Washington DC

To Understand America's Failure on Housing Desegregation, Look at the Capital City

by Kaila Philo

With federal support, the private housing market was built around racial segregation. To understand how federal fair housing law and policy adopted since the 1960s failed to undermine it, it's not necessary to venture too far from Capitol Hill. 

DC Crime Bill Flap Repeats Congress's Refusal of Home Rule 55 Years Ago

by Kyla Sommers

In the period after the rebellions provoked by the assassination of Martin Luther King, Congress pushed "tough on crime" measures on the district even as the local government sought to reduce racial inequality in criminal justice. "Tough on Crime" won, with results that are still present today. 

After April 4: The 1968 Rebellions and the Unfinished Work of Civil Rights in DC

by Kyla Sommers

As Congressional controversy over DC's criminal law reforms shows, there remains significant unfinished business in the longstanding quest of DC residents to govern their city on their own terms. 

Mark Russell, DC's Piano-Playing Political Satirist, Dies at 90

Russell's humor was a feature of a Washington where politicos and the press were more likely to enjoy a few bipartisan laughs. Asked if he had any writers helping him, he replied “Oh, yes — 100 in the Senate and 435 in the House of Representatives.”

Why are the Dems Denying DC Self-Government?

Historian (and HNN Alum) Kyla Sommers connects the recent Senate rejection of DC's local crime legislation to the history of suspicion of Black political power in the District. 

Black Family History Opens New Archives

by Paula C. Austin, Catherine Nelson and Donna Payne Wilson

Paula Austin's history of Black Washington depended on the knowledge and memorial work of generations of Black families, who have preserved history that is not kept in traditional archives. 

Landmark Building Embodies Past and Present of DC's Black Community

The True Reformer Building in Washington is likely the first in the nation to be designed, funded, built and owned by African Americans as part of a comprehensive mission of economic and social self-reliance and uplift in the early 20th century. 

A Lost Archive of DC Life at Midcentury

Rescued from a dumpster minutes before the arrival of the garbage truck, Ray Honda's photographs captured DC at the dawn of the civil rights era and the vibrant Black culture of the city. 

Alexandria, VA Freedom House Museum Reopens, Making Key Site of Slave Trade a Center for Black History

The building, once the headquarters of the Franklin and Armfield firm, once the largest domestic slave traders in the United States, now houses a reopened museum showing the DC area as a key site of Black history before and after emancipation. 

James Kirchick's "Secret City" Tells the Story of Closeted Washington

by Samuel Clowes Huneke

Samuel Huneke reviews a new history of the capital city's gay residents, which focuses on those in government and conservative politics and the gradual lessening of hostility to gays in public service, a choice that undermines the book's usefulness for understanding contemporary queer liberation issues. 

Like Haiti, Washington DC Paid Reparations to Slave Owners

by Gillian Brockell

When the District abolished slavery, it compensated more than 900 former enslavers for the emancipation of more than 3,000 people. The formerly enslaved got nothing. 

The Unique Local and National Role of Washington's NAACP Chapter

Derek Gray examined the growth of the capital city's NAACP chapter, the first in the nation to have Black leadership, and one with the unique responsibility to monitor legislation in Congress affecting civil rights and racial justice. 

The DC Punk Scene Relied on the Local Latinx Community

by Mike Amezcua

"A big piece is missing from the stories told about punk and hardcore in the 1980s: Primarily, that marginalized spaces and communities in urban America gave a stage to the predominantly white subculture."

Mosaic Theater Is Collecting H Street Residents’ Protest Stories And Turning Them Into Plays

“We want to be a place where the stories of our community are uplifted and celebrated and given the spotlight — particularly because so many of those residents are African Americans who have seen so much change happen without their input,” says Reginald Douglas, Mosaic’s new artistic director.

What You Think You Know About DC's Metro Skipping Georgetown is Wrong

by Luke Mullins

Zachary Schrag, author of the definitive book on the DC Metro system, says that the legend of affluent community opposition in the 1960s is a just-so story that ignores the realities transit planners faced, but does jibe with city residents' sense of issues of race, power, and influence. 

What the Pandemic Has Stolen from Black America

Longtime DC activist Howard Croft died from COVID complications in June 2020. His surviving relatives found a trove of papers and artifacts about civil rights struggles in the District and beyond, but feel the lack of his voice to explain what the pieces mean. 

This Map Shows How the New Deal Was a Big Deal for DC

Historian Brent McKee presents a guide to sites around the greater Washington area that show how the New Deal transformed the region, from historic preservation to wastewater treatment. 

D.C. Police Recruits are Learning about Black History, Go-Go Music and Half-Smokes. Leaders Think it Will Make Them Better Officers

DC leaders are concerned that new police recruits are disconnected from the history and culture of Black communities in the District. Will history lessons help? 

Eleanor Holmes Norton’s Long, Lonely Fight to Gain DC Voting Rights

Eleanor Holmes Norton has always advocated for DC statehood and full representation in Congress, but today places a higher priority on comprehensive voting rights legislation. 

Thirty Years after Mount Pleasant Erupted, a Push for Better Treatment Persists

by Mike Amezcua

Central American refugees living in Washington's Mount Pleasant neighborhood had fled US-backed repression but found harsh treatment by immigration authorities and local police. In 1991 frustration erupted. Today, the unrest still raises questions about citizenship and belonging.