Wednesday, September 2, 2026 @commonwealthtimes @theCT
VOL. 73, NO. 3 SEPTEMBER 2, 2026 THE INDEPENDENT PRESS OF VIRGINIA COMMONWEALTH UNIVERSITY
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VCU Police survey shows 3% drop in campus safety perception OLIVIA RINE Contributing Writer Over 90% of VCU students, staff and faculty reported feeling “very safe or safe,” showing a 3% drop from last year, according to its annual Perception of Safety Survey. This is a 6% drop from the 2020 survey. This year, a quarter of respondents expressed concern with their safety at night, particularly on weekends. On Aug. 30, around 9 p.m., an unidentified individual was found in a verbal dispute, which turned into a physical attack conducted by multiple people, according to ABC News 8. The victim’s injuries were considered minor. According to Clarence T. Hunter, VCU chief of police, robberies this year decreased by 42%, property theft went down 7% and sexual offenses went down 20%. A VCU Police patrol car outside of The Pace Center next to Brandt Hall. Photo by John Brown.
VCU SAFETY Continued on page 3
‘A real second chance’ Restoration of voting rights on the ballot for formerly incarcerated people
Unionized workers at Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden vote to prolong strike
Joseph Prater shares his thoughts and experiences with regaining his voting rights. He is one of the 66,085 formerly incarcerated Virginians whose right to vote was restored by Gov. Spanberger on July 31. Photo by Kieran Stevens. SAL ORLANDO News Editor “It makes you still feel like you have a scarlet letter in your head, like I’m less than, or that I’m not a full citizen,” Sam Harris, a Suffolk resident, said about previously losing his voting rights. Harris was granted his right to vote back
by Gov. Abigail Spanberger last month, along with over 66,000 other people who were previously convicted of a felony. Under the Virginia Constitution, no person convicted of a felony is qualified to vote unless their civil rights are restored by the governor. The immediate reenfranchisement for over a quarter million people will be on the
ballot this November in Virginia, the first time in 44 years. Reenfranchisement is the granting of rights back to people who had them taken away, according to Oxford Dictionary.
VOTING RIGHTS Continued on page 10
Illustration by Zoe Luis.
ELLIE WALTMAN Managing Editor UNION STRIKE Continued on page 3
A chapter for everyone
ow the U.S. H government is using sports to brainwash you
The “Men’s Rights” crowd exploits men’s issues
see SPECTRUM page 8
see SPORTS page 4
see OPINIONS page 12