Recent Posts
Keeping Housing Affordable: Baldwin House
On July 24th, DC Ward 1 Mutual Aid/the Baldwin House organizers held an event at the building they’re buying to celebrate their wins, gather community, and create space for current building tenants to share their stories. During this event, Natacia generously allowed the team at Grassroots DC to interview them.
“We’re here to help”
“The immense power at the core of policing offers impunity that leads to questions of its legitimacy. There cannot be a solution without acknowledging the force, history, and scale of policing. “
Cash Bail 101
It is quite easy to be apprehended, despite what most people may believe. This is because police do not have to be “convinced” that you are guilty. If there is sufficient evidence for the police, regardless of the situation, you can be arrested and convicted…
Police Reforms: What went wrong? Part 3
The logic often applied to Body Worn Cameras when people call for this reform is that the threat of having misconduct recorded will prevent police from carrying out said misconduct. Unfortunately, this has not been the case…
Police Reforms: What went wrong? Part 2
Following the murder of George Floyd and the mass protests that he inspired, DC passed the Comprehensive Policing and Justice Reform Emergency Amendment Act of 2020. The act includes the following provisions…
Police Reforms: What went wrong? Part 1
For years now, police reform has been a mainstay in public discourse... In the almost 10 years since the inception of BLM, what reforms have been happening here in DC? And have those reforms been effective in reducing, if not ending, police brutality?…
DC Evictions: Fact vs Fiction
The Best, Most Researched, COVID-19 Self-Care Guide for Black and Brown Communities
Not surprisingly, [Covid-19 has] hit communities of color particularly hard. This article was written to help individuals in African-American and Latinx communities deal with the Rona in the event that it enters their homes…
What Deon Kay’s Mentor Wants You to Know About Him
“They’re portraying him as a man, but he was a kid. He was into tennis shoes and video games.”
Stop Police Terror DC And Black Lives Matter DC Condemn The Murder Of Deon Kay
The same false, racist narrative that stole Deon’s boyhood and turned him into a full grown man out for blood is the same narrative we have seen from Mayor Bowser and MPD over and over again…
COVID-19 Remains a Problem within Black and Brown Communities
The coronavirus pandemic has a greater impact on Black and Brown communities. Here’s why Black, Indigenous and People of Color need to take greater precautions…
Black Lives Matter DC Demands Change in the Name of Those Killed by Police in the District of Columbia
Black people are allowed to be joyful or feel seen with DC renaming a street after Black Lives Matter. It’s also our responsibility to let you know what we are fighting for, who has the power to change things and that power concedes nothing without demand…
Are Shelters an Option for the UnHoused During a Pandemic? Is There a Better Way?
In the District of Columbia, there are people who have gone far too unnoticed in their community. They are some of the most brilliant and creative souls in the region. They are masters of innovation with the ability to weather extraordinary situations. These are the unhoused, or homeless, as people want to call them…
Should Black and Brown Organizers Trust White Allies?
Especially now, we all need to work together, fight injustices and help each other. I don’t want any level of distrust to get in the way of working together for the greater good. So consider this a case study: “Should Black and Brown Organizers Trust White Allies?”…
Coronavirus is Devastating the Homeless Community: DC Must Pivot Quickly to Save Lives
Perhaps no moment more critically highlights the crucial importance of and need for housing and safe spaces than the current public health emergency. COVID-19 has ravaged the most vulnerable communities across this nation…
The People’s COVID-19 Demands
Supporting COVID-19 Mutual Aid Efforts
As the spread of the coronavirus has accelerated over the past week, we are reminded yet again of one key truth: The state will not keep us safe—but we can keep each other safe…
Martin Luther King Explains the Three Evils of Society
By focusing only on the speeches and actions that do not criticize Capitalism or US Imperialism, most Americans have no real understanding of the depth of King’s critique of the United States and its policies. Sure, overt bigotry is bad, and it’s kinda crazy to think of not sitting next to a Black person at a lunch counter or on the bus, but all that talk about poverty, his support for unions and the anti-war movement–do we really need to go there?…
Black Lives Matter: Open Letter to the Board of the Women’s March
As we approach the 4th Annual Women’s March this Saturday, and especially given our interactions with Women’s March staff and leadership over the last month, it has become apparent, again, that all of our efforts to call you in have failed. You have failed both to fulfill your agreements to acknowledge the harm you have caused, and to complete the reparations you have previously committed to…
A Timeline of Events Leading Up to The “Revitalization” of Barry Farm
With the deconstruction and rebuilding of Barry Farm (most commonly referenced as Barry Farms to residents and longtime D.C citizens) 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.