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DECEMBER 2025 HEALTH WELLNESS & NUTRITION SUPPLEMENT
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Vol 61 No 9
During Marathon Hearing, Youth and Advocates Speak Against Juvenile Curfew and Federal Law Enforcement Cooperation
Serving Our Community in the DMV
December 11 - 17, 2025
Amid Crime Decline and Federal-Local Law Enforcement Collusion, Metropolitan Police Chief Pamela A. Smith Resigns Despite Successes, Questions Persist about Crime Data Manipulation, Emergency Juvenile Curfew
By Sam P.K. Collins WI Staff Writer If anyone could speak to how the Metropolitan Police Department’s (MPD) cooperation with federal law enforcement agencies has affected young people, it’s the Rev. William Young IV. Young recently stood outside of the John A. Wilson Building in Northwest, alongside other re- 5 The Rev. William Young IV of Covenant Baptist United Church of Christ says he’s found it difficult to engage ligious leaders, as he spoke about the difficulty he’s youth who, amid local-federal law enforcement cooperation, don’t want to be anywhere near Metropolitan Police
CURFEW Page 48 Department officers. (Courtesy Photo/Washington Interfaith Network)
4 D.C. residents, consumers and environmental advocates rally outside the D.C. Public Service Commission building on Nov. 18, voicing their disapproval of Washington Gas’s proposed District SAFE plan. (Mya Trujillo/The Washington Informer)
By Sam P.K. Collins WI Staff Writer During what’s gearing up to be a major shift for the District government, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser announced that Metropolitan Police Chief Pamela A. Smith is resigning from her position as the top local law enforcement official at the end of the year.
SMITH RESIGNS Page 11
Adrienne Jones Steps Down as Speaker Del. Joseline Peña-Melnyk Emerges as Favorite
By Richard Elliott WI Contributing Reporter
Local Activists Speak Out Against Washington Gas Pipeline Replacement Plan Advocates Call for More Sustainable, Affordable Alternatives to Natural Gas
By Mya Trujillo WI Contributing Writer Since 2014, Washington Gas (WGL) has been working to modernize the District’s natural gas distribution system by replacing older pipelines throughout the region. Although the company claims to do so for ensured safety and
reliability across the area, local climate advocates disapprove of the plan, deeming it more harmful than beneficial to residents and the environment. “Washington Gas is doubling down on fossil fuel infrastructure because it helps their bottom line, despite D.C residents and lead-
GAS Page 22
Tributes and thanks poured in from all corners of Maryland for Del. Adrienne Jones (D- District 10) as she announced the end of her historic tenure as the first African-American and woman to serve as speaker of Maryland’s House of Delegates, effective on Dec. 5. “Acknowledging the changes in my life leaves me both pensive and hopeful. Committed to the continued work of community for the people of this great state of Maryland, I am stepping back 5 Adrienne Jones is no longer speaker of the Maryland House as speaker of the House effective of Delegates, after stepping down as the first African-American immediately,” she said in a state- and woman to serve in the role. She will remain a delegate.
JONES Page 12 (WI File Photo/Anthony Tilghman)
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