District Chronicles V15 Issue 25 by District Chronicles

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FRIDAY

CONGRESS HEIGHTS RESIDENTS VENT ABOUT SLUM LORD WOES 4

First Lady Michelle Obama: Black girls belong in White House Page 8 February 18 - February 24, 2016

Law restores voting rights to Md Ex-cons Page 7 www.districtchronicles.com

Volume 15 Issue 25

Mark Fischer/Creative Commons

Editorial Try a little

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2 | Feb.18 - Feb. 24, 2016 | District Chronicles

By Jesse L. Jackson, Sr. George Curry Media The basic story of the poisoning of the children of Flint, Michigan, through the water they drink is now pretty well known, but as more details come out, it keeps getting worse. Republican Gov. Rick Snyder, after passing a big tax cut for the rich and corporations upon coming into office, had to find cuts to make up for the lost revenue. In Flint and other cities, he essentially nullified democratic elections, deposed elected mayors and city councils and installed his own agents with virtually dictatorial powers. The “emergency manager” of Flint decided that the city could save money by discontinuing its water supply from Lake Huron and instead drawing it from the toxic Flint River. He then failed to treat the new water with additives needed to keep the city’s old pipes from lead. When people objected to the brown, smelly water filled with particles that was coming out of the taps, the governor’s men reassured them the water was safe. All of Flint’s children were exposed to water with elevated levels of lead. Now we learn that General Motors complained to state officials that the water was corroding their auto parts. So the governor’s team gave GM its own hook up back to the water from Lake Huron while still insisting to the residents of Flint that the water was safe for their children to drink.

State officials also acted promptly to respond to the bad water for one other constituency: state employees in Flint’s state office building. Even as it was reassuring residents that the water was safe to drink, Flint officials arranged for coolers of purified water to be set up on all the floors of the office building. Flint’s residents - disproportionately Black and low income were seen as disposable. And they are not alone. The national statistics on lead poisoning, as Kevin Drum of Mother Jones details, show that African Americans were poisoned at three times the rate of Whites until recent times. And, of course, low-income people are poisoned at higher rates than the more affluent; poor, urban African Americans and Latinos suffer the highest rates of all. Drum notes that while White children were severely afflicted in the postwar lead epidemic, it produced “nothing less than a carnage among [B]lack kids.” He argues that before lead was brought under control in the late 1980s, virtually an entire generation of urban Black teenagers was at risk of lower IQs, more behavior problems in school, higher rates of violent behavior. This, of course, reinforced already vicious racial stereotypes of African Americans, and of the poor. The only hope in Flint is that the children’s exposure was limited in time and intensity, but even that is grasping at straws. And as Flint resident and

documentary filmmaker Michael Moore points out, this isn’t just a crisis of water. Flint’s residents now see the value of their homes wiped out and their hopes for jobs dashed. Few would consider buying a home in Flint now. Few employers will want to set up shop there or expand there. The governor’s men have wreaked untold economic damage on the residents of Flint on top of the threat to their health. The lessons of Flint are plain. Those who scorn government are the wrong people to elect to head it. Government capacity to enforce health and safety, to police environmental poisons and water safety, is essential to the security of our children. As America gets more and more unequal, the cynical, unstated assumption that there are some who are simply disposable, who don’t deserve decent services, is likely to spread. The failure of the governor’s local dictator and of the state officials themselves is now apparent. Yet, the reaction to the calamity still seems in slow motion. It is time for the federal government to step in. Investigations should lead to indictments. Federal resources should be mobilized to rectify the water in Flint immediately, and to provide the city with a real plan for renovation and revival. Jesse L. Jackson, Sr. is founder and president of the Chicago-based Rainbow PUSH Coalition.

Middle class Blacks invest more in stocks

(Target News) Middle-class African-Americans are investing more in the stock market than they have in over a decade, according to the Ariel Investments 2015 Black Investor Survey. The survey of 500 Black and 500 White households with incomes of at least $50,000 found that 67 percent of AfricanAmericans are invested in stocks or stock mutual funds, compared to 86 percent of Whites. While Blacks are still comparatively under-invested in stocks when compared to White households, that percentage is on an upward trend, from 60 percent in 2010 and 57 percent in 1998, the first year Ariel conducted the study. White household investing has also risen since 2010, from 79 percent to 86 percent. Additionally, the survey found that African Americans are more optimistic about the economy than their White counterparts. Compared to Whites, African Americans are more likely to feel hopeful about the current U.S. economy, feel that the economy has fully recovered or is on its way to full recovery since the recession and feel bullish about the stock market. The golden door: employer retirement plans Seven in 10 African-American investors cite workplace retirement plans as a contributing reason for becoming an investor – double the rate of the next most common reason – having extra cash on hand they wanted to grow. Over half of African-American investors say workplace plans are the most important reason for becoming an investor – more than four times more common than having extra cash. For White investors, workplace retirement plans are also an important reason, but to a slightly lesser degree. “Clearly, access is a key factor,” said Mellody Hobson, President of Ariel Investments. “My hope is that as more employers offer retirement plans, we will continue to see both White and Black participation in the market continue to rise, better preparing everyone for retirement and other financial goals.”

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Study shows that African-Americans are investing more money into the stock market than in pervious years.

In fact, the survey found that retirement is a rising priority for both racial groups. In 2000, 33 percent of African Americans said their most important goal for saving and investing was for retirement. This year, 44 percent of African Americans see retirement savings as most important – over twice as many as save for any other goal. In 2000, about half of Whites were focused on retirement savings. In 2015, six in 10 Whites state this as their primary goal. A new age for investing: The study found that income is a key factor in African-American stock market participation, with only 57 percent invested at the income range of $50,000 to $100,000 compared to 81 percent at the range of $100,000 and above. For Whites, the discrepancy was smaller. A high level of education is also a predictor for AfricanAmericans participating in the market. Blacks with a graduate degree have a 72 percent participation rate, as compared to college graduates and below who participate at a rate of 63 percent. For Whites, the difference is not statistically significant. More noteworthy, the survey found that age plays a surprising role in investing. The lowest

participation in the stock market among African-Americans is among seniors: only 56 percent of those 65 and older are invested. For Whites, the lowest participation was among those under 40 while the Black under 40 demographic followed closely behind. A wide-angle view: Having collected data since 1998, the Ariel Investments Black Investor Survey has found year after year that African-Americans are less likely to have money in the stock market than Whites. White participation rates have fluctuated between a low of 76 percent in 2007 and a high of 86 percent this year, whereas Black participation rates have swung between a low of 57 percent in both 1998 and 2007 and a high of 74 percent in 2002. This year, the White investment rate reached an all-time high, while the Black investment rate is at its highest level since 2004. “Although we have more work to do, I am pleased to see this upward trend,” said Hobson. “The stock market has outpaced every other investment over the longterm, and I am most encouraged that African Americans are participating at the greatest rate since the high point more than 10 years ago.”

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District Chronicles | Feb. 18 - Feb. 24, 2016 | 3

Neighborhood

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COMPUTER PROBLEMS?

ngry Congress Heights residents and community representatives have told D. C. City Council that the property management company is purposefully not repairing the property to force them out so it can develop the units into a more lucrative property. Residents and Will Merrifield, an attorney with the Affordable Housing Initiative for the Washington Legal Clinic for the Homeless, told council members earlier this month that Sanford Capital had intentionally and criminally failed to provide basic services. Residents said the company intentionally failed to prevent or fix sewage backups in the basement of the buildings, provide heat and hot water in the apartments during winter months, and sufficiently address rodent and bug infestation. “I firmly believe that Sanford’s neglect in these properties is absolutely intentional,” said Merrifield. “Over the course of my representation, there has been a clear pattern engaged by Sanford Capital whereby once pressure is applied to them, they make very modest repairs in order to seem like issues have been addressed, only to intentionally allow things to fall apart a few months later.” Nearly 20 residents and community representatives testified during a public hearing at City Hall. The hearings follow the District attorney general’s decision to file a lawsuit against Sanford Capital for engaging in “repeated neglect, delayed response, or total inaction.” The lawsuit asks that the property be placed in the receivership due to Sanford Capital’s pattern of neglect, which has led to health and safety issues for the tenants. Even before the testimony, council member Elissa Silverman told the audience that the residents’ issues and Sanford’s management style was cause for concern. “It should be concerning to all of us - to the council and to the city - about what’s happening to

SE residents: Sanford Capital intentionally neglecting building repairs to force them out and replace them with high income clients.

these residents around the Congress Heights Metro station,” said Silverman. “It’s outrageous, it’s unconscionable and, if our attorney general is correct, it’s criminal. We, as a government, should not stand for it.” No representatives from Sanford Capital, which is based in Bethesda, Maryland, spoke at the hearing. The management company owns the four buildings in Congress Heights and is looking to utilize a fifth for redevelopment. Its plans require demolition of all of the existing buildings to make way for a 442,000-square-foot, multi-use project that would include apartment buildings and retail. Congress Heights resident Robert Green, one of the few tenants left in the buildings, testified that the ailments at his property could be easily fixed by a good landlord. “The real problem is that Sanford doesn’t fix up the building, because they are trying to get us out of our homes anyway they can,” said Green. “If the housing authorities make me move, Sanford will get exactly what they want; empty buildings to tear down and then luxury apartments for rich White people.” Green said he wanted to stay

in the area because it allows him access to grocery stores, a library and other amenities. “I have neighbors who check in on me,” he said. “The list goes on and on, and I and other tenants like me should have the right to enjoy these benefits.” The hearing also explored the broader implications of economic development in the District. William Michael Cunningham, told council members that he felt that Congress Heights was another example of systematic efforts to remove certain populations from the District, and the City Council is doing little stop it. “From an economic analysis standpoint, all this points to is … that the city is getting rid of its Black residents,” said Cunningham. “This council could go in and condemn that building and sell it to the tenants tomorrow if they were White.” Council member LaRuby May agreed with residents. “The Black residents in all of the properties where we have slum lords know, very real, that this council would have never let White people in any other part of the city live in conditions like this for as long as poor Black people have been living in this building,” she said, “and it is unacceptable for that to happen.”

Divine Intervention

Can Zika virus move Catholics to reconsider birth control? By Travis Knoll Religion News Service

catholicsun.org

he discovery of a sexually transmitted case of the Zika virus is already reverberating in Latin America. In Brazil, at ground zero of the Zika virus outbreak, the Health Ministry issued new guidelines for pregnant Brazilians, including cautions to use condoms and abstain from sex or even kissing. Activists are also weighing in, calling for legalizing abortion of deformed fetuses. But an important voice with the potential to influence the debate has said relatively little on the topic thus far: the Catholic Church. The Zika virus is particularly terrifying to pregnant women. Some women exposed to the virus during pregnancy have given birth to babies with abnormally small brains. As a result, some activists have called for expanding legal abortions in Brazil to include deformed fetuses. The Brazilian Catholic Church has roundly rejected that proposal. Meanwhile, contraception has received far less attention thus far. Yet in this arena, there may be room for compromise. Brazilâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s population is 65 percent Catholic, and the church is still a culturally relevant force in Brazilian politics. Catholic teachings and the growing role of evangelicals may help explain Braziliansâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; extremely strong views on abortion: 79 percent oppose it, according to a 2014 Brazilian Institute of Public Opinion and Statistics (IBOPE) poll. The Brazilian Catholic Church opposed a 2012 Supreme Court decision to allow abortions of headless fetuses. In 2015, Brazilâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s lower house judicial committee approved a law restricting abortions in cases of rape. Abortion rights proponents hope the Zika crisis will highlight what they see as Brazilâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s economically unjust reproductive regime. As Brazilian law professor Debora Diniz writes in The New York Times, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Low-paid women and domestic workers are the true face of the Zika virus.â&#x20AC;? Dinizâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s institute, ANIS, which is pushing the countryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Supreme

Brazilian Cardinal opens dialogue on birth control to battle deadly Zika virus.

Court to allow women infected with the Zika virus access to abortion, has a tough fight with religious authorities ahead. While the Brazilian Catholic Church is known for strong support of health care initiatives and for helping Brazilâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s poor, it sees no connection between poverty and abortion rights. Just last week, the National Conference of Brazilian Bishops released a statement condemning ANISâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; efforts as â&#x20AC;&#x153;an utter disrespect for the gift of life.â&#x20AC;? But contraception is another matter, and on this count, the church might surprise its critics. Cardinal Odilo Scherer of SĂŁo Paulo earlier this month called the use of condoms a â&#x20AC;&#x153;personal choiceâ&#x20AC;? and distinguished their use from abortion because it â&#x20AC;&#x153;does not involve a formed life.â&#x20AC;? While Schererâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s comments may surprise some observers, other regional bishops have taken similar approaches. The Mexican bishops in 1972 recognized that Catholicsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; consciences might call for â&#x20AC;&#x153;responsible parenthood,â&#x20AC;? or sensitivity to the impact of having children on an existing family. The bishops also acknowledged â&#x20AC;&#x153;a very real and excruciating emergency for most Mexican families â&#x20AC;&#x201C; the population explosionâ&#x20AC;? that held back women from equal rights. In the context of the Mexican governmentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s population control measures, this letter

amounted to a limited endorsement of contraception. Brazilian Catholics seem to understand this distinction. Despite their opposition to abortion, 71 percent of Catholics support contraception generally, according to a 2005 IBOPE study. 94 percent support condoms as a way to prevent disease. Reproductive rights advocates are unlikely to win fervent Protestants and Catholics over on the issue of abortion. But as history shows, local churches, and even thoughtful traditional theologians, can see areas of gray. The church might be more flexible on the issue of contraception if it sees it less as a cultural poison pill leading down the slope to abortion and more as a viable public health alternative. Schererâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s statements and the Brazilian consensus for contraception suggest there is room for dialogue and compromise. As the epidemic continues to spread, putting the health of future generations at risk, the stakes are high indeed. Church leaders and public health advocates should use this crisis as an opportunity to move beyond polarization about reproductive rights and search for common ground on birth control. Travis Knoll is a doctoral student in history at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina.

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District Chronicles | Feb. 18 - Feb. 24, 2016 | 5

Cover

How Scalia’s death affects key Supreme Court cases By Richard Wolf USA Today

he death of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia is a major setback for the conservative legal movement, as will become clear in the months ahead. This was to be the term conservatives roared back after one in which the court’s liberal bloc won most of the important cases, such as same-sex marriage and Obamacare. On tap to be decided in the next four months are cases affecting abortion rights, affirmative action, voting rights, the power of labor unions and President Obama’s health care and immigration policies – and conservatives stood at least a chance of winning them all. Not anymore. Scalia’s untimely death Saturday at a Texas ranch leaves an empty seat on the Supreme Court – almost surely for the remainder of the 2015 term, and most likely for the duration of Obama’s presidency. While the White House and congressional Democrats would like

to fill the seat, their chances of prevailing on those important cases and others improved markedly. That’s because the court is now divided evenly between liberals and conservatives – in fact, tilted slightly to the left because Justice Anthony Kennedy often takes the liberal side. Tie votes would uphold the lower court’s ruling. Voting rights (heard Dec. 8): The court is considering changing the way state and municipal voting districts are drawn by allowing them to be based on the number of eligible voters, rather than total population. That would render non-citizens invisible in the count, along with children, prisoners, some ex-felons and some people with intellectual disabilities. The result: more rural, mostly White districts. Affirmative action (heard Dec. 9): In a crucial test of university admissions programs that take race into consideration, the court’s con-

servatives appeared ready in December to cut back on affirmative action. At the least, it seemed the University of Texas-Austin’s program would be affected. Scalia played a leading role during oral argument, noting that some briefs submitted to the court suggested that African Americans may do better at “less advanced” or “slower-track” schools. “I don’t think it stands to reason that it’s a good thing for the University of Texas to admit as many blacks as possible,” he said. Without his vote, the school’s program still could be doomed because liberal Justice Elena Kagan is recused, setting up a possible 4-3 vote. Labor unions (heard Jan. 11): This is the case that conservatives seemed most assured of winning, until now. During oral argument, the conservatives sharply criticized the current system in which public employees in 23 states and the District of Columbia must pay for the cost of collective bargaining,

even if they disagree with union demands. With Kennedy leading the way, the court appeared likely to strike down that requirement, which would reverse the lower court and deal a major blow to the financial clout of public employee unions such as the California Teachers Association. Now, a tie vote looms which would uphold the system. Abortion (to be heard March 2): Abortion clinics in Texas are challenging a state law, upheld in lower courts, that imposes tough new restrictions on doctors and facilities. The case has shaped up to be the biggest one affecting reproductive rights since 1992. Now, however, it appears that if supporters of abortion rights don’t win outright with the support of Kennedy or another conservative justice, a 4-4 tie upholding the Texas law would not set a new national precedent for federal courts to follow.

Contraception (to be heard March 23): Religious non-profits such as charities, schools and hospitals are seeking an exemption from the Affordable Care Act’s mandate that employers pay for contraceptives as part of standard health insurance plans. They stood a good chance of winning with Scalia on the bench. Immigration (to be heard in April): President Obama already had a decent chance of reversing an appeals court ruling and winning about six months to begin implementing his immigration plan, which would shield more than 4 million undocumented immigrants from deportation. But that was by no means a sure thing. Without Scalia, the president still needs the vote of at least one conservative justice to win the case. A 4-4 tie would preserve the lower court’s decision against the program, but without setting a national precedent. Richard Wolf writes for USA Today.

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6 | Feb.18 - Feb. 24, 2016 | District Chronicles

Voting rights restored to 40,000 Marylander ex-cons

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ANNAPOLIS, MD. – The Maryland General Assembly overrode Gov. Larry Hogan’s veto last week on a bill that restores voting rights for approximately 40,000 Maryland citizens who live in their communities but were barred from voting because of a criminal conviction in their past. The law will go into effect on March 10, 2016 allowing all formerly incarcerated residents to register and vote in Maryland’s upcoming April local and federal primaries. The previous Maryland law barred from voting individuals with criminal records, until they fully completed every requirement of their sentence, including those beyond incarceration, like probation and parole supervision. Introduced by Sen. Joan Carter Conway (D-Baltimore) and Del. Cory McCray (D-Baltimore), the new law simplifies the process by allowing an individual to become eligible to vote upon release from prison or if they were never incarcerated. Jane Henderson, executive director of Communities United, said that after the law takes effect, affected Marylanders will have until April 5 – less than a month – to register to vote in the April 26, primaries. New voters can also register through same-day registration during the early voting period of April 14 – 21. There will be at least 59 early voting centers throughout the state. “Because of the confusing nature of the previous law, there is a lot of misinformation about if and when those with felonies can register and vote,” Henderson said. “We want all former felons to know that if you are home, you can vote,” she said. “We have a short window of opportunity in March to reach and register newly enfranchised voters – whether in church, on the job, at recovery centers, at parole offices or in our neighborhoods – and we call on civic, civil rights and religious leaders to help us to reach these 40,000 newly enfranchised citizens.” Perry Hopkins, a formerly incarcerated citizen and organizer with Communities United, welcomed the new law. “The Maryland General As-

Politics

Maryland law makers override Governor’s veto, restore voting rights to ex-convicts starting March 10.

sembly has opened up our democracy to the thousands of Marylanders who have returned home from prison and now have the right to vote,” Hopkins said. “I know from experience that this legislation will have a powerful impact on our lives and in our communities. From the minute you are released from prison, you pay taxes, you are working to reintegrate back into society in a productive way and you deserve the full rights of citizenship. It’s just that simple. And today the Maryland General Assembly did the right thing and restored our rights.” Emma Greenman, director of Voting Rights and Democracy at the Center for Popular Democracy, echoed similar sentiments. “Democracy is on the march in Maryland,” Greenman said. “The Maryland General Assembly’s vote to restore the right to vote of more than 40,000 ex-offenders comes at a critical time for our democracy. “Over 50 years after the passage of the Voting Rights Act, nearly 5.8 million Americans remain shut out of the democratic process because of a criminal conviction. Today Maryland unlocked the vote for folks reintegrating into their communities and lifted up their voices in our democracy.”

The measure builds on recent bipartisan support for rights restoration around the country. Last year, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder called on states to restore voting rights. Supporters from across the political spectrum have introduced bills in Congress to restore rights, including the Civil Rights Voting Restoration Act of 2015 from U.S. Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) and the Democracy Restoration Act of 2014 from U.S. Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.) and U.S. Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.). Over the past two decades,more than 20 states have improved their criminal disenfranchisement laws, including Maryland, which ended lifetime disenfranchisement in 2007. Like similar laws elsewhere in the United States, Maryland’s criminal disenfranchisement law has disproportionately impacted racial minorities. It is estimated that African Americans have comprised more than half of Maryland’s disenfranchised population. When the rights restoration bill becomes law, Maryland will be the newest addition in the national movement to restore voting rights to people who are released from prison, joining 13 states and the District of Columbia.

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District Chronicles | Feb. 18 - Feb. 24, 2016 | 7

Student Life

First Lady: Young Black girls “you belong here”

Cheriss May/Howard University News

Sa fr

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On Monday, Feb. 8, In the East Room of the White House, Washington, D.C. youth dancers perform for Black History Month.

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8 | Feb.18 - Feb. 24, 2016 | District Chronicles

ozens of young Black girls dressed in leotards were the center of a Black History Month presentation in the home of the President and First lady. They were a chorus of excited chatter and giggles. Each bobbing bun was attached to one of 51 D.C. students from a variety of dance studios who had been invited to the state dining room at the White House for a special program. They could hardly contain their excitement, but they all grew silent last week as First Lady Michelle Obama leaned in to give them a personal message she had designed just for them. “I grew up like you guys,” said Obama, peering into their bright smiles. “Looking at you guys sitting here in your leotards and your buns in your hair and your braids, I was you all.” Just like them, said the First lady, she also had a passion for dance. She said when she was a young girl, she was enrolled in the Mayfair Dance Academy in Chicago and took a variety of dance styles, including acrobatics, jazz and modern. The woman who would later graduate from prestigious Princeton University, become a corporate attorney in Chicago and marry, support and inspire a young man named Barack told them that

as she travelled through life, that passion transformed. It became one for mentoring young people, and that passion was the reason she decided to host this event. “I always thought there were so many kids just like me who never got the opportunities,” said Obama. “I grew up with kids who were just as smart, but because they didn’t have opportunities or somebody to push them, they were left behind. So, I vowed that the work that I would do would always engage young people.” Obama explained that she had invited them to the White House to be trained for a day by four of the nation’s premiere dancers – Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater’s Judith Jamison; dancer, star of the television dance show “Fame” and director of the television show “Different World,” Debbie Allen; the Dance Theatre of Harlem’s Virginia Johnson; and hip-hop choreographer Fatima Robinson. The theme behind Black History Month celebration this year, said Obama, “Honoring the Past While Celebrating the Present; Seven Years of Living African-American History.” Then Obama told them what she really wanted them to take away from the experience. “This house is for you, and you can do anything you want to do, because if I’m sitting here doing what I’m doing, you can too,” said the First Lady.

“So, that when somebody tells you you’re not good enough or smart enough or pretty enough, you will remember that you were pretty enough and smart enough and good enough and talented enough to be in the White House. If you can do this, you can do anything.” Obama told the rapt students of her personal life experiences, of growing up in the Southside of Chicago with working class parents, including a father afflicted with scoliosis. She told how she had to work hard in school to ensure she had a scholarship to college and how her parents, despite never having attended college, she stressed education, which led her to Princeton and Harvard Law School. “The president and I are committed to opening this house up to young people like you, because we run into kids all the time that live maybe five minutes away and have never seen the White House and they never cared about who lives there,” said the First Lady. “Some kids don’t even consider themselves part of the D.C. community. They think their neighborhood is where they are from. We want to change that in kids, particularly minority kids around the world, and in this country, city, and we want you to know that being here at the White House, dancing and screaming and doing whatever it is you do, you belong here.”

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In the Neighborhood

African American History coming to the Smithsonian

teenobserver.com

The National Museum of African American History and Culture opens in September between the Washington Monument and the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History.

By William Reed

lack slaves built the Capitol and White House for free. But, the roles that Blacks in building business should be recognized in constructing the National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC). The Smithsonian Institution museum is on a five-acre tract a five-acre site on the National Mall, adjacent to the Washington Monument on Constitution Avenue between 14th and 15th streets in Northwest D.C. The public should be proud of the Blacks making the museum a reality. When it opens in September, the NMAAHC will feature exhibition space for AfricanAmerican history and culture, as well as a centerpiece venue for ceremonies and performances. It will be a place to learn about the richness and diversity of the AfricanAmerican experience, and what it means to Black lives. The museum was created in 2003 by an Act of Congress, establishing it as part of the Smithsonian Institution. This site is between the Washington Monument and the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History. This museum will be the only national museum devoted ex-

clusively to the documentation of African American life, art, history and culture. Black pride is a movement encouraging people to take pride in being Black. The slogan has been used in the U. S. by African Americans to celebrate heritage and personal pride. The Black pride movement permeated into the work of African-American popular musicians. The Impressions’ song “We’re a Winner” became a movement virtual anthem, as did James Brown’s “Say It Loud – I’m Black and I’m Proud. The museum’s director, Lonnie G. Bunch III calls it a place that will “manifest the dreams of many generations.” Bunch, who has spent the last 30 years in the field, is regarded as one of the nation’s leading history and museum professionals. Bunch has gotten 82,000 people join as contributing museum members. But, the concept goes back to the early 1980s, when Tom Mack (the African-American chairman of Tourmobile, a tourist bus company) founded the National Council of Education and Economic Development (NCEED). Mack’s intention was to use the non-profit group to advance his ideas about economic development, education, and the arts in

the Black community. Mack was a major player in the nation’s capital’s $6.2 billion tourism industry, as chair and owner of Landmark Services Parking and of the Hospitality and Transportation Services joint venture. The companies Bunch has chosen to build the NMAAHC have strong bona fides in construction and their communities. Construction is being done by Clark Construction Group, Smoot Construction, and H.J. Russell & Company. Clark was awarded a $290 million construction contract as part of a joint venture with Smoot Construction and H.J. Russell & Company, two of the largest minority-owned construction firms in the nation. Since its founding in 1952, H.J. Russell & Company became the fourthlargest minority-owned business in the nation. The architectural and engineering firm of McKissack & McKissack (which was the first African-American-owned architectural firm in the United States) was founded in 1905, by brothers Calvin Lunsford and Moses McKissack III whose father and grandfather were trained builders. The NMAAHC will be the deepest museum on the National Mall. Excavators dug 80 feet below grade to lay the foundations.

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In the Neighborhood

Metro Briefs: Notable news in and around Washington District of Columbia

Mayor Bowser proposes replacing DC General with smaller shelters in each Ward

ayor Muriel Bowser last week unveiled to the members of the Council of the District of Columbia her administration’s plans to locate one small neighborhood-based housing development in each of the District’s eight wards, including; six locations for short-term family housing, one location for

apartment-style transitional family housing, and one location to serve as housing for single women only. Each of the short-term housing facilities will accommodate up to 50 families with secure private rooms, places for children’s studies and activities, comprehensive social services, and 24 hour on-site management and security. The women’s shelter will house up to 213 single women with an on-site health clinic and a medical bed. “While I anticipate that there will be some tweaking to the plan, I remain confident that a final plan will satisfy all because we need to support these new residents as

members of our neighborhoods,” stated Councilmember Bonds. “The Homeward DC plan, while a major step is but one approach to address homelessness and the affordable housing crisis facing the District of Columbia.” The Mayor will host community meetings at each ward site to discuss the proposal and to provide an update on the District’s plan to end homelessness in our city. To learn more about the Homeward DC Plan visit http://dc.gov/ homewarddc. Following is a list of locations for the short-term family housing facilities and scheduled delivery dates.

Ward

Site

Construction Start

Completion

2105-2107 10th Street, NW

TBD

2018

810 Fifth Street, NW

March 2015

Jan. 2016

2619 Wisconsin Avenue, NW

Feb. 2017

May 2018

5505 Fifth Street, NW

Nov. 2016

Jan. 2018

2266 25th Place, NE

Feb. 2017

Jan. 2018

700 Delaware Avenue, SW

Feb. 2017

May 2018

5004 D Street, SE

Feb. 2017

Sep. 2018

6th St & Chesapeake St, SE

Feb. 2017

Sep. 2018

* This facility will serve as a women’s shelter.

Bowie State University makes an international connection with Peruvian student athletes at the Alumni Takeover game

Robert Eubanks/District Chronicles

Robert Eubanks/DistrictChronicles

Cheriss May/Howard University News Service

Robert Eubanks/DistrictChronicles

Cheriss May/Howard University News Service

12 | Feb.18 - Feb. 24, 2016 | District Chronicles