshire far-right radio host came to Charlottesville for the 2017 Unite the Right rally, where he was filmed by Vice chanting “Jews will not replace us” as he marched down the UVA Lawn with a tiki-torch wielding mob. Later that night, he pepper sprayed protesters at the base of the Jefferson statue, which eventually earned him two misdemeanor assault and battery charges and a five-year ban from the state of Virginia.

Soon after the rally, Cantwell uploaded a video of himself tearily proclaiming his innocence, earning him the above-mentioned nickname.

This time around, he’s been found guilty of extortion and interstate threats. In 2019, Cantwell sent online messages in which he threatened to rape another neo-Nazi’s wife if that neo-Nazi didn’t reveal the identity of a third neo-Nazi who had remained anonymous at the time.

In an interview with C-VILLE in 2017—conducted from his cell at the Albemarle-Charlottesville Regional Jail—Cantwell offered a comment that looks positively prophetic in hindsight. “I’m a shock jock. I offend people professionally,” he said. “If we’re going to talk about all the nasty things I said on the internet, we’re going to be here for a while.”

Justice for Breonna

After several months of investigation, a grand jury indicted former Louisville police detective Brett Hankison last Wednesday for endangering the neighbors of Breonna Taylor during a botched no-knock raid—but did not charge the two officers who shot and killed the 26-year-old Black emergency-room technician in her own home.

Just hours after the announcement, more than 100 Charlottesville residents gathered on the Belmont Bridge in solidarity with Louisville, demanding justice for Taylor through the defunding and abolishing of police.

The crowd toted homemade signs and joined in chants led by organizer Ang Conn, as passing cars honked in support. A few protesters blocked the bridge with cars and cones, allowing everyone to move off the sidewalk and into the road for more chants and speeches from Black attendees.

Protesters marched down Market Street to the front of the Charlottesville Police Department, which had its doors locked and appeared to be empty, with no cops in sight.

“Say her name—Breonna Taylor,” chanted the crowd. “No justice, no peace—abolish the police.”

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Quote of the week

“We have to do something. It’s not creating more data we already know. It’s not providing more funding to the police department. It’s not waiting to see how it plays out in court. …It’s rare for police to be held accountable.”

—community organizer Ang Conn calling for justice for Breonna Taylor during a protest held by Defund Cville Police

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In brief

Fascist threat

In recent weeks, anti-racist activists have spotted dozens of stickers promoting the white supremacist, neo-Nazi group Patriot Front on or near the Downtown Mall and the Corner, as well as near the Lee and Jackson statues, reports Showing Up for Racial Justice. The activists urge anyone who sees a sticker to document its location, use a sharp object to remove it, and tell others where they saw it. If, however, you see someone putting up a sticker, the group advises against approaching the person if you are alone—instead, discreetly take a photo and alert others of the incident.

PC: Charlottesville Showing Up for Racial Justice

Jumped the gun

In case it wasn’t already clear what kind of operation Republican congressional candidate Bob Good was running, last weekend the Liberty University administrator held a “God, Guns, and a Good time” rally in Fluvanna County. Fliers for the event advertised a raffle with an AR-15 as the top prize. Good’s campaign now denies any affiliation with the raffle, reports NBC29, as holding a raffle to benefit a political campaign violates Virginia gambling and election laws.

Board bothers

The Charlottesville Police Civilian Review Board continues to meet obstacles in its years-long quest to provide oversight for local policing. Last week, just three months after the first meeting, board member Stuart Evans resigned. In his resignation letter, Evans declared the body was “fundamentally flawed,” and that the city’s refusal to give the board any real power led to his resignation. “I refuse to help the City clean up its image by peddling fictions of progress,” he wrote.

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In brief: Bob’s not so good, COVID’s on the rise, and more

PC: Bob Good for Congress

Tossing it around

Bob Good, the 5th Congressional District’s Republican candidate, released a bizarre campaign advertisement this week. In the spot, Good draws on his experience as a wrestling coach—everyone’s favorite kind of authority figure—and shows how he’ll “put liberal ideas in a headlock.” As Good grapples on the mat with his son, the candidate periodically looks up from the tangle of arms and legs to deliver a zinger such as “Government-run health care? I’ll pin that idea.”

Meanwhile, election forecasters at the Cook Political Report are now rating the race a toss-up, something formerly unthinkable in a district Donald Trump won by 11 points in 2016. On Twitter, Cook’s Dave Wasserman called Cameron Webb “perhaps the Dems’ best House candidate anywhere in the country…Webb is a young, telegenic Black doctor w/deep ties in both Charlottesville & Southside.” 

Proof positive

Sticky notes in the window of Echols dorm show how students are feeling about quarantine. PC: Julia Hyde

Despite evidence from colleges around the country that inviting students back to campus would lead to coronavirus outbreaks in on-campus housing, UVA’s administration made the decision to bring first-year students back to Grounds. Now, less than three weeks later, there are outbreaks in several dorms.

Last Wednesday, the school announced at least five cases of COVID-19 were found in the wastewater of the Balz-Dobie freshman residence hall. The dorm immediately went into lockdown and all residents were tested Wednesday evening. The tests turned up 15 cases of COVID-19 in a dorm of 188 students, says the university. Students who tested positive have been placed in isolation housing and their close contacts (such as roommates) have been placed in quarantine housing.

Thursday evening, residents of the Lefevre dorm were instructed to undergo mandatory asymptomatic testing after wastewater tests indicated possible infections there, too. That dorm turned up three more positive cases. Then on Friday, the Echols and Kellogg dorms underwent the same routine, and 17 additional cases were confirmed.

“All students with positive tests are doing well,” says UVA in an official statement.

As of Friday, 19 percent of the university’s quarantine rooms were occupied by students and 1 percent of isolation rooms were occupied. Quarantine rooms are for those who have been exposed to COVID-19 and isolation rooms are for students who have tested positive for COVID-19. The school’s coronavirus tracker shows 241 active cases as of Tuesday morning, including students, staff, faculty, and contracted workers.—Amelia Delphos

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Quote of the week

“The issue is that y’all don’t have your facts together. You’re trying to cite me for a [Black Youth Action Committee] event, claiming that it took place in Washington Park and it didn’t.”

—community organizer Zyahna Bryant on the $500 fine the BYAC received for hosting Black Joy Fest, criticizing City Council for not being consistent with enforcing the ban on large gatherings

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In brief

The lost art

Seven paintings by Charlottesville artist Megan Read, worth a total of $12,000, have gone missing. They weren’t stolen in a dramatic art heist, though: FedEx lost track of the packages, which were en route to a gallery in Denver. Read has tried to track the paintings down, and says she thinks they’re stuck in a shipping center in Kernersville, North Carolina, but she hasn’t been able to find anyone who can help her. 

Sign of the times

A blunt sign on the door of one of UVA’s historic Lawn rooms has caught the attention of some of the university’s more traditionally minded alumni. “FUCK UVA,” it says, before reminding passersby of the school’s history of slavery and other crimes. The sign prompted Bert Ellis, class of ’75 and CEO of Atlanta’s Ellis Capital, to drive to town and indignantly knock on the Lawn room door, where, according to his own Facebook post, he was given an eye-opening history lesson from the student who lives there.

Name game

After debating the issue late into the night during multiple recent meetings—and getting nowhere—City Council decided on Monday to send proposals for honorary street names to the city’s Historic Resources Committee. Several proposals would honor local Black figures, including activist Wyatt Johnson and enslaved laborer William Henry Martin, while two others suggest honoring UVA men’s basketball coach Tony Bennett.

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In brief: Back to UVA, bewildering ballots, and more

Community organizer and UVA student Zyahna Bryant recently handed out college dorm essentials to nine first-gen Black college students, who all graduated from Charlottesville High School. Bryant, also a first-gen student, raised $12,000 to purchase the items and award scholarships—ranging from $750 to $1,000—over the course of a few hours. PC: Eze Amos

Comeback kids?

On August 4, UVA announced that move-in and the beginning of in-person classes will be delayed by two weeks, meaning face-to-face instruction will start on September 8. University President Jim Ryan released a video August 7, explaining that the decision to delay was made in response to a rise in Virginia’s coronavirus transmission, as well as “recent volatility in the supply chain for testing.”

The school has instituted additional safety measures in an attempt to minimize spread of the virus, including changes in classroom capacities to accommodate for social distancing, installing plexiglass shields between faculty and students, and enhancing its classroom sanitation protocols. UVA has even begun testing the dorms’ wastewater to try to detect the virus early.

Meanwhile, the state of Virginia has surpassed 100,000 cases since the onset of the pandemic, and cases have increased 16 percent in the last two weeks, according to The New York Times. New daily cases in Virginia reached an all-time high with 2,015 reported cases on August 7—less than one month before students return to Grounds.

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Quote of the week

“I promise that’s just black water in my glass. It was a prop only.”

—Jerry Falwell Jr., longtime president of evangelical Liberty University (where alcohol is banned) in an Instagram post in which he posed with his fly down on a yacht. He was placed on indefinite leave shortly thereafter.

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In brief

In the doghouse

On Sunday, Carrie Pledger, owner of Pawprints Boutique, which sells clothes and accessories for pets, asked an unhoused Black man to move because she felt he was dancing too close to her business’ sign. That request inspired the ire of a handful of nearby Black Youth Action Committee activists, who were handing out free water and snacks. After the activists voiced their concerns, Pledger called the police. Video shows Pledger telling the police, “This is scary to me,” gesturing to the scene in front of her.

Bewildering ballots

If you received a mailing from the Center for Voter Information, be wary. The nonprofit isn’t attempting to scam you, but it is demonstrably incompetent: This month, the organization mailed out a half-million ballot applications directing potential voters to send their ballots back to incorrect registrars’ office addresses, and in 2018, voter registration forms were mailed to 140,000 Virginians who were already registered to vote, reports The Washington Post. The safest way to vote absentee is to register online via the Virginia Department of Elections.

No Good?

A press release from Democratic congressional candidate Dr. Cameron Webb says his Republican opponent Bob Good has declined to participate in a proposed October debate. The district has been steadily Republican for a decade, but Webb has so far out-fundraised Good by leaps and bounds.

ICE facility outbreak

The Immigration and Customs Enforcement immigration detention center in Farmville, Virginia, is now home to the worst coronavirus outbreak of any detention facility in the United States, reports The Washington Post. Testing last month showed that 70 percent of those detained had the disease, and one person being held there died last week.

 

This article has been corrected to accurately reflect the timeline of events described in the brief titled “In the dog house.” Pledger called the police only after the activists spoke up, not before.

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In brief: Bridging forward, testing troubles, and more

Belmont Bridge PC: Jack Looney

Building bridges

After nearly two decades of municipal hiccups and mishaps, the city’s plan to replace the Belmont Bridge is finally coming to fruition.

On Monday evening, City Council conducted a first reading on an allocation for the project: The state will pay $12.1 million, the federal government will pay $3.2 million, and the city will kick in $13 million. Council will hold a final vote on the decision August 17.

The city has completed right-of-way acquisition of necessary land and is now finalizing plans with the Federal Highway Administration and Virginia Department of Transportation, explained Jeanette Janiczek, Charlottesville’s Urban Construction Initiative program manager.

Last year, the Board of Architectural Review approved a certificate of appropriateness for the project. However, Janiczek said the certificate is currently being updated.

The city has been working to replace the nearly 60-year-old bridge since 2003, but has run into numerous issues. Initial designs were shot down by the public, and the consultants first hired for the project, MMM Design Group, shut their doors in 2014.

Kimley-Horn took charge of the project in 2017, and council approved a final design the following year.

The new bridge will include pedestrian lighting, benches, and bike racks, as well as a seven-foot-wide bicycle lane and a 10-foot-wide sidewalk, which will be separated from the road by a median. Ramps and stairs on the north end will connect the sidewalks to the Downtown Mall and Water Street.

Construction will begin next year, and is expected to be finished by 2023.

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Quote of the week

“Don’t create these boards and these commissions as bandaids to shut people up.”

—Police Civilian Review Board member Dorenda Johnson, speaking as a resident on City Council’s actions toward the board

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In brief

Riggleman running?

After losing the Republican primary to Bob Good, lame-duck Congressman Denver Riggleman told a Bloomberg podcast that he was “seriously considering” an independent run for governor. Riggleman said he lost his seat because he “refused to commit to supporting anything even close to racism or bigotry.” During his two-year term, Riggleman voted in line with Donald Trump 94 percent of the time.

Testing turmoil

UVA’s hopes for a hybrid semester rely on testing students at a high volume. That plan got off to a rocky start this week. The school sent an email to all students directing them to order COVID tests from the university website, but the website immediately crashed, multiple students report. Once the site came back online, other glitches emerged: The drop-down menu where students were supposed to input their home addresses omitted Rhode Island and New Jersey.

COVID outbreak

Cedars Healthcare Center, a skilled nursing facility in Charlottesville, has been devastated by a coronavirus outbreak, reports NBC29. As of July 31, 96 of the center’s 112 residents, and 44 of the 140 staff, have tested positive for the virus. Seventeen residents have passed away.

Name game

Since the resurgence of protests against police violence around the country, multiple local residents have submitted applications to the city asking for a street downtown to be named in honor of the Black Lives Matter movement. But City Council decided to hold off on voting on the name on Monday, waiting to have more “community involvement” in the matter. Council will now accept related honorary street name requests until August 31, and will consider all of the applications together before taking action.

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In brief: Black at STAB, a win for Webb, and more

Black alumni and students at the St. Anne's-Belfield School have anonymously shared their experiences online, including microaggressions from teachers and uses of racial slurs by other students. PC: Skyclad Aerial

Private protests

For decades, students in collared shirts and plaid skirts have strolled across St. Anne’s-Belfield’s well-manicured lawns. But even this historic bastion of prep has felt the effects of our transformative moment, at least in a small way.

After the murder of George Floyd, a group of STAB alumni, led by Sophia Hunt, created a petition with a list of demands for the administration, including publicly condemning racial violence, acknowledging the presence of racism in the community, hiring a full-time global diversity and inclusion officer, and diversifying the faculty, board of trustees, and student body.

Meanwhile, students have begun calling for change on the Instagram page @blackatstab. On the account, Black alumni and students have anonymously shared their experiences, including microaggressions from teachers and uses of racial slurs by other students.

When asked for a statement, STAB did not address the Instagram page, instead directing C-VILLE to an email in which the school says it’s “launching a series of dialogues within our entire community.”

STAB declined to release a detailed breakdown of its student body’s demographics, only sharing the statistic from its website that 32 percent of students are “of traditionally under-represented groups.” Elsewhere in town, The Covenant School’s student body is 87 percent white, and Tandem Friends School is 78 percent white. The city public school district is 42 percent white.

(The phenomenon isn’t unique to Charlottesville: Nationally, 69 percent of private school students are white, though just 51 percent of the country’s school-aged population is white, according to research from the University of California Los Angeles.)

Piper Holden, one of the STAB alums who started the petition, says she felt like the message was received. “But obviously this isn’t over,” she says. “I’m really hoping to see those changes. But we’re going to have to wait and see.” — Claudia Gohn

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Quote of the week

“November Cook Political rating: Lean R. But if
you’re looking for an upset, this is one to watch.”

—Election forecaster Dave Wasserman, on the race for Virginia’s 5th Congressional District

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In brief

Fireworks frenzy

People have been launching fireworks around town for weeks—and it’s not just happening in Charlottesville. In New York City, the fireworks have been so prevalent that conspiracy theories have started circulating about their origins. If you haven’t had your fill of fireworks, the city’s annual Fourth of July show hasn’t been canceled. But instead of gathering in McIntire Park, you’re advised to stay socially distant and look toward Carter Mountain, where the show will go on, beginning at 9:15pm on Saturday.

Dr. Cameron Webb PC: Supplied photo

Webb wins big

In case you haven’t heard, UVA doctor B. Cameron Webb picked up a landslide victory in last Tuesday’s primary for the Democratic nomination to represent the 5th District in the House of Representatives. If Webb beats Bob Good in November, he’ll be the first Black physician to serve in Congress. 

Absentee action

With the pandemic keeping people away from the polls, 49 percent of primary voters in Charlottesville cast absentee ballots last week. (In the March presidential primary, just 7 percent of local votes were absentee.) This election could be a valuable test run for a November contest that might see large numbers of absentee votes—in this election cycle, Virginians requested 118,174 absentee ballots and submitted 87,052 a return rated of 74 percent.

Johnny Reb on the run

Legislation allowing localities to remove or recontextualize Confederate monuments goes into effect today, July 1, and Albemarle County is wasting no time—the Board of Supervisors will discuss the removal of the Johnny Reb statue outside the county courthouse at its meeting this evening. The statue could legally come down as early as September. More hurdles still remain before Charlottesville can begin the same process.

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In brief: Protestors push on, police donors exposed, victims speak out, and more

Activists stand outside the police station during a protest this weekend. PC: Eze Amos

Tenure trouble

UVA’s “Great and Good” strategic plan lists “recruiting and retaining excellent and diverse faculty” as a central goal. But this year, two black scholars who have been denied tenure claim the decision process was significantly flawed, possibly due to racial bias.

Paul Harris PC: Virginia.edu

Paul Harris has worked at UVA’s Curry School of Education since 2011, studying identity development in black male student-athletes and underrepresented students’ college readiness. For the past six years, Harris’ annual reviews indicated that he was meeting or exceeding expectations. So he was shocked to learn in January that an all-white, college-wide promotion and tenure committee had recommended against giving him tenure. Instead, he was offered a promotion—for a non-tenure-track position.

Harris says the committee claimed his research in the Journal of African American Males in Education in 2016 was “self-published.” (In fact, the peer-reviewed journal has a 23 percent acceptance rate.) The committee also got his citation counts wrong—they’re five times higher than the committee claimed.

Tolu Odumosu PC: Virginia.edu

Sociologist Tolu Odumosu has been on the tenure track at UVA’s School of Engineering and Applied Science since 2013. He’s co-written and co-edited two books, and helped write a $3 million National Science Foundation grant. After his third-year review suggested he expand his editing experience, he also became an associate editor of two journals.

But the engineering school’s tenure committee did not grant him tenure this year. It claimed that Odumosu hadn’t written enough work by himself, and was not the principal investigator named on the NSF grant. Like Harris, Odumosu had not been warned that his work was not up to par.

Both men appealed the decisions to UVA’s provost, but the appeals were rejected. The scholars are now appealing to the Faculty Senate’s grievance committee—their last option.

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Quote of the week

“This is a moment to step boldly into our future…We have to work together to decide what kind of Virginia we’re going to be. I’m ready for the challenge.”

—State Senator Jennifer McClellan, announcing her campaign for Virginia governor

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In brief

Still on the march

Charlottesville activists continue to mobilize the community to protest police brutality. Large marches and demonstrations have taken place in town at least once a week since the death of George Floyd in late May. Last weekend, protesters marching downtown also directed some of their energy toward patrons of the mall’s outdoor restaurants: The demonstrators chanted “Shame” at diners who were sipping beer and chewing on burgers.

Convention contagion?

Denver Riggleman’s campaign claims that several delegates who participated in the recent drive-thru Republican convention have contracted coronavirus, reports CBS19. The local Republican Party denies the accusation. Riggleman continues to criticize the drive-thru convention format that saw him lose the congressional nomination to challenger Bob Good. “Voter fraud has been a hallmark of this process,” Riggleman tweeted on election night.

Donor debate

Community members have noticed that the Charlottesville Police Foundation—dedicated to fundraising for the “advanced training, new technologies and equipment, [and] housing assistance” that isn’t covered by the department’s $18 million budget—posted a list of donors on its website. The list featured several local restaurants and other businesses, as well as individuals, including City Council members Lloyd Snook and Heather Hill.

Heather Hill PC: Eze Amos

Exposing abuse

Tweets about allegations of sexual assault and harassment directed at dozens of UVA students and staff appeared on an anonymous Twitter account last week. The alleged incidents once again drew attention to students’ calls for reform—in April, student advocacy group UVA Survivors created a list of demands for institutional change in sexual assault policy, reports The Cavalier Daily. The list has garnered around 1,700 new signatures in the past week.

Lloyd Snook PC: Supplied

 

Immigration action

UVA will now allow students to enroll and graduate “regardless of citizenship or immigration status,” the university announced last week. Previously, only DACA recipients—not other “undocu+” students—had not been allowed to matriculate. The decision represents a long-sought victory for activists around the school community.

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Denver’s done: Far-right challenger Bob Good wins 5th District GOP nomination

Bob Good (right) defeated Denver Riggleman in the VA-5 Republican primary last week.

 

In his two years in the House of Representatives, Denver Riggleman sided with Donald Trump on 94.5 percent of votes, according to FiveThirtyEight. But that wasn’t conservative enough for central Virginia’s Republican loyalists, who ended Riggleman’s run in Congress after just one term.

At a June 13 drive-thru party convention, Riggleman lost the nomination to Bob Good, a far-right Republican who has been a county supervisor and Liberty University athletics administrator. Good decided to run because he felt betrayed by Riggleman’s decision to officiate a gay wedding last year.

The election itself was unorthodox. The party held a nominating convention, rather than a primary. That’s not too uncommon for Congressional races—Democrats in the 5th District selected their 2018 nominee through a convention—but this time, due to coronavirus, the 2,500 delegates cast their votes without ever getting out of their cars. The election was held in Campbell County, Good’s home court, and the challenger took home 58 percent of the vote.

Riggleman has protested just about every step of this unusual nominating process, and at midnight on the day of the convention, he tweeted “ballot stuffing has been reported in multiple counties in the #VA05. Voter fraud has been a hallmark of this nomination process.”

Good opposes abortion in all cases, supports “securing America’s borders” against immigration, and wants to make English the national language.

Despite winning the nomination, Good might not literally be on the ballot in November. Just before the convention, it was announced that his campaign failed to turn in the required paperwork to appear on the ballot in the general election. The Virginia Republican Party has asked for an extension, but if it isn’t granted Good will have to run a write-in campaign. (Another Republican running for congress also failed to turn his paperwork in on time—Nick Freitas. You may remember him because he did the same thing last year, and had to run a write-in campaign for the House of Delegates.)

Good’s election is part of a pattern of Republicans turning rightwards in key races around the state. In  2018, they chose conservative firebrand Corey Stewart, who made his name defending Confederate monuments, as their standard-bearer against U.S. Senator Tim Kaine. The only Republican who has so far declared for the 2021 governor’s nomination is state Senator Amanda Chase—earlier this month, Chase said that taking down the Lee statue was “erasing the history of white people,” inspiring a selection of her more established GOP colleagues in the state Senate to compose a joint statement calling her comments “idiotic, inappropriate, and inflammatory.”

These conservative choices come at the end of a decade in which the party has been repeatedly pummeled at the polls. The Virginia GOP has not won a statewide election since 2009, lost three of its seven Congressional seats in 2018, and lost the state House and Senate in 2019, even though the election took place on maps that Republicans had gerrymandered in their favor.

Virginia’s 5th District is also gerrymandered in Republicans’ favor, but in 2018 the election here was as close as it has ever been. The concurrent presidential election will mean high turnout for this year’s Congressional contest, which usually favors Democrats. Virginia Democrats will hold their primary to select Good’s challenger on June 23.