RECIPIENT OF THE DC BLACK MBA ASSOCIATION 2023 LEGACY AWARD
Vol 60 No 51
Federal Government Shutdown Leaves D.C. Residents on Edge
Serving Our Community in the DMV
October 2 - 8, 2025
Capture the Moment Page 35
With D.C. in Congress’ Shadow, Mayor Bowser Promotes ‘Growth Agenda’
Bowser Presses Senate Democrats to Stop Anti-D.C. Bills, While Other Black Mayors Reflect on Trump Administration Infringement
‘Can We Manage Through that Period of Time?’ By Sam P.K. Collins and Stacy M. Brown WI Staff Writers Despite what some on both sides of the aisle might consider their best efforts, Democrats and Republicans couldn’t avoid the first federal government shutdown in seven years, and the third to take place under President Donald J. Trump. In the days leading up to that fateful moment, Erica Williams expressed concern about what would become of D.C. residents who depend on federal programs. Williams told The Informer that, at this juncture, it’s only a question of 5 D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser, pictured at a March press conference about the how long it will take before them, and the local government continuing resolution that froze $1.1 billion in local funds, aims to induce private
By Sam P.K. Collins WI Staff Writer As a government shutdown looms large, and several laidoff federal government employees remain jobless, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser once again is reminded about the futility of depending on the federal government as an engine of economic mobility. Bowser emphasized the District’s unique challenges while speaking before an audience of congresspeople,
sector growth, and lessen the District’s economic reliance on federal government
AGENDA Page 44
SHUTDOWN Page 11 employment. (WI File Photo/Ja’Mon Jackson)
ALC54 Returns to D.C. with a Plan to ‘Secure Democracy’
Power Players, Concerned Citizens Tout the Importance of Voter Mobility, Nationwide Solidarity
5 Former Vice President Kamala Harris and Congressional Black Caucus Foundation (CBCF) Chair Alabama Rep. Terri Sewell at the CBCF Annual Legislative Conference Phoenix Awards on Sept, 27 at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Northwest, D.C. (Robert R. Roberts/The Washington Informer)
By Jada Ingleton WI Content Editor Set to the backdrop of a now official government shutdown, the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation (CBCF) 54th Annual Legislative Conference (ALC) – held Sept. 2428 – brought a roaring nation to the heart of Washington united in a plea for democracy and civil rights. Guided by the theme: “Made for This Moment: Power, Policy, Progress,” the conference mobilized legislators, community officials, influencers, celebrities and concerned constituents with the beginnings of what many likened to a continued legacy of civic resistance. “From education, to health care, to [affording] everyday costs that are mounting on their family…this is not just the agenda of Black Americans, it’s the agenda of America,” Rep. Cory Booker (D-NJ.) told The Informer, after convening a panel on Sept. 24. “This is a time, as [the late Georgia Rep. John Lewis] said, for all of us to think how we can cause ‘good trouble.’ At a
WRAP UP Page 38
OPC Launches Summit on Water Rights, Access Residents, Agencies Discuss Affordability, Conservation and Accountability
By Mya Trujillo WI Contributing Writer
Water is necessary to sustain all forms of life on Earth, and on Sept. 29, people flocked to Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library for the Office of the People’s Counsel (OPC) Water Services Division’s (WSD) inaugural community Water Summit, to discuss the most abundant and vital resource on the planet. The summit, intended to inform community members and leaders about affordability programs and water conservation efforts, featured panel discussions and breakout rooms curated for consumers with questions and concerns regarding water quality and accessibility in the District. Residents from all four quadrants were given the platform to ask questions and hold various water and energy agencies accountable, while also shedding light on the issues they face in
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OPC Page 23