WINNER OF THREE SOCIETY OF PROFESSIONAL JOURNALISTS D.C. AWARDS
Capture the Moment Page 37 Vol. 56, No. 40 • July 22 - 28, 2021
Rash of Shootings and Murder of Six-Year-Old Girl Prompt Questions about Public Safety Sam P.K. Collins WI Contributing Writer
5 A young child places a stuffed animal among the homemade signs, flowers and balloons at a makeshift memorial honoring the life of six-year-old Nyiah Courtney. Nyiah was killed late Friday night in a drive-by shooting while on the way home from her grandmother’s house. The shooting also wounded five adults including Nyiah’s mother. (DR Barnes/The Washington Informer)
Jawana Hardy spent much of last Friday night visiting various Southeast neighborhoods and speaking to community members who have lost friends and loved ones to gun violence. For three years, she and others have made these weekly treks throughout Ward 8 as part of what’s known as #GunsDownFriday. After attending a candlelight vigil in Woodland Terrace, Hardy stopped in front of Mart Liquor near Mellon Street, not far from where Deon Kay
Stacy M. Brown WI Senior Writer
Sam P.K. Collins WI Contributing Writer
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Wards 7, 8 Officials and Residents Fight for DC-295 Improvements
Delta Variant Linked to 83 Percent of all COVID-19 Cases in U.S. The Delta variant of the coronavirus now accounts for roughly 83 percent of all U.S. COVID-19 cases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky announced on Tuesday, July 20. “The best way to prevent the spread of COVID-19 variants is to prevent the spread of disease and vaccination is the most powerful tool we have,” Dr. Walensky asserted during a U.S. Senate hearing. On July 3, the CDC noted that the Delta variant accounted for about half of the U.S. COVID-19 cases. But that number has dramatically increased.
lost his life during a police encounter last fall. At the time, Hardy, who goes by Miss Hardy DC, didn’t anticipate that corner later becoming the scene of a high-profile murder. Hours later, upon learning that six-year-old Nyiah Courtney had been killed in a hail of gunfire, Hardy immediately started praying, reaching out to family members and collecting materials for a memorial she erected on the corner of Martin Luther King, Jr. Avenue and Malcolm X Boulevard on Saturday evening.
5 Residents request inclusion of bridge repairs and long-term infrastructure changes in the FY 2022 budget after the collapse of the pedestrian bridge in Northeast on 295 which, along with five other bridges, has been rated in poor condition. (WI File Photo/Anthony Tilghman)
An emergency declaration recently signed by D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser (D) would expedite the replacement of three bridges along DC-295: the Lane Place Bridge, the Parkside Bridge, and the Douglas Street Bridge. With an infusion of $1.5 million in contingency funds to replace the Lane Bridge and another $250,000 for the Parkside Bridge, local officials expect these projects to wrap up within the next three years.
However, some community members have described the mandate, in the aftermath of a bridge collapse and the Bowser administration’s initial denial of the request to replace these bridges, as just a small part of what’s required for the entire DC-295 corridor. For ANC Commissioner Anthony Lorenzo Green, DC-295 needs a total revamp that prioritizes the needs of the people living in the surrounding neighborhoods, many of whom don’t
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