Screw the Power Elite
Andrew Cothern
Jul 23, 2008
Style Weekly has released their Top People of Richmond who are influential or cool or something like that. In other words, the people you can’t stand to hear about for the millionth time. In response, I decided to come up with my own “Power List” of Richmonders who have made some real changes in the city, no matter how small they may be. And this is by no means a complete list.
Carter Anderson – environmentalist, Save The Trash
He breaks glass bottles for a living – and raises awareness of the environment at the same time. An advocate for reusing and recycling, Carter breaks bottles, mixes it with concrete and creates stunning works of art ranging from stone patio furniture to glass window displays. And he covers up his wounds with cement. Pretty hardcore.
Reggie Pace - musician
Seriously, what band is Reggie not in? Playing trombone for bands like Glows in the Dark, No BS Brass Band and Fight the Big Bull, Reggie brings his enthusiasm and enormous talent to venues all over the Richmond area.
Slash Coleman – artist, playwright
A one man performance artist, Slash offers a humorous and often poignant look at his life and the world around him with performances like “The Neon Man and Me” and “Big Matzo Balls.“ He makes us laugh and think at the same time.
Ward Tefft
Chop Suey Books notwithstanding, Ward has been an influential figure in the awareness of literacy and love of old time books. His Books on Wheels movement has collected thousands of used books to donate to needy children and libraries. With increasing technology and general laziness, nobody reads anymore. Ward has been changing that.
Bizhan Khodabandeh & Amanda Robinson – directors of Gallery 5
Gallery 5 has brought no shortage of new and interesting things to the Jackson Ward area. The One Night Only concert series, I Dream of a Richmond and a new resource center are just a few things that come to mind. If not for Bizhan and Amanda, there would be no Gallery 5 and Richmond would seriously be lacking.
Adam Rose – musician
This guy is one very talented musician. Listen to his band Marionette or his solo material and you’ll know what I’m talking about. Adam’s experimental style brings something new to the Richmond music scene that hasn’t been heard before. Plus, Adam is a really nice guy. And you don’t find too many of those around.
Stephen Bowman – G5 Fire
Okay, maybe playing with fire doesn’t exactly create significant change in Richmond. But it is pretty freaking cool. Bowman and the fire performers of G5 Fire perform outside Gallery 5 every First Fridays.
Chris Dorsey – RVA4Peace
The corner of 2nd and Clay would be a much quieter place if Dorsey wasn’t around. Every week, the group stands outside Rep. Bobby Scott’s office to protest the war in Iraq and elicit cars to honk in support of peace. Whether he has three people with him or 100, he still believes that every voice should be heard by our government.
Ceci Hull – WRIR
Being a volunteer coordinator for an all volunteer independent radio station is no easy task. Ceci Hull makes that task look simple and gives Richmond truly independent radio, which is something we’ve needed for quite some time.
Richmond Craft Mafia
A supportive community of like minded artists, the Mafia provides information and networking outlets for craft makers and independent business owners while they continue to rub out the mass produced.
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Hey Andrew! I admired that you got into a huff! A whole lot of people did as well, I just wanted to explore the issue a little more. I think your post was great and certainly inspiring. Maybe the MashUp crew could put together an annual list of innovators. I know I’d read it. I mean watch it. Anyway, thanks for commenting!!
Susan
Jul. 24, 2008 at 10:34 AM
I think those are great choices for the angle you’re taking. But you’re really making a different argument—which is good, and I’m glad the list sparked it. But hearing names constantly isn’t a reason we would take someone off the list. That’s like saying you’re tired of reading news stories about VCU. Reality is reality. (One good thing is that there are 17 new names on the list this year! Power is shifting ...)
I do appreciate your thoughts on it, and the fact that you blogged about it. You started quite a discussion. I posted a response to some of the other discussion here:
http://rvanews.com/2008/07/how-does-richmond-define-powerful/#comment-3149
Come to the Power Forum!
Later,
Jason
Jason Roop
Jul. 23, 2008 at 09:50 PM
Jason,
Thanks for responding. I never said that the people on the actual Power List don’t make change. Lots of them do. However, these are names we hear constantly. I just wanted to let people know of a few others who may not be running the town, but are making waves.
I have a list a mile long of Top 40 under 40 nominations.
Andrew Cothern
Jul. 23, 2008 at 09:34 PM
Jason Ledford: You miss the point of our Power List. And if you think we’re kissing up to people you certainly haven’t checked it out (and haven’t heard some of the calls we get about it). Give it a read and then see what you think.
The idea is that we want readers to have the information they need to make better decisions and be informed. Part of being an engaged citizen is knowing who, in reality, controls a community’s resources. This list is our attempt to reveal that. Knowing who has power is the first step in holding those people accountable. I hope you do.
Since I have the space here, let me invite you to our public forum Aug. 6: “Power in Transition: What’s Next for Richmond?“ It’s free, at Morton’s, 5:30. If you’d like to come e-mail a request for a spot at power@styleweekly.com.
(Andrew, hope you check out our Top 40 Under 40 list. These names could be some interesting nominations for that (and indeed, some of them have been recipients of that Top 40 designation.) I disagree that the folks on the Power List have not made real change. Think about your colleague, Michael Paul Williams.
Jason Roop
Jul. 23, 2008 at 09:21 PM
Seems a bit ungracious as Style names Steward Bryan and Tom Sylvestri to their power list.
Paul of Richmond VA
Jul. 23, 2008 at 07:01 PM
looks like the good ole TD is feeling insecure that their hip stuff didnt make their list.
bob
Jul. 23, 2008 at 04:49 PM
Am I missing something or do you only count as elite if you are involved in some kind of arts endeavor. I can think of more people I consider elite who may not know how to play and instrument or make art out of things… There are those who make an art out of teaching math or science, or history for a single example.
T. Hargrove
Jul. 23, 2008 at 01:01 PM
Looks like somebody’s feeling a little insecure about working for the garbage, establishment, republican shill daily paper instead of the cool, hip alt-weekly. Or maybe J. Stewart Bryan was unhappy with his ranking and is rallying the troops.
adi
Jul. 23, 2008 at 11:35 AM
Good choices. I’d also put forth T.K. Somanath of the Better Housing Coalition (http://www.betterhousingcoalition.org/). They have rebuilt entire neighborhoods.
john m
Jul. 23, 2008 at 10:41 AM
style named amanda R one of their 40 under forty a while back…
she deserves all the credit she can get. :o)
i like the list, andrew. completely unmotivated by money. we know we don’t work for that, now do we? :)
CSheppard
Jul. 23, 2008 at 09:37 AM
I completely agree! Style Weekly’s yearly arse kissing piece on the suppposed “Richmond 100” is ridiculous. No one cares but the people Style pumps for money via their vanity fluff piece.
Less cult of personality and more actual change.
Jason Ledford of RVA
Jul. 23, 2008 at 09:13 AM
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