Come Learn About the Threat to Public Housing and How We Can Fight To Preserve It!! Empower DC’s Affordable Housing Campaign Will Be Hosting a Public Housing Information Session Where: 1419 V Street NW When: Thursday, October 11, 2012 6:30 – 8:30 PM For more information, contact Schyla Moore-Poindexter at 202-234-9119 ext.101 or housing@empowerdc.org. ONE DC (Organizing Neighborhood Equity) is also putting the word out about a community meeting in Ward 8 this Saturday, October 13. The video below, shot by Judith Hawkins of It Is What It Is Mobile Talk Show, goes into the details.
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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  )%  %categories-linked( Affordable Housing, Public Housing  affordable housing, affordable housing campaign, Empower DC, Judith Hawkins, public housing, Ron Harris, Schyla Pondexter-Moore 
On behalf of the many friends and colleagues of longtime DC homeless advocate Brian Anders, who passed away on August 28, 2012, Empower DC Co-Founder Parisa Norouzi requested that the city council pass a resolution honoring Brian’s life. Unlike so many other requests made by members of the progressive community, the council agreed. The resolution is being sponsored by Ward 1 Councilmember Jim Graham and was on the Consent Agenda of the council’s first legislative session (Wednesday September 19, 2012). Unfortunately, we still don’t know when it will be presented or when (or even if) community members will be permitted to speak about Brian in memoriam. Interview of Brian Anders by Pete Tucker on the Closing of La Casa Shelter. [haiku url=”http://www.grassrootsmediaproject.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/Brian_Anders_2010-10-04.mp3″ title=”Brian_Anders_2010-10-04″] As a reminder why this resolution is so appropriate, I’ve cross-postied an an audio podcast of an interview of Brian Anders discussing the closing of La Casa Shelter produced by Pete Tucker for his website The Fight Back. Following that is an article about Brian by David Zirin, that was originally published in The Nation. Perhaps after reading the article and listening to the audio you’ll find the time to call or email your councilmember and remind them to put Brian’s resolution prominently on the council’s agenda. Click here for a link to the names and addresses of DC’s City Council. Also, mark your calendar for a celebration of Brian’s life, October 13, starting at 6:30PM at the Potter’s House. More on that later. The Last Wish of Brian Anders Dave Zirin on September 4, 2012 – 10:23 AM ET We are all taught from birth that the world is shaped exclusively by the wealthy and powerful. The brave souls, who put their bodies on the line and organize people to pressure the powerful, are erased from the historical record. Last week, we lost one of those brave souls, and he deserves to be remembered. A man died in Washington, DC, who did more to affect change than any of the empty suits that scurry about on Capitol Hill. His name was Brian Anders, and although he’d reject this description, he was very special. Dynamic, charismatic and razor sharp, Brian could have done anything with his life but was compelled to be a fighter for social justice on the streets of DC for nearly thirty years. The bulk of his work was focused on fighting for the rights of the homeless and affordable housing by any means necessary. If there was a protest, a speakout, or an occupation, Brian Anders was there. Brian was also an African-American Vietnam War veteran who wrestled with his own PTSD for decades and always, particularly since 9/11, made every effort to connect imperial wars abroad with the war on the poor at home. He saw the connections and put his passion, his pain and his personal history at the service of getting others to see that connective tissue as well. Brian always reminded me of Julian Bond’s line about Muhammad Ali: “He made dissent visible, audible, attractive and fearless.” Brian Anders worked with everyone but was associated most closely with two remarkable institutions. In the 1980s, he was at the heart of organizing at the homeless shelter CCNV (the Center for Creative Non-Violence) and over the last decade sat on the board of the social justice organization Empower DC. Both entities, due in no small part to Brian, have distinguished themselves by the fact that they don’t fight on behalf of people but organize affected communities to fight for themselves. As his friend Kirby ably described in her remembrance of Brian, CCNV became in the 1980s “a vibrant community of anti-war and social justice activists, who succeeded, through direct action, in forcing the federal government to hand over the massive building at 2nd and D St. NW, so that CCNV could turn it into a shelter and community center for people without housing.” CCNV’s activism was at the heart of the passage of the 1987 McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, one of the precious few federal actions that has actually aided the homeless. He showed all the professional politicians what real politics could look like when removed from the lobbyists and big-money donors, and reclaimed by the people. But Brian’s most lasting contribution was how he affected those closest to him. Fellow Empower DC board member Farah Fosse said at a service/rally for Brian after his death, “He spoke truth to power, motivated people, worked tirelessly for justice, provided direct services . . . → Read More: Resolution Honoring the Life of Brian Anders 
Join Other Parents in the Child Care for All Campaign Stand up for quality affordable child care for all DC families! YOUR VOICE NEEDS TO BE HEARD! Join Us @ the William O. Lockridge/Bellevue Library on Saturday, September 29, 2012 From 12:00pm to 2:00 pm @ 115 Atlantic Street SW Washington, DC 20032 Closest Metro is Anacostia on the Green Line Advocate For Yourself! Join with Other Residents Who Share Your Concerns and Build Power As a Group! For more information or to RSVP email Sequnely at childcare@empowerdc.org or call Empower DC @202 234 9119 ext.103 DC DOESN’T WORK WITHOUT CHILDCARE!!! )% %categories-linked( Childcare, Social Services campaign meeting, Child Care For All Campaign, Empower DC, Sequnely Gray, subsidized childcare 
Cross-Posted from The District’s Dime by Soumya Bhat A new national report confirms what most DC parents already know: Child care in the District is expensive, especially compared to the rest of the nation. So as Mayor Gray and the DC Council look to reduce unemployment and get more moms and dads back to work, our leaders also need to factor in how to make child care affordable and accessible to low-and-moderate income parents. One important way to do that in to DC is to update the reimbursement rates for the city’s child care subsidy programs to better reflect our competitive child care market. The current low reimbursement rates mean that parents sometimes have a hard time finding a child care center that will accept their child care voucher and that many centers that rely on children with vouchers are struggling to keep their doors open and provide quality services. A better reimbursement rate would allow parents of all income levels to have the opportunity to put their children in a safe, healthy and productive facility. The report by Child Care Aware of America, a national source of child care information for parents and providers, highlights some of the financial struggles that many DC parents face. For example, in 2011, the average cost of full-time care for an infant in a DC child care center was more than $20,000 a year. That is roughly 80 percent of median income for a single mother in DC. If she has two children in child care, expenses can be as much $35,000, which is nearly twice the annual income for a family of three at the poverty line.[1] In the District, a major barrier to providing high-quality child care to infants and toddlers is the extremely low reimbursement rates paid to child care providers in the city’s child care program. Unfortunately, DC child care reimbursement rates are pegged to 2004 child care costs. Without adequate reimbursement, providers are unable to keep up with their rising costs and continue to offer quality child care in DC. The fiscal year 2013 budget did not increase reimbursement rates for child care providers, many of which offer primarily infant and toddler care and faced financial challenges in recent years. Another factor is that the city has put fewer resources into child care as the public education system has moved toward universal pre-kindergarten. Since the District began implementing universal pre-K in 2009, parents can choose to send three- and four-year old children to pre-K in public schools. While this was a good move for DC education, an unfortunate side effect has been a steady decline in local funding for the child care subsidy program. As a result, several child care providers have closed their doors. According to the 2010 DC market rate survey, about 30 percent of all family home providers and 17 percent of all child care center providers operating in 2008 were no longer in business in 2010. This leads to a shortage of child care providers for families with infants and toddlers and children with special needs. DCFPI thinks it’s time to revisit these policies and help make quality child care more affordable for DC families. )% %categories-linked( Childcare, Social Services DC budget, DC Fiscal Policy Institute, Soumya Bhat, subsidized childcare, The District's Dime DC government only works well when DC residents are involved. Let’s face it, most of us don’t know how to get involved (beyond voting) in a way that has an impact on the laws and policies that ultimately get put into place. If you want to do more than just vote, come and learn how at the following event: Empower DC & DC Jobs with Justice Present the Grassroots Leadership Education Program HOW DC GOVERNMENT WORKS How Does the DC Council Function? How Are Laws Made? What do Committees Do? Facilitated by Empower DC staff organizers Tuesday, September 25th 6:30-8:30 PM Southeast Library – 403 7th St, SE Adjacent to the Eastern Market Metro Wheelchair accessible location RSVP to Schyla at (202) 234-9119 x 101 housing@empowerdc.org * limited child care available, please RSVP * With Support From: DC Child Care Collective |
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