It was an honor to be able to use a few moments of public time to put these self-reflective and, I think, constructive remarks from our community’s Peace and Justice Gathering on the public record.

In fact, to students of American History like myself, Alexander Stephens “cornerstone speech” is extremely well known. That text is routinely used by Yankees as “the one and only” rationale for Southern secession. 

Many of us here in Rappahannock use our local library, and know just how rare, unique and special it is. It may be smaller than some, but it is mighty. 

In response to the death of Castro, the Black Lives Matter Movement posted a piece in Medium titled, Lessons from Fidel: Black Lives Matter and the Transition of El Comandante.

We’re all in this great boat called life while that evil presence is casting seeds of dissent on the currents swirling through the river of hope upon which our boat travels.

“The song is called ‘On Our Way To Liberty’ and was inspired by a painting from 1862, A Ride for Liberty by Eastman Johnson,” writes Kid Pan Alley’s Ryan Benyo.

Three years ago I volunteered to co-chair the Northern Shenandoah Valley chapter of ComingToTheTable, a group dedicated to healing the wounds of slavery and of the systemic racism in its aftermath. 

While I'm encouraged that you, Mr. Mills can state, ‘Black lives matter,’ but not support the BLM organization, actually, we’re on the same page. 

Finally, Wes, the you’re-a-commie thing went out with Richard Nixon. I fear you are stuck in the past. It is one thing to say you support the message Black lives matter.

We are writing to express our wholehearted support of the Joint Resolution for Improved Pedestrian Safety and Traffic Calming Measures, created by the Sperryville Community Alliance (SCA).

Are you one of those fellow citizens who believe our country is on a perilous path? It’s not just the COVID-19 pandemic. It’s income inequality greater than our nation has experienced in the past 150 years if not longer.

For African Americans and other people of color in the US, this song ends on a note of hope and displays the resilience of people who long for inclusion and acceptance by "all" of us. 

Sitting on a hill at Eldon Farm looking out at the beauty of Rappahannock County on a lovely Sunday evening a week ago, the words of a former president of the United States came to mind:

Sunday, June 28, 2020, was an historic day in Rappahannock County. The Black Lives Matter Community Gathering held at Eldon Farms, Woodville, was epic! 

Something is wrong when the chairman of the Planning Commission deliberately, maliciously and with forethought excludes three members of the commission from a meeting and thereby disenfranchises 3/5’s of county residents in order to further his own political/philosophical views. 

The Rappahannock News published two op-eds in the June 25th edition from Planning Commissioners Gary Light and Mary Katherine Ishee questioning why the Commission voted to deny their requests to participate in the June 17th meeting. 

Don't like Christopher Columbus? Tear it down. Don't like Theodore Roosevelt? Tear it down. Don't like Lincoln? Tear it down before the Park Police arrive. 

If you look at the recent photos of Monument Avenue in Richmond, and consider that the activists today (June 20) were interdicting entrance into their “autonomous area,” I think you have to agree that this sounds like that “insurrection” that the governor constitutionally should suppress.

Having spent an inordinate amount of time and energy (and emails) to exclude three commissioners from the meeting, the commission took these actions with very little evident deliberation.

“I’ve always understood that we went to war on account of the thing we quarreled with the north about. I’ve never heard of any other cause than slavery.”

Comment articles reflect the opinion of the writer, not the Rapp News. Reply below or by writing a letter to editor: editor@rappnews.com.

Dr. Cameron Webb is the candidate to represent this District. He began this campaign because he believes that Virginians and people across this nation need relief from the skyrocketing cost of healthcare.

As we begin the phased reopening of our county, please continue to be kind, and know that there may be challenges and setbacks.

Comment articles reflect the opinion of the writer, not the Rapp News. Reply below or by writing a letter to editor: editor@rappnews.com.

So I recommend this letter from the Children's Health Defense, which should be read by all our elected officials, County Administrator, emergency committees, law enforcement, rescue services, and any others involved in how we handle this pandemic in our county.

Don’t we have enough mountains and woods to hide cell towers to cover the whole county? We are getting houses on top of many of our mountains that are certainly more obtrusive than a monopole. 

What we have here, besides a failure to communicate, is a complete and utter failure of certain members of the Board of Supervisors and Planning Commission to address this county’s needs.

Over the next few weeks, we expect to see a significant increase in the number of cases, mostly due to an increase in detection as we continue to expand testing. 

Pandemics have always been with us and will always be with us. We do not float above nature. We “are” nature — like all other living things an exquisite assemblage of molecules and cells.

From the chaos at the Flatwood dump, to the abandoned buildings on 211, to the lack of support for community businesses, to the issue of the mural, Chairman Smith seems incapable of finding solutions and making a decision.

In just his first year in office freshman Congressman Denver Riggleman has left a trail of votes which unambiguously answer this question. 

Sen. Mark Warner, Va: I urge you to prioritize implementing an effective and reliable mobilization effort to support our nation’s response to the threat of coronavirus.

Candidates standing for election as delegates or alternates to the state or congressional district conventions at said Mass Meeting shall file the appropriate form by mail or in person.

Have you ever had a friend or family member accuse you of something that wasn’t even close to being true, no matter the evidence to the contrary?

4 percent of people worldwide may have them; for the last 30 years Geoff Gowen has also closely followed developments in the science of the paranormal.

As we parishioners of St. Peter Catholic Church boarded a charter bus on Friday, January 24th, many of us were considering the proposition that "words mean something."