VOL. 53, NO. 30 • MAY 10 - 16, 2018
Show Your Love, Honor Our Matriarchs on Mother’s Day
See our Health Supplement in the Center Section
Is Technology the Key to Ending Disparities in U.S.?
D.C. Officials to Feds: Butt Out of Local Affairs By Tatyana Hopkins WI Staff Writer
‘Yes,’ Says State of Black America 2018 Report By D. Kevin McNeir WI Editor @dkevinmcneir The long list of troubling conditions and disparities still plaguing the majority of African-American communities may have improved within the last several decades due, in part, to the determination and leadership of and sacrifices made by Blacks and their allies during the Civil Rights Movement, but disturbing, even life-threatening inequities disparities still exist for people of color in the U.S. And in preparation for the July 29 premier on TV One, the multi-media company teamed up with National Urban League [NUL] on Tuesday, May 8, to produce the groundbreaking news special, 2018 State of Black America Town Hall. Taped at the Howard Theatre in Northwest and hosted by TV One’s news personality Roland S. Martin, the town hall examined the NUL’s annual State of Black America report – a document that has been published for the last 42 years on racial equality and justice in America. Several hundred members of the Black community attended the taping as members of the audience with some sharing comments and asking questions. Taped to air as a two-hour special, the town hall brought together some of our nation’s greatest thought leaders, journalists and public figures for a powerful
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5 TV One and the National Urban League joined forces to host a televised town hall taping on Tuesday, May 8 that will become a two-hour special, airing Monday, July 29, on “The State of Black America.” Panelists who weighed-in on health care and voting/civic engagement in the second of two discussions include (l-r): Shermichael Singleton, political strategist; Linda Goler Blount, president/CEO, Black Women’s Health Initiative; Benjamin Crump, civil rights attorney; and Angela Yee, radio personality. /Photo by Roy Lewis
District officials want the federal government to stay out of their local business by trying to control local policy. D.C. Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton and Mayor Muriel Bowser held a press conference alongside a collation of organizations to speak out against the policy riders in the federal budget. Chairman Phil Mendelson and a national and local coalition working to protect local D.C. laws from being blocked or overturned during the fiscal year 2019 appropriations process joined them. “We want Congress to keep their hands off the things that mat-
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Affordable Housing Crisis Plagues D.C. Residents By Jonathan Franklin Special to The Informer
Columbia Heights is known for its panoramic view of downtown D.C., racial diversity, numerous businesses — both small and retail — and its bustling restaurant scene. But despite all of the positives, Columbia Heights struggles with a lack of affordable housing for its residents. “I have lived in the area for over 12 years now and by the looks of it over time, there has been constant change in housing, mostly negative,” said Sheri Johnson, a longtime resident of the Columbia Heights neighborhood and a recipient of the District’s affordable housing services. “It seems as though there has been a new, expensive living option popping up in
the area every year.” The insufficient amount of affordable housing continues to be a crisis that many communities across the country face. According to The Washington Post, nearly 40 percent of households in the District being recipients of affordable housing, 47,000 families are on the D.C. Housing Authority’s waiting list for public housing, and more than 7,500 people are homeless. The process for obtaining affordable housing in the District comes with many hoops and hurdles — going through an extensive application process, income verification and lottery pool — as affordable housing is a crucial need for many residents across the eight wards. Within the Columbia Heights-
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5 Columbia Heights residents have been affected by new housing developments in the community. /Photo courtesy of Jonathan Franklin
Celebrating 53 Years of Service / Serving More Than 50,000 African American Readers Throughout The Metropolitan Area