By Karen Keys-Gamarra: No parent should ever have to fear that sending a child to school is risking immigration enforcement. In fact, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the federal agency better known as ICE, has no place in Fairfax County public schools. This view is reflected in the revised agreement between the Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) and the Fairfax County…
Election Alerts help Democrats win by defeating voter drop-off
By Todd Thurwachter: When Democrats vote, we win. And in Virginia, we vote every year! That’s why Fairfax County Democrats have put into place tools like Voting: What you Need to Know and Elections Alerts. They can make a huge difference in fighting the biggest impediment to Democratic victories: Democratic drop-off in non-Presidential elections. Voting: What you Need to Know…
Anne Holton inspires at Lee Dems luau
By Janelle Hartman: Pride was as thick as the humid air Saturday as Lee District Democrats gathered for their annual luau, where a special guest symbolized the contrast between an inclusive Virginia and those who want to turn back the clock. Anne Holton was 12 years old when her family became role models for desegregation, as her father, Linwood —…
Special Report: The reality of teen sex trafficking in northern Virginia
By Wallicia Gill and Brad Swanson: FIRST IN A 3-PART SERIES Teen sex trafficking in northern Virginia happens every day, but most people know very little about this horrific crime, even though experts say that our region is a hotspot and the practice is growing. Scare stories are easy to come by. But hard data is hard to find. How…
Comstock stays mum during attack on FBI’s integrity
By Julie Galdo: Two of northern Virginia’s Congress members defended our federal intelligence agencies against vicious insinuations of corruption last month during the aggressive questioning of FBI Special Agent Peter Strzok. But our region’s third member of Congress was nowhere to be seen. Strzok came across as a dedicated Federal employee who made a dumb mistake by expressing his personal…
Hoarding hurts animals, too
By Susan Laume: Hoarders don’t restrict their obsession to inanimate objects. In Fairfax County – a “hot spot” for hoarding, as we reported previously — animals have been freed from hoarders on numerous occasions. Fairfax County’s worst animal hoarding case on record was in 2005, when 500 cats were confiscated, according to Animal Protection Police Officer Sgt, Alena Swartz. However,…
Netroots Nation Day 3: A bold vision for our country
By Diane Weeks: NEW ORLEANS — The Netroots Nation Conference wrapped up its third and final day Sunday with rousing speeches, planned and unplanned, from elected officials, political hopefuls, and spontaneous protestors. And the big reveal – Netroots Nation 2019 will be July 11-13 in Philadelphia, Pa. New York Mayor Bill de Blasio laid out a vision for the country…
Netroots Nation Day 2: ‘You can’t lead people if you don’t love the people’
By Holly Hazard: NEW ORLEANS — “You can’t lead the people if you don’t love the people,” said Sen. Cory Booker in his keynote speech Friday at the Netroots Nation Conference in New Orleans. He had this challenge to conservative values: “People talk about patriotism. You can’t be patriotic if you don’t love the people in the country you’re in.” The…
Time to vote for politicians who support gun safety
By Karen Kirk: “VOTE THEM OUT” was the rallying cry of speakers and protesters as more than 100 people gathered outside of the NRA Headquarters in Fairfax Saturday in support of gun safety. “This nation breathes the oxygen that is the promise of liberty and right now, our people are suffocating,” said speaker Micaela Lattimer, a 17-year-old Latina from Maryland.…
Netroots Nation Day 1: Grassroots engagement, ending corruption and fighting harder
By Holly Hazard: NEW ORLEANS — “Republicans are clearly looking for new grassroots groups making campaign finance mistakes and filing complaints and we need to watch for these tactics,” said U.S. Rep. Graig Meyer, N.C., on Thursday on the Netroots Nation Conference panel, “Navigating Partnerships with the New Democratic Party and the New Grassroots.” One mistake mentioned was witnessing a…
Fairfax activists represented at Netroots Nation Conference
By Holly Hazard: Netroots Nation, the largest gathering of progressive political activists in the nation, convened its annual meeting in New Orleans on Wednesday, August 1. Offering over 100 workshops with 565 panelists and trainers to over 3,000 attendees, and keynote speeches from Cory Booker, Kamila Harris, Tom Steyer and Elizabeth Warren, it promises to inspire and engage progressive Democrats…
Jennifer Wexton plans to repeal and replace Comstock
By Karen Kirk: “Good afternoon. I’m Jennifer Wexton and I’m going to repeal and replace Barbara Comstock,” the Virginia State senator told the audience at The Good Ole Girls brunch on Sunday at the Tysons Corner Marriott. Wexton, who is running for the CD-10 seat, said that like many of us after the 2016 election, she just wanted to pull…
College students need to apply for absentee ballot
If it’s August, it’s time to start getting ready to send your college student back to school. The No. 1 item on the To Do List: Have them apply for an absentee ballot or register to vote ASAP and wait a week or two until they are registered and then have them apply. It’s fast. It’s easy. Go to: Register…
Change is coming, says Wexton
Last Friday night, Friends of Virginia Democracy Forward gathered for a fundraiser in support of State Sen. Jennifer Wexton, the Democratic candidate for the Congressional District 10 seat. Delegate Marcus Simon (HD 53rd) introduced Wexton to a standing room only crowd citing her record of supporting children and women in the Virginia State Senate. Wexton vowed to take on opponent…