VOL. 53, NO. 10 • DECEMBER 21 - 27, 2017
Happy Holidays to All from the WI Family
Local Museum Holds Special Performance For Kwanzaa
Leaders of Tomorrow Speak Out Today
Students from SE’s Democracy Prep Dispel Unfair Stereotypes
By Lauren Poteat WI Contributing Writer
By D. Kevin McNeir WI Editor @dkevinmcneir Negative comments tend to be the norm when folks talk about those who live in the District’s southeast communities – whether those remarks have merit or not. But for one group of sixth-graders from Democracy Prep Congress Heights in Ward 8, they assert that they not only refuse to accept such negative stereotypes but note that they can easily illustrate how much they know about their neighborhood, their city and their country’s current political state of affairs. And under the able tutelage of their mathematics teacher, Bran-
DEMOCRACY Page 13
‘Uncle Charlie’ Set to Return in Style - Page 24
5 Leon Harris, News4 anchor and Children’s Charities Foundation board member, and Cathy Rowe, Walmart team member, prepare for a selfie with local students wearing newly received coats at the 2017 Coats for Kids Project, Dec. 14, in Northwest. Made possible through a $30,000 grant from the Walmart Foundation, the Coats for Kids is a project of the Children’s Charities Foundation and will distribute more than 3,000 coats to District youth this year; more than 18,000 coats have been provided over the program’s six-year history. /Photo by E Watson/EDI Photo
Parents Get a Second Chance During the Holidays By Lauren Poteat WI Contributing Writer
5 Brandon Frey teaches a math lesson to 6th graders at Democracy Prep in Southeast. /Photo by Shevry Lassiter
Robbed at gunpoint with a rifle pointed at her face, Lakia Barnett didn’t know if she would live or die filled with tears on her apartment floor. She pleaded with her attackers as she thought about her children at that very moment. Already behind on the rent, way past due after both she and her husband had simultaneously lost their jobs a few months earlier, the 32-yearold couldn’t imagine anything more horrendous than being robbed — until she, her husband and three children wound up homeless.
For four years, the tight knit family bounced from one sleeping quarter to the next, eventually finding a semblance of stability inside of the decapitated D.C. General, where they stayed for nearly two years. “Don’t worry, God will take care of our family,” the oldest sibling, 11year old Kareem would tell his parents and younger siblings. Issuing words that spoke life, the family is finally ready to move into their own dwelling, through a D.C. housing voucher, just in time for Christmas. “Don’t ever assume people are
DONATION Page 13
Residents all across the District are gearing up to celebrate Kwanzaa, the ancestral-based holiday known by many as “America’s Black Christmas.” The Smithsonian Anacostia Cultural Museum is rolling out the red carpet for the weeklong event, which starts the first day after Christmas. “This year, [the museum] is celebrating 50 years of service for the D.C. community,” said Paul Perry, the museum’s director of education and outreach. “And as a part of our yearlong celebration, we are really excited to showcase our signature program, ‘Kwanzaa’ that has been happening for almost 15 years and is always abundantly well received throughout the community.” “We have a dedicated audience and mixed community. This particular event goes far beyond just a good show ... it cements family structure, addresses items that Martin Luther King Jr. once preached and stimulates creativity. It’s a good time, free and something definitely worth participating in.” The celebration will kick off Dec. 26 and run through Dec. 28 from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. at the Fort Stanton Recreation Center. The first event, “The Dancing Diplomat,” which will feature storytelling and more by Nana Malaya Rucker, will also incorporate audience participation and African percussion instruments. “I love that the community still celebrates and supports Kwanzaa,” said Tina Smith, a former D.C.
KWANZA Page 31
Celebrating 53 Years of Service / Serving More Than 50,000 African American Readers Throughout The Metropolitan Area