This weekend our campaign comes to Ward 8. Please join us and walk with Clark and friends. Come on Saturday or Sunday or both days! We will meet up at 10 a.m. on Saturday and 2 p.m. on Sunday at the Big Chair Coffee in Anacostia. Details below:
Date: Saturday, January 30
Time: 10 a.m.
Meeting Place: Big Chair Coffee, 2122 Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue SE, 20020
Date: Sunday, January 31
Time: 2 p.m.
Meeting Place: Big Chair Coffee, 2122 Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue SE, 20020
| Copyright The Washington Informer http://tinyurl.com/ydjtkue |
| By Leah C. Taylor – WI Staff Writer |
| Thursday, January 21, 2010 |
 Denise Rolark Barnes, co-founder of the Annual Martin Luther King Peace Walk, reminds participants of the history of the Southeast corridor named in Dr. King’s honor and encourages them to reflect on the landmarks along the nearly two mile walk including the future home of Homeland Security on the campus of St. Elizabeth Hospital. Photo by Maurice G. FitzgeraldHundreds showed up to walk nearly two miles in honor of a man who preached peace and non-violence, but who also believed in civil disobedience. Four hundred people gathered on a church lot in historic Anacostia in Southeast and set-out on a two-mile trek through the streets to commemorate the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., during the Fourth Annual MLK Peace Walk, Mon., Jan. 18. This year’s walk attracted one of the largest crowds since its inception three years ago, organizers said. King represents peace. “One murder, one violent crime is too many. We as a community need to work to provide more opportunities for young people to get out of the conditions that many of them find themselves,” said Clark Ray. Ray, 46, the former director of the D.C. Department of Parks and Recreation and an Arkansas native, joined in the Peace Walk to pay homage to King’s legacy and to show his support for the East of the River community. “Whether it’s education or workforce development, we need to show there are more options than the street life,” he said. Passersby clapped, while residents and business owners along the corridor shouted words of encouragement to the marchers from second-and-third-story windows, store fronts, porches and sidewalk curbs. The first Peace Walk was held in 2007 after Council member Marion Barry (D-Ward 8), officially changed the date of the District’s annual Martin Luther King, Jr., Day Parade from January to April. Organizers said that it was important to recognize King on the federally observed holiday. “This is really just about the walk — to recognize Dr. King on this day — on this street which was named in his honor,” said Denise Rolark Barnes, publisher of the 45-year-old Washington Informer Newspaper, a mainstay in the Southeast community, and one of the event organizers, and co-founder of the Annual Peace Walk, along with Keith Silver and Yango Sawyer, local community activists. The campaign for a federal holiday in King’s honor began soon after his assassination in 1968. Led by Reps. John Conyers (D-Mich.) and the late Shirley Chisholm (D-N.Y.), President Ronald W. Reagan signed the holiday into law in 1983. The federal holiday was officially observed by all 50 states in 2000. The rambunctious crowd, a hodgepodge of young and old — men, women and children from all ethnic backgrounds and parts of the city participated for different reasons. “Martin Luther King, Jr., was one of the first street advocates who worked at the grassroots level,” said Calvin Woodland, Jr., chief of staff for Ward One Council member Jim Graham. “We have to continue this part of his legacy especially with so many issues to address in this community,” he said. Others paused for a moment to remember King’s vision. “The walk symbolizes that [Dr. King’s] dream is still alive,” said Antoniese Starks, a 29-year- old Southeast resident who works for Peaceoholics, a nonprofit organization based in Southeast. The crowd remained optimistic throughout the event, but everyday realities soon kicked in — the recent devastation in Haiti and the ongoing economic crisis that has resulted in an unprecedented loss of jobs, especially in the Black community – weighed heavily on the minds of some participants. “I don’t think too much has changed,” said Mike Whren, 52, a Southeast resident who was recently laid off from his job as a contractor. “We are still fighting for jobs and fighting to eat,” he said. |
Clark Ray today called for the community and the City to study the proposal to turn the long-abandoned Dupont Underground into an ARTS venue including galleries, space for artists, and experimental architecture. This would complement his previous support for a community generated proposal to re-energize the 17th street business strip by developing an open air ART MARKET following completion of the new streetscape project. Ray called for bringing together the Arts Coalition for Dupont Underground, ANC2B, the Dupont Circle Citizens Association, and local businesses and artists, to develop these proposals. This project would enliven DC’s arts scene, while benefiting residents and local businesses alike.
the next Councilmember At-Large
January 31st is the first filing deadline for our campaign. That is only 10 days from today. Clark has been out in the community every day, knocking on doors and meeting great people. Their response to his campaign has been tremendous. He has been endorsed by individuals and community leaders across the District from Ward 1 to Ward 8.
Please join us in the next 10 days and help Clark to raise campaign funds online. Donate $10, $100 or $1,000, or anywhere in-between. Every dollar helps as we bring our message to the people of the District.
CLICK HERE and make your donation today and then send this email to 10 of your friends so they can make their donations.
Help Clark move DC politics beyond the trench warfare, to real solutions for you, right there in your neighborhood.
| “Today we celebrate the birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr. It is a day to reflect on the work of this great civil rights leader who was also fought for world peace. We can look back with pride on the progress we have made in our nation to guarentee that all people are accorded their civil and human rights and are allowed to live their lives to their full potential. But at the same time, even after we proudly elected our first African American President, we as a society must recognize that the work of Martin Luther King Jr’s life is not complete. We have a long way to go to ensure that real equality is a reality for all people and that we can bring our children up in a world at peace. Let us today take the time to rededicate ourselves to complete his dream.” Please join Clark this morning at 10:00 AM ACC co-sponsors 4th annual MLK Peace Walk, starts at Bethlehem Baptist Church, 2500 MLK Ave, SE, and ends at Covenant Baptist Church, 3845 South Capitol Street, SW. |
Clark Ray today called on the Council and the Mayor to work together with laser like precision to ensure that the United Medical Center (UMC) formerly Greater Southeast Hospital, remains open and provides high level care to the people east of the river.
We must find an operator with the stable financial background to keep this hospital open and bring it back to stability without the need for the District taxpayers to continue to subsidize it with millions of dollars year after year.
I would urge that we bring to the table the other hospital operators in the District including MedStar and Howard and that the community and the DC Hospital Association be part of the discussion as well.
It is crucial that there is due diligence done on any new operator that is brought in to run this hospital so that the City is not continuously on the hook for failed operators who are there not to provide good medical care but rather to enrich themselves. The City has poured over $100 million into this hospital first with an owner from Arizona and now with an owner who lives in New Hampshire and we still have problems.
Running a hospital today is not an easy task. Major hospitals like Georgetown and Johns Hopkins often have only a 90 day or less cash flow reserve to cover their costs. But they are well run hospitals and are serving their patients with high level care. The people east of the River deserve no less in the hospital that serves them.
While it was crucial in 2007 to find an operator to keep the hospital open there were warnings then that Specialty which now runs UMC was not a stable operation. Clearly, decisions were made to keep it open. This time we need to both keep it open and get it right.
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Dear Friends,
Happy New Year! I wanted to very briefly share with you the momentum with which we’ve entered 2010.
Ended ‘09 With a Bang
We ended 2009 with a bang, attending community and neighborhood holiday celebrations across the city. We also began canvassing Ward 5, and hosted a community “drop off a board game” Meet & Greet, and donated the games to the Harry Thomas, Sr. Recreation Center. I also appeared on the Jonetta Rose Barras show to discuss the issues, listen here.
January 1: Canvassing on Day One
We kicked off January 1, 2010 by continuing to carry our message to the residents of Ward 5, Pct 19, and also visited the Safeway in Ward 6 on Kentucky Avenue. Continue Reading »
