Crime and Punishment in America is a four-part series, directed by Lynn Novick, that tells the story of criminal justice in America from the colonial era to today, and explores how for more than 250 years, Americans have wrestled with the problem of crime, the purpose of punishment and the meaning of justice. Executive produced by Ken Burns and Sam Pollard. Narrated by Keith David.

It’s been one year since the DC Council signed the deal with the Commanders to bring a new stadium and neighborhood to the RFK campus. As the team races towards an 2030 opening day, recent hearings and developments have revealed some alarming developments:

• A transit plan that doesn’t account for 8,000 people - opening the door to yet another massive garage in the neighborhood

• Gas-burning at the stadium? Despite DC law forbidding it, it seems there are plans to burn methane gas to heat the stadium

• Shifting numbers and timelines for promised homes and affordable housing

• A community benefits program that still lacks clarity

Join us for a community assembly to dig into these issues, and explore what we can do together to ensure the redevelopment serves us all.

About RFK for All: The redevelopment of the former RFK Stadium site along the Anacostia River in Ward 7 presents a once-in-a-generation opportunity for the District. Done well, it can deliver new homes, sustainable development, improved public spaces, and provide stronger connections to the river and surrounding neighborhoods. Done poorly, it could leave DC taxpayers paying more than $1 billion for a suburban-style stadium that increases traffic, pollution, causes environmental harm to neighborhoods and nearby nature, and most importantly fails to meet community needs. To meet this moment, we have formed a coalition dedicated to ensuring that community voices meaningfully shape the redevelopment site and deliver results on our shared priorities. We want a new stadium and neighborhood that is a fair deal for DC, sustainably built and operated, transit first, and that maximizes affordable homes.

From scorching job sites to flooded factories to overcrowded hospitals, workers are some of the first to face the repercussions of climate change. Please join We Power DC and Metro DC DSA for a conversation with local union representatives and climate experts about what's at stake for local and national workers. Panelists will share frontline experiences, discuss policy solutions, and explore how organized labor is leading the fight to build a more resilient future for the working class. We'll also explore how strong public institutions and public stewardship can help ensure these critical jobs continue serving workers and communities for generations to come.

BCI’s quarterly social hours are a space to highlight local co-ops and for fellow organizers in the solidarity economy to build relationships and weave communities and projects together. This social will take place on Tuesday, November 10 at 6pm at the Dew Drop Inn (2801 8th Street NE). Light food will be provided and drinks will be available to order.

Join the Harriet's Responders to learn the fundamentals of direct action and safety protocols to use during a protest.

In the wake of recent protests and rallies in Washington, DC, we extend a warm invitation to participate in our free "Basic Skills & Knowledge for Direct Actions" training.

This training is designed to provide fundamental skills aimed at ensuring your safety and well-being during these public demonstrations.

Who keeps us safe? We keep us safe!

On Monday, November 9, Rethinking Schools editor Jesse Hagopian will be in conversation with author Gary Tyler about his book Stitching Freedom: A True Story of Injustice, Defiance, and Hope in Angola Prison.

Gary Tyler spent more than four decades in prison for a murder he didn’t commit. At 17, he became the youngest person on death row in the United States.

The legacy of enslavement reverberates through the prison industrial complex. Angola Prison, where Tyler spent decades incarcerated, was built on the grounds of a former Louisiana plantation. On November 9, join our Teach the Black Freedom Struggle class to explore the connections between mass incarceration and the legacy of enslavement, and learn what sustained Tyler’s pursuit of justice.

As the DC Fiscal Policy Institute (DCFPI) celebrates 25 years of advancing racial and economic justice, we’re using this milestone to look beyond the immediate political landscape and think boldly about what comes next.

The Monday after Election Day, we’ll gather to discuss the imperative of a Third Reconstruction —a new era of transformative change in our democracy, economy, and public institutions—and what it will take to advance that change. We’ll discuss DC’s specific role in catalyzing a new wave of political rights nationally and the next wave of transformative economic rights locally.

Join us for this critical conversation about what’s possible—and what it will take to build the future we deserve.

The MLK Black Studies Book Club meets every first Saturday of the month to explore, engage, and discuss books from and relating to the Black radical tradition.

The MLK Black Studies Book Club meets the first Saturday of each month to explore, engage, and discuss books from and relating to the Black radical tradition. Selections include classics from authors such as Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, W.E.B. DuBois, James Baldwin, and Audre Lorde, as well as lesser known and contemporary works. The book club's scope encompasses an array of authors from across the African diaspora who challenge existing notions of what constitutes Blackness and Black Struggle. Please email The People's Archive at peoples.archive@dc.gov to inquire about meetings and to be placed on the listserv. 

Join Eyewitness Palestine and The Jerusalem Fund for a panel discussion examining the experiences of Palestinians during the olive harvest under Israeli occupation.

Featuring Nancy Mansour, Imani Bashir, former Congresswoman Cori Bush, Reverend Dr. Stephany Rose, and more.

The conversation will explore violence against Palestinian communities by Israeli settlers and occupation forces, with additional perspectives from panelists in Palestine.

Moderated by Said Arikat, this event offers an opportunity to hear firsthand accounts and deepen understanding of the ongoing struggles facing Palestinian communities.

Thank you for committing to build a new coherent national mass movement for racial, economic, social and environmental liberation. Be prepared. The one-percenters will come after you. They will try to divide, to discredit, and even destroy. Your courage and careful organizing will be tested again and again. But you may be surprised by the response you get. People are waiting for something defiant. We all want to join a movement that helps spread the word, that fights for structural change, that links us together, that multiplies our efforts, that keeps us hopeful.

It’s time to face up to runaway economic inequality – what causes it, what it’s doing to us, and what we can do about it.

Location will be in SE DC.

The Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian (NMAI) and Teaching for Change deliver a day of online conversation, curriculum highlights, workshops, and idea exchange — preceded by a short keynote presentation. Participants will have the chance to attend two rounds of workshops and engage with each other virtually via Zoom. Registration coming soon!

This social is open to all Black folks in DC. Come meet someone new, chat about how we are strategizing around the elections, and learn how you can be part of our organizing.

Mothers Outreach Network will host the Mother Up National Convening on November 5–6, 2026, in Baltimore, Maryland, in partnership with the University of Baltimore School of Law's Sayra and Neil Meyerhoff Center for Families, Children and the Courts (CFCC). I am honored to announce that Professor Dorothy Roberts will deliver the keynote address — a special opportunity to hear directly from the scholar who has defined the legal and constitutional critique of family policing.

Learn more about Professor Roberts: https://www.dorothyeroberts.com

This convening brings together researchers, advocates, funders, and mothers with lived experience, offering the Mother Up Pilot's methodology as a model others can build on and help spread. The pilot itself is the first known guaranteed income research pilot studying the impact of cash on child welfare system involvement, with independent research conducted by the Access to Justice Lab at Harvard Law School. Its concept was published in 2022, in the article "Building a Guaranteed Income to end the 'Child Welfare' System." At its core, this work is about transforming family policing — the harmful, coercive, and unconstitutional policing of families — into systems of care that keep families whole. This convening also marks the launch of an ongoing group that will continue this work together beyond the event itself.

We are excited to host you at this year's Curtain's Up: An Evening With Ally Theatre & Voices Unbarred! Come prepared to eat, create, give, and be in community.

This intimate evening is our opportunity to celebrate you, the community of supporters who make our work possible, and to share what your generosity has helped us build and sustain over the past year.

Join us for an evening of:

• Powerful performances from our Community Advocates;

• Lived experiences and reflections from members of our Voices Unbarred community;

• A taste of the work itself, with interactive games and exercises that invite you to get up, participate, and experience our programming firsthand;

• Good food, conversation, and connection with the people who make this work possible; and

• Opportunities to give back, including our silent auction and other ways to support Ally & Voices as we look toward the year ahead.

On November 5, DC Council will hear testimony on three crucial bills that provide safety and accountability during this dangerous and deadly occupation:

• The Body-Worn Camera bill requires MPD to release their body cam footage if a federal officer uses force in front of them.

• The Full Accountability in Arrest Reporting bill (FAAR) requires MPD to list federal officers and agencies present in arrest reports and affidavits.

• The Safe Places bill prohibits MPD from assisting with federal operations in schools, churches, and other "safe places", barring emergencies.

We have seen federal agents violate rights, shoot at residents, and terrify students and other community members, all while hiding behind a smokescreen of ever-shifting "partnership" with MPD. Council must pass these laws, in their strongest possible form, and remind everyone that MPD works for us, not them.

This is the bi-weekly meeting of Metro DC DSA's Trans and Queer Liberation Campaign. RSVP to receive the Zoom link and join us to discuss ongoing efforts such as Project Sanctuary, our Gender & Name Change Clinics, and more!

After a successful first event last fall, we are excited to invite you to join us on 11/4 for another DC Artist Mixer to meet fellow creatives in the DMV area!  We define "Artist" very broadly and inclusively: painter, dancer, musician, photographer, writer, ceramicist, fabric artist, food vendor, comedian, event curator, or any others who identify as a creative (whether it's professional, amateur or a hobby).

Satluj (originally Punjab’95), directed by Honey Trehan and featuring Diljith Dosanj, is a film that tells the story of human rights activist Jaswanth Singh Khalra and how he and his team uncovered mass abductions, killings, and secret cremations of thousands of Sikhs during the 90s.

This movie had to fight years of censorship and was ultimately not allowed to be released in theaters in India. From remote villages in Punjab to large cities around the world, the people of Punjab have been holding public screenings of Satluj to help share the true stories of the countless lives lost, to grieve communally, and to continue fighting for justice.

We gather here in DC with the same intention. All justice and peace loving people are invited to attend the screening of Satluj followed by a discussion.

Learn about the ongoing movement led by Black women fighting for the right to live, gather, and belong in Washington, DC.

Deepen your knowledge of the long and ongoing struggle for safe, decent, and affordable housing in the nation’s capital and the central leadership of Black working-class women, like Linda Leaks, in the movement.

Known locally as the "Godmother of DC Housing Cooperatives," Linda Leaks serves as an important theoretical and political figure. This teach-in will extend access to this critical history at a moment when it has great value, as the nation’s capital continues to be one of the most rapidly gentrifying cities in the United States.

At this teach-in, join humanities scholars, activists and organizers, and DC area educators and more and engage in three learning experiences—a moderated roundtable, small group discussions, and a collective share back session designed to amplify this vital movement. 

The PLWG seeks to protect public property throughout the District of Columbia. We want to end DC's sordid track record of privatizing public land & public air rights for speculative profit extraction. Following on, we want to pursue Social Housing for any public land scheduled for residential redevelopment.

Every DC voter should be able to participate in November’s election fully and fairly. To make sure that happens, we need your help.

Election Protection Field Volunteers play a key role by being present outside voting locations, assisting voters who might have questions, or resolving issues as they evolve. Roles include Election Protection Field Attorney for volunteers with a legal background and Grassroots Poll Monitor for those who do not have a legal background.

Learn more by joining one of the Election Protection Volunteer Trainings on October 26 and 29. The same material will be presented in each session. These trainings are required for people who have signed up to be a DC Election Protection volunteer and are open to everyone.

This training is led by the DC Election Protection Coalition. The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, Advancement Project, Free DC, Harriet’s Wildest Dreams, Washington Interfaith Network, and Common Cause have come together to assist and protect voters by answering questions and resolving issues throughout election season. Join our efforts to help keep elections free and fair for all. Register to attend this virtual training at the link below.

Courtwatch DC is a growing DC-based program that provides the space and training for the community to observe local court proceedings in the District of Columbia and document our city’s policies in action and to hold judicial actors accountable for injustice in the court system.

Courtwatch DC is powered by Harriet’s Wildest Dreams, with support from DC Justice Lab, and DC IWOC and was founded and led by formerly incarcerated Black women.

Courtwatching is a form of mutual aid. Inspired by Courtwatch PG, we strive to ensure that our community of Courtwatchers is multigenerational, multiracial, anti-racist, and moving towards an abolitionist future.

Join Shout Mouse Press at Planet Word in celebration of the highly anticipated book launch of Stubborn Roots: Poems to Grow a Better World. This bold new collection of poetry from Shout Mouse Press illuminates today’s activist experience through the poetry and essays of our most vital and essential youth. Stubborn Roots was created in partnership with Split This Rock.

Jury duty is not just a civic responsibility — it’s a powerful tool for ensuring fairness and justice.

As community members, our participation in juries is vital to safeguarding the rights of those who are most vulnerable to systemic biases. By serving on a jury, we can influence outcomes and help create a more equitable legal process.

On October 28, join Harriet’s Wildest Dreams and Free DC for the next offering of our Jury Information Project training. This will be an opportunity to engage in meaningful conversation, learn from legal experts, and find out how you can play a pivotal role in shaping a more just society.

In this session, we will discuss: the interrelated histories of capitalism and slavery, how the creation of the plantation system became the engine for capitalism, both the in U.S. and the Caribbean, the relationship between slavery and the development of race, the history of resistance from enslaved peoples, and the ways all this continues to shape our world today.

The session will be led by Joshua L of the Metro DC DSA Political Education Working Group.

Join the Bodily Autonomy Working Group for our JOINT CAMPAIGN MEETING, with both the Repro Justice Campaign and Trans and Queer Liberation campaign.

We will be meeting both in-person (MLK Library, Room 401-E) and on zoom. Attendees are highly encouraged to attend in-person, if at all possible.

A happy hour will follow at Penn Social.

DC tenants: Janeese wants to hear from you!

The majority of DC residents rent their homes, and renters face a host of challenges, from high costs to poor housing conditions to a lack of homes for large families. This town hall is an opportunity to share your experience and tell the Democratic nominee for mayor what you want to see from the next administration.

How can DC agencies do a better serving renters' needs? What do you think could bring down the cost of rent? Why are so many tenants falling behind on their rent, and what could motivate more people to pay? Janeese believes the answer to these questions begins with the people who experience these issues every day. So join her and her team to help inform our vision of affordable and dignified housing for all.

We are also looking for volunteers to make this event a success, including drivers, canvassers, and ushers! Please complete this form if you are interested in volunteering: https://go-janeesefordc.org/tenantvolunteer

/

Inquilinos de DC: ¡Janeese quiere escuchar de ustedes!

La mayoría de los residentes de DC rentan su hogares y se enfrentan a una serie de desafíos: desde costos elevados y malas condiciones hasta la falta de viviendas adecuadas para familias numerosas. Esta reunión pública es una oportunidad para compartir su experiencia y decirle a la candidata demócrata a la alcaldía qué esperan de la próxima administración.

¿Cómo pueden las agencias de DC atender mejor las necesidades de los inquilinos? ¿Qué medidas podrían ayudar a reducir el costo de la renta? ¿Por qué tantos inquilinos se están retrasando en el pago de su renta, y qué podría motivar a más personas a realizar sus pagos? Janeese considera que la respuesta a estas preguntas comienza con las personas que viven estas situaciones a diario. Por eso, le invitamos a unirse a ella y a su equipo para ayudar a definir nuestra visión de una vivienda digna y asequible para todos.

También buscamos voluntarios para asegurar el éxito de este evento; necesitamos personas que colaboren como conductores, promotores, y personal de apoyo. Si le interesa ser voluntario, por favor complete este formulario:https://go-janeesefordc.org/tenantvolunteer