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Reparations: A Very Basic PrimerReparations: a process of repairing, healing and restoring a people injured because of their group identity and in violation of their fundamental human rights. In 2019, the House held a Hearing on H.R. 40, Commission to Study and Develop Reparation Proposals for African-Americans Act. There was no vote but the hearing itself was historic. We take a look at what led up to this point. 
A Timeline Leading Up to The “Revitalization” of Barry FarmWith the deconstruction and rebuilding of Barry Farm under way, it is important to understand some of the key factors of this process, what led up to it and how it has been affecting the existing community. Here is a somewhat concise timeline of events to provide context and stay updated on the fast-changing neighborhood. 
Incompatible Allies: Black Lives Matter, March 4 Our Lives and the US Debate about Guns and Violence 
Initiative 77 & The Crisis of The Tipped Minimum Wage 
Cross-posted from the Community Foundation for the National Capital Region written by Benton Murphy The District of Columbia is frequently cited as America’s “Smartest City,” based on our exceptionally high percentage of residents with a college degree. As of 2010, 46.8% of District residents held a bachelor’s degree—beating our closest competitor, Silicon Valley, by a healthy margin. Yet, our knowledge-driven economy and high rates of post-secondary completion mask the realities of many residents. Read between the lines and you’ll see that the nation’s most educated city is also home to more than 64,000 adults who lack a high school diploma or its equivalent—that’s more than 10% of our residents. In a city where it is estimated that more than 70% of new jobs will require postsecondary training beyond high school, the number of career opportunities available to these individuals is rapidly declining. The Community Foundation has a long history of investing the skills and credentials of the Metropolitan Washington region’s residents. Since 2007, our grants have helped 675 people increase their literacy levels and more than 700 earn a credential that will help to boost their employability in our competitive job market. Most recently, we’ve been working with a community of DC-based literacy providers like Academy of Hope, Southeast Ministry, and Literacy Volunteers and Advocates to bolster support for the critical programs that serve the District’s adult learners. To raise broader awareness among both elected officials and community members, these partners have organized an Adult Education and Family Literacy Week – officially endorsed by a resolution of the DC Council – this September 23rd-29th. We’re pleased to announce two opportunities for Community Foundation donors to get involved: The organizers will kick-off Literacy Week on Monday, September 23rd, with a special event, “An Investment in Adult Education is an Investment in Children’s Success,” from 8:30 to 11:00 am at the PNC Bank Building at 800 17th Street NW. Join us for an exciting panel of speakers featuring adult learners, policymakers, and nationally-recognized experts. Continental breakfast will be served. Please RSVP by September 20th if you wish to attend. Later that week, the entire community is invited to join the organizers for a Literacy Advocacy Day at the Wilson Building (1350 Pennsylvania Avenue NW) from 9:30-11:00 am. Participants will visit the offices of our elected officials to discuss the needs of adult learners. Seasoned advocates as well concerned citizens who have never stepped foot in the Wilson Building are all welcome to join us. If you’re interested in participating, please contact Samantha Davis at sadavis@some.org to RSVP. We hope that many of you will be able to join us. Unable to attend? Please contact Benton Murphy at bmurphy@cfncr.org for more information about some of the excellent local nonprofits that need your support to serve adult learners. 
On the 17th of September, supporters of the Large Retailer Accountability Act gathered in front of the Wilson Building for an attempt to stiffen coucilmember’s backbones. Mayor Gray has chosen Wal-Mart over low income workers and good jobs by vetoing the bill, as this is written it is yet to be seen if the Council will have the backbone to override. Many speakers warned that “their next mayor” supports the LRAA, meaning that the councilmembers who are running for Mayor lose their votes unless they vote to override the Mayor’s Wal-Mart ordered veto of the LRAA. Some possible next steps: 1: A ballot initiative identical to the LRAA. Does not involve the city’s budget so it can be done by ballot initiative. Poll results for the LRAA indicate this would pass, and door to door work has already been done to collect some of the poll data 2: Recall campaigns could be mounted against Councilmembers who voted with the Mayor. Anita Bonds would be an obvious targets, but difficult as she is at-large. Tommy Wells and Murial Bowser should forget about their campaigns for mayor, they may have just made themselves unelectable, effectively recalling themselves before they could ever be elected in the first place. 3: Allegations of financial ties between Mayor Gray and Wal-Mart should be pursued aggressively. The Mayor is already worried about the danger of indictment for soliciting illegal campaign contributions, and for failure to report “shadow campaign” income and expenses. If any illegal funds are traced to Wal-Mart, the Mayor’s career is over, regardless of whether or not any indictment is ever issued. When if comes to dealing with Wal-Mart and the proliferation of jobs that don’t pay enough to stay off welfare, no option should be off the table, no punches should be pulled, no quarter asked or given.  )%  %categories-linked( Gentrification, Labor, Walmart  DC City Council, DC Independent Media Center, Large Retailer Accountability Act, Living Wage Bill, LRAA, Vincent Gray 
Cross-Posted From Street Sense Written by Eric Falquero Three children race through the intersection of Providence and Capitol streets NE. Two kids ride scooters and one is on a bike. An oncoming taxi stops short. Danger seen, crisis averted. But traffic pollution poses a more insidious threat to neighborhood health, local activists say. And it is proving harder to stop than a hurrying cab. In the low-income community where many residents already suffer from respiratory ailments, the Ivy City Civic Association (ICCA) is fighting to keep the city from opening a new tour bus parking lot. The neighborhood is hemmed in by busy New York Ave.NE as well as train yards, warehouses and city vehicle lots. And advocates worry the increased fumes from the charter buses will only make health problems worse. “We can’t just let you come in and kill us,” says ICCA president Alicia Swanson-Canty, 40, who has spent her whole life in Ivy City. She worries that current pollution levels in the neighborhood are taking a particularly heavy toll on elders, including her mother. On December 10, 2012, Superior Court Judge Judith Macaluso buoyed the advocates in their fight against city hall. She ruled that city officials violated the law when they moved forward with plans for the bus depot without getting the required input from the local Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) or doing a mandated environmental review. But now, the Ivy City activists are bracing for the next round of their battle. City Mayor Vincent Gray is appealing the ruling and his day in court is is scheduled for Sept. 17. The office of the mayor would offer no comment for this story, except to say the city is pursuing the requirements specified in the injunction. Advocates hope the December ruling will stand. And they hope for more. Their ultimate goal is seeing the former Alexander Crummell School, where the bus lot is proposed, transformed into a community or recreation center that could offer resources that are now in short supply such as a safe play area for kids and adult education classes. “If they’re trying to make this a community, we need a rec,” said Ivy City resident Juice Williams, age 39. “We don’t need buses, we nee d something productive: job training, GED classes…” His fellow resident Nate Wales and David Hayes agreed that a community center would be a haven for children like the ones they had just watched cross the street in front of the taxi.dents Nat “They’re not doing anything but chasing each other in the same circles,” Wales says of the kids. Hayes could not help but compare the lack of services in Ivy City to the resources in other neighborhoods. “Brentwood has a work program, Rosedale has a rec, Edgewood has a rec…” Wales added that the presence of a juvenile detention center does not send a hopeful message to young people. “There’s nothing to do, but they’re ready for you when you get destructive.” Swanson-Canty said she believes that workforce development programs could help both longtime residents and men staying at the New York Avenue Shelter, which is also located in the neighborhood. She pointed out that the city has been promising a community center to Ivy City for years. “Just give us what you said you would,” said Swanson-Canty. Most recently the city’s 2006 comprehensive economic development plan called for a community center and additional green space in Ivy City. To Read The Entire Article CLICK HERE 2 COMMENTS SO FAR, CLICK HERE TO VIEW & RESPOND - ()% %categories-linked() Communities, Gentrification, Ivy City, Ivy City, Public Property Alexander Crummell, Alicia Swanson-Canty, asthma, bus depot, crummell school, environmental racism, Ivy City, Ivy City Civic Association, Judith Macaluso, lawsuit, Vincent Gray On Friday, September 13th, the day after the Mayor vetoed the Large Retailer Accountability Act, the Nonprofit Quarterly (NPQ) posed the question, “Will Nonprofits Join D.C. City Council’s Plan to Require Walmart to Pay a Living Wage?” One response that came to our attention is from the Washington Legal Clinic for the Homeless, an organization whose mission is to “to use the law to make justice a reality for our neighbors who struggle with homelessness and poverty.” Here’s some of what they had to say: In a city where a worker earning the current minimum wage of $8.25/hour would have to work 132 hours each week to afford the fair market rent on a 2 bedroom apartment, the prospect of a $12.50/hour wage could mean the difference between remaining a District resident or being forced to abandon a life-long home in DC for a less expensive jurisdiction. A livable wage is key to addressing the crisis of homelessness in the nation’s capital. Families and individuals who are homeless are not going to be able to earn their way out of shelter in a community where housing costs are as high as in DC, unless they are able to earn a better wage than the law presently mandates. One of the Mayor’s cited reasons for vetoing the LRAA in his letter to the DC Council is that it would only raise the minimum wage for a small fraction of the District’s workforce. While we absolutely support a higher living wage bill for all DC workers, the LRAA is an important step forward in allowing District workers to make a wage that will actually let them live in the place they have called home their entire lives. (For a point by point response to Mayor Gray’s stance against the LRAA, read the DC Fiscal Policy Institute’s blog.) For the full article, see: “Save Money. Live Better.” Just Not DC Workers?” (…With Housing and Justice for All blog | 9-13-2013) “Will Nonprofits Join D.C. City Council’s Plan to Require Walmart to Pay a Living Wage?” (Nonprofit Quarterly | 9-13-2013) |
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