A consistent theme emerged as members of the Arlington NAACP brainstormed to determine 2026 policy priorities.
“Affordability is coming through every single group,” the organization’s president, the Rev. DeLishia Davis, said after reports from breakout sessions at the organization’s Monday meeting.
A hearing on whether to study changes to the form of Arlington’s local government is scheduled to take place next week.
County Board members have set aside an entire evening — Wednesday, Dec. 17 beginning at 6 p.m. — to hear from the public and then decide whether to set up a task force looking at the hotly debated issue. Registration is open now.
The political equivalent of speed dating drew candidates and voters to Walter Reed Community Center on Saturday, Oct. 11.
Contenders for local and legislative offices sat down with the electorate in small groups during the annual get-to-know-you session, hosted by the League of Women Voters of Arlington and Alexandria City.
Leaders of the NAACP Arlington branch acknowledge they are walking a fine line in the era of Donald Trump.
The group will continue to press its values while refraining from direct political activity, the Rev. DeLishia Davis, president of the Arlington NAACP, said at a Monday meeting.
Political leaders need to meet the moment and connect with a fearful and angry Northern Virginia electorate, one county leader believes.
“The status quo is just not good enough. What are we going to do about it?” County Board member Julius “JD” Spain Sr. said during a Saturday forum sponsored by NAACP branches of Arlington, Alexandria and Fairfax County.
The departing pastor of Calloway United Methodist Church was honored Sunday for her work with the congregation and in the broader community.
The Rev. DeLishia Davis, who is also president of the Arlington NAACP, is leaving “an indelible mark on the lives of Arlingtonians,” County Board Chair Takis Karantonis said during a ceremony at the church, located at 5000 Langston Blvd.
Arlington’s superintendent earns passing grades from the two Democratic candidates vying for a post on the School Board.
At an online candidate forum hosted by the Arlington NAACP, Monique “Moe” Bryant and June Prakash voiced support for Superintendent Francisco Durán but challenged other aspects of Arlington Public Schools leadership.
Facing ongoing gentrification issues, Arlington’s historically Black communities are trying to preserve the social cohesiveness that helped residents triumph over past struggles.
“It used to be [that] when something happened, the community coalesced. It’s not what it used to be — some people don’t want to be bothered,” said Wilma Jones, who has written extensively about her Halls Hill/High View Park community.
A change in leadership but no change in focus is the 2025 plan for the Arlington NAACP.
“We must continue to speak, to act. We need every voice, every hand, every heart,” said the Rev. Dr. DeLishia Davis, who on Sunday night (Jan. 12) formally was installed for a two-year term as the organization’s president.
As the Arlington NAACP approaches its first leadership change in two years, the organization aims to build on its advocacy efforts.
On issues ranging from housing and education to voting rights and criminal-justice reform, “our branch has been leading the way,” outgoing president Michael Hemminger said at the body’s last meeting of the year, held Monday (Dec. 16).
U.S. Rep. Don Beyer says he does not, at present, desire to see a federal investigation into conditions at the Arlington County Detention Facility.
But speaking at a Monday (Oct. 21) candidate forum hosted by the Arlington NAACP, Beyer (D-Va.) did seek more interaction between local officials and their federal counterparts on the issue.
Is Arlington Public Schools a two-tiered education system, with some groups receiving needed resources while others are left behind?
That was the view, to varying degrees, of the four candidates vying for two open School Board seats.
