On Olneyville Square, a new colorful window display announces that “Health, Safety & Support Live Here.” Project Weber/RENEW, a nonprofit harm reduction organization currently headquartered on Broad Street in Providence, opened a new location in Olneyville May 26 and is in the process of opening another in Pawtucket.

As COVID-19 rates continue to decline and vaccination levels rise, local organizations have begun to offer in-person celebrations, combined with some online events.

James Busby stood conducting in the center of the room, listening to the thirteen voices blending in the morning air around him. Precise harmonies, invigorating crescendos, joyous voices — it was the St. Stephen’s Church choir’s largest rehearsal since the pandemic began.

On Providence’s East Side, a rusty drawbridge juts out of the Seekonk River and points to the sky. It is visible for miles and well-known among nearby residents. The Crook Point Bascule Bridge, built in 1908, formerly connected Fox Point to East Providence by railroad and was abandoned 45 years ago.

After a recent series of violent incidents in the wake of last year’s uptick in local shootings and homicides in Providence, community organizations consider the change necessary to bring violent crime rates down.

Javier Montañez will serve as the new interim superintendent of the Providence Public School District following former superintendent Harrison Peters’ May resignation, according to a press release from the Rhode Island Department of Education.

Three weeks remain in Rhode Island’s legislative session — and the clock is ticking on Democratic Rep. Scott Slater’s recreational marijuana proposal. Slater introduced the bill, which aims to legalize the use of recreational marijuana in the Ocean State, at the end of last month.  

After over a year of restrictions on restaurants, owners on the East Side have been hungry to return to full indoor dining experiences. Now that Rhode Island has officially reopened as of May 21, they are doing just that.

A year after the murder of George Floyd at the hands of police officer Derek Chauvin, the Black Lives Matter Rhode Island Political Action Committee held a protest Tuesday around the Rhode Island State House that gathered around 40 people.

More than 300 protesters rallied at Burnside Park on Friday, raising signs reading “U.S. Aid Kills Palestinian Children!” and “Solidarity with the Palestinian People’s Struggle.”