Alexandria Police Chief Michael Brown joined demonstrators on Tuesday night as they chanted “Black lives matter” outside the city’s police headquarters on Tuesday night.
“We’re here today because we are in grief,” a protestor said. “We are grieving for the many, many black people who are killed because of racist police violence.”
Two Alexandria women in their 80s have died from COVID-19, bringing the death toll to 46, according to the Virginia Department of Health.
The number of cases in the city also increased by 16 since yesterday, bringing the total number of cases to 2,016.
Sen. Kaine Features T.C. Senior Graduation Speech — “Thank you to Mathieu from T.C. Williams High School in Alexandria for encouraging the Class of 2020 to be leaders and always lend a helping hand.” [Facebook]
Beyer Calls on U.S. Attorney General to Resign — “The Attorney General is the top law enforcement officer in the country, the leader of an agency meant to protect Americans’ constitutional rights. Barr betrayed that mission by ordering the violent and systematic violation of peaceful protesters’ rights. He should resign.” [Twitter]
Inova Alexandria Hospital is seeing about half of its usual flow of emergency room patients, and hospital President Dr. Rina Bansal says patients are staying away due to fears of being infected with coronavirus.
“We’ve seen a significant decline in number of patients coming in for heart attacks, we’ve seen a significant decline in number of patients coming in for strokes, and these are not disease processes that have magically just vanished because we have COVID,” Bansal said in a teleconference hosted by ACT for Alexandria. “I think it’s because people are actually suffering at home.”
A study of the mold problems at George Washington Middle School has found that the school will require extensive mitigation work expected to cost at least $120,000.
At a School Board meeting on Friday, May 29, an information item detailed the full extent of the mold issues found in the school. The report described extensive staining and foul odors in older parts of the building, with each instance categorized by room. While most classrooms had less than 300 spores per cubic meter, classroom A 216 had 1,960 spores.
There are a number of planned demonstrations against police brutality and racism this week in Alexandria, including one tomorrow that had originally been a protest against rent.
The planned protest for rent cancellation at Southern Towers has been realigned to focus on longstanding racial inequity issues being protested nationwide.
Local dry-cleaning shop Yates Dry Cleaning has donated hundreds of masks during the pandemic and added another 150 to their total in a donation to at-need children in Alexandria.
According to a press release from Yates, the company donated 150 face masks designed to limit the spread of coronavirus to PK Move, a local parkour company putting together boxes promoting physical activity during the pandemic.
An Alexandria teenager was arrested on May 13 for illegal possession of a firearm and possession with the intent to distribute marijuana.
On May 13, Alexandria Police were called to the 300 block of Tancil Court in Old Town after receiving multiple drug complaints. Officers observed a group of known and unknown individuals “loitering in the area,” noted a search warrant affidavit.
Alexandria now has 2,000 cases of COVID-19, an increase of 19 cases since yesterday, according to the Virginia Department of Health.
Yesterday VDH reported that a woman in her 80s is the latest victim of COVID-19 in the city, and that there have been 45 total deaths. That number was reduced in VDH data today to 44.
(Updated 10:40 a.m.) This morning (Tuesday) a construction crane at the intersection of Prince and Washington Streets took down the Appomattox statue honoring Confederate soldiers that has been the object of criticism and controversy for decades.
The statue had been the object of criticism from those who said it represented a celebration of the city’s legacy of racism and slavery. For years, a state law prohibited the moving or removal of monuments to veterans, which grouped in specifically monuments honoring the Confederacy, but in April Gov. Ralph Northam signed new legislation authorizing localities to remove statues honoring the Confederacy.
City Leaders Participating in Town Hall to Discuss Race Relations — “Tuesday’s town hall (at 7 p.m.) will feature a range of speakers including Councilman John Chapman and School Superintendent Gregory C. Hutchings Jr, Chief of Police Michael Brown and the City’s Race and Social Equity Officer, Jaqueline Tucker. There will also be opportunities for small group conversations and for participants to weigh in on the topics for future town halls.” [ALX Community]
Local Company Sees Strong Sales After May 1 ‘Shark Tank’ Appearance — “It really was a huge blessing because we just can’t be in stores right now, and we understand that, so we’re really grateful for the ‘Shark Tank’ episode to give us that push on e-commerce.” [Washington Business Journal]
