Happy Loving Day, Virginia! Interracial Marriage Was Legalized 53 Years Ago Today

Welcome to today’s edition of the Dogwood. We’ve got a roundup of today’s Virginia news coming right up. 

But First…

Happy Loving Day, Virginia! On this day 53 years ago, a Virginia couple, Mildred and Richard Loving, made history by winning a landmark Supreme Court case legalizing interracial marriage and giving thousands of people of all races the right to love as they choose. — Dogwood

Five Things You Need to Know Today

1. Virginia’s 5,000 Man March is Happening This Weekend- Thousands of people are expected to march across Richmond’s Monument Avenue in solidarity against police brutality and racism. The event is scheduled to begin at 1 p.m. on Saturday, June 13 from the Robert E Lee Monument and head north on to West Broad. George Floyd’s Richmond based relatives are expected to speak at the march. —  WRIC
   
   
2. Sen. Louise Lucas Calls for the Firing of Portsmouth Police Chief Following Protester Being Injured – State Sen. Louise Lucas Calls for the Firing of Portsmouth Police Chief Following Protester Being Injured – Sen. Louise Lucas (D-Portsmouth) is calling for the immediate firing of Portsmouth’s police chief, following a protest that resulted in a protester being injured by a Confederate monument. Police officers did not intervene until the protester, identified as Chris Green, was seriously injured.  — WAVY
   
   
3. Local Chambers of Commerce Won’t Tell You if They Support Paid Leave– Virginia doesn’t require paid leave for new parents beyond federal law, which only applies to larger employers and is unpaid. 55% of Virginia workers don’t even have access to unpaid leave, according to the National Partnership for Women and Families. We reached out to see if the pandemic had convinced local chambers of commerce to change their position of paid leave. — Dogwood
   
   
4. Virginia is Only Short $800 Million (Not $1 Billion) After COVID-19- In a press conference, Gov. Ralph Northam addressed the state’s revenue report for May, which is 20% lower than last year’s figures but slightly better than officials anticipated. Virginia’s Secretary of Finance anticipated, since the income deadline was pushed back, that Virginia would be down $1 billion but it’s only down to $800 million. — Dogwood
   
   
5. Officials State that a Huge Jump in COVID-19 Tests Will Push Virginia’s Positivity Rate Down- About 43,000 tests were added to the state database, Virginia’s largest single-day increase in testing so far. Health officials expect a backlog of negative tests results which should lower the state’s percentage of positive tests. According to the health department, the positive test results were entered earlier into the system. — WTOP