Richard Henry Stuart (born January 6, 1964) is an American politician and attorney. A

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

, he was elected to the Senate of Virginia in November 2007. He currently represents the 28th district, made up of six counties and parts of two others in the

Northern Neck The Northern Neck is the northernmost of three peninsulas (traditionally called "necks" in Virginia) on the western shore of the Chesapeake Bay in the Commonwealth of Virginia (along with the Middle Peninsula and the Virginia Peninsula). The P ...

Middle Peninsula The Middle Peninsula is the second of three large peninsulas on the western shore of Chesapeake Bay in Virginia, in the United States. As of the 2020 census, the Middle Peninsula was home to 92,886 people. It lies between the Northern Neck and ...

, and northern

Piedmont it, Piemontese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...

, including part of the city of Fredericksburg.

Early life and education

Stuart was born in Fredericksburg, Virginia. He earned a Bachelor of Arts from

Virginia Wesleyan University Virginia Wesleyan University (VWU) is a private university in Virginia Beach, Virginia. The university is nonsectarian but historically affiliated with The United Methodist Church. It enrolls 1,607 students annually in undergraduate and graduat ...

and Juris Doctor from the

University of Richmond School of Law The University of Richmond School of Law (Richmond Law) is a school of the University of Richmond, located in Richmond, Virginia. Richmond Law is ranked 52nd (tie) in the US by ''US News'', among the ''top five value'' law schools by the ''Natio ...

. Stuart also studied international law at Emmanuel College, Cambridge.

Career

Stuart has represented Virginia's 28th Senate district since 2008. He is the Chair of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Conservation, and Natural Resources and also sits on the following Senate committees: Commerce and Labor; Courts of Justice; Finance; and Rules.

Education reform

Stuart has advocated for allowing students to approve tuition increases at Virginia public colleges and universities. In 2019, he introduced a bill that would require students to vote on proposed tuition increases before the governing board is able to vote on them. Under the proposed legislation, a two-thirds majority of students would need to approve them.

Robert E. Lee speech

In February 2018, Stuart gave a speech praising Robert E. Lee, resulting in Lieutenant Governor

Justin Fairfax Justin Edward Fairfax (born February 17, 1979) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the 41st lieutenant governor of Virginia from 2018 to 2022. A member of the Democratic Party, he is the second African-American elected statewide i ...

, who normally presides over the

Virginia Senate The Senate of Virginia is the upper house of the Virginia General Assembly. The Senate is composed of 40 senators representing an equal number of single-member constituent districts. The Senate is presided over by the lieutenant governor of Virg ...

, choosing to walk off the podium rather than preside over the Senate during the speech.

Personal life

In 2016 he bought a 1,400 acre riverfront conservation easement near the Potomac River known as Stuart Plantation, and moved there with his family. The property was the site of a former plantation that had been in his family for generations until it was sold during the Great Depression. He was surprised to discover that

riprap Riprap (in North American English), also known as rip rap, rip-rap, shot rock, rock armour (in British English) or rubble, is human-placed rock or other material used to protect shoreline structures against scour and water, wave, or ice erosion. ...

along the river shore contained cemetery headstones. Research by Virginia historians discovered that the markers were from

Columbian Harmony Cemetery Columbian Harmony Cemetery was an African-American cemetery that formerly existed at 9th Street NE and Rhode Island Avenue NE in Washington, D.C., in the United States. Constructed in 1859, it was the successor to the smaller Harmoneon Cemetery ...

, a historic

African-American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ensl ...

burial ground in Washington, D.C., that was established in 1859 by the first

burial society A burial society is a type of benefit/friendly society. These groups historically existed in England and elsewhere, and were constituted for the purpose of providing by voluntary subscriptions for the funeral expenses of the husband, wife or child ...

for free Blacks. It was in active use until 1959, then dug up and relocated in 1960. Approximately 37,000 bodies were reburied at

National Harmony Memorial Park National Harmony Memorial Park is a private, secular cemetery located at 7101 Sheriff Road in Landover, Maryland, in the United States. Although racially integrated, most of the individuals interred there are African American. In 1960, the 37,000 ...

in Maryland, but the headstones were sold as scrap, including use in riprap. A nonprofit organization was formed to reclaim the gravestones, and as many as possible will be given to National Harmony. Stuart said he will work to create a parklike memorial along the Potomac to recognize any headstones that cannot be reclaimed.

References

Sources

* (Constituent/campaign website)

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Stuart, Richard H. 1964 births Living people Republican Party Virginia state senators Virginia Wesleyan University alumni University of Richmond School of Law alumni Alumni of Emmanuel College, Cambridge People from Westmoreland County, Virginia Politicians from Fredericksburg, Virginia 21st-century American politicians