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With roughly 1,000 protestors outside the Virginia State Capitol Tuesday, Gov. Ralph Northam – speaking inside the adjacent Patrick Henry Building – addressed the unrest over the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis and Virginia’s movement into Phase 2 of the reopening process.
"Racism and discrimination aren't locked in our past, they weren't solved with the Civil Rights Act, they didn't disappear," Northam said, referencing Floyd's death and the subsequent five days of protests and riots they have sparked. "They evolved."
During the press conference, Northam and a panel of black community leaders – which included Varina District Supervisor Tyrone Nelson and Delegate Delores McQuinn – discussed what the state needs to do in order to stop systemic racism. They concluded that the expansion of Medicaid so more people of color can acquire health care coverage; a reformed criminal justice system; the decriminalization of marijuana; the elimination of certain voting restrictions; and the continuation of diversity training and other training in state and local police departments would be among the necessary steps.
Meanwhile, Phase 2 of the state's reopening will begin statewide Friday, except for Northern Virginia and Richmond, and will include:
• an increase in the allowed number of people at a gathering from 10 to 50;
• the permitted reopening of restaurants’ indoor dining at 50 percent of their capacities;
• the permitted reopening of gyms and fitness facilities at 30 percent of their capacities;
• the permitted reopening of swimming pools, with some restrictions;
• the permitted reopening of venues such as zoos, museums and botanical gardens, with some restrictions;
• the reopening of some recreational sports, with social distancing rules in place.
Northam will discuss Phase 2 in greater details Thursday, he said.
During Tuesday’s briefing, Northam was asked to address President Trump’s conversation Monday with the country’s governors.
“The message regrettably was not one of healing, it was not one of unity – it was one of divisiveness,” Northam said.
Trump requested that the Virginia National Guard be deployed to Washington, D.C., but Northam said he denied the request, saying it would be in the state’s best interested to keep its members in the state.
“I am not going to send out men and women in uniform, of a very proud National Guard, to Washington for a photo op,” Northam said.
