Debates about the city’s new graduation requirements only skim the surface of our students’ problems with college- and workforce-readiness, writes a member of the D.C. State Board of Education.
Each week, we list some ways to get engaged in the city — whether that’s protesting, organizing with your neighbors, or testifying before your councilmembers. This isn't an exhaustive list; share your events and trainings with us at 51st.news/submit-events.
For more ways to get connected, check out our resources roundup; and for more to do around the city, don't miss our Weekend Events post.
ONGOING
D.C. Youth Jail book drive A local law student who's been interning with D.C.'s Public Defender Service is launching a book drive for kids at the D.C. Youth Services Center. There's a wishlist of books linked above, which you can drop off at As You Are in Barracks Row or at the Howard Law Library.
WEDNESDAY, JULY 15
Juror Information Project ⏰ 6 - 8 p.m. 📍 Location shared upon RSVP Jury duty isn't just a day off work — it's an opportunity for everyday citizens to do our part to push for fairer legal system. This teach-in from Harriet's Wildest Dreams will cover the responsibilities of a juror and how you can use your next summons to protect your neighbors. RSVP here.
Freedom Dreaming Session 1 ⏰ 6 - 8 p.m. 📍 Campbell AME Church (2568 Martin Luther King Jr Ave. SE) Free DC is hosting a dream session, inviting neighbors to imagine how life in D.C. could be different with full autonomy, and to scheme about how we can come together to realize those plans. RSVP here.
Vigil for Lorenzo Salgado Araujo ⏰ 7:30 p.m. 📍 14th and Park Road NW Several local political organizing groups — Families Not Feds and Parenting in Community among them — are hosting a gathering in memory of the Houston man who ICE agents shot and killed last week, and all others who've been affected by violence against immigrants in D.C. and around the country.
THURSDAY, JULY 16
Hot dogs for abortions fundraiser ⏰ 6 - 9 p.m. 📍 Garden District (1801 14th St. NW) Local hot sauce purveyor and reproductive justice advocate, Female Rage Hot Sauce, is hosting a fundraiser for the D.C. Abortion Fund. Imagine: All you have to do is buy a hot dog, and you, too, can ensure everyone has access to affordable and safe abortion! What could be better? No RSVP needed — just show up hungry.
Ward 8 Free DC meeting ⏰ 6:30 - 8 p.m. 📍 Harriet's House (30 Atlantic St. SE) The Ward 8 Free DC team is coming together for its monthly meeting, focusing on what it will take to protect Home Rule. For those new to Free DC, you're encouraged to attend a campaign orientation before diving in with your ward team. There's one on Saturday!
FRIDAY, JULY 17
Hands Around the Kennedy Center ⏰6:30 - 8 p.m. 📍 The Kennedy Center (2700 F St. NW) For months, D.C. neighbors have been organizing actions to protest the Trump administration's meddling in the operations of D.C.'s iconic performing arts center. Friday marks the final vigil of the summer — a "joyful gathering" hosted by Tara Hoot and Hands Off the Arts. Turn out if you want to see the Kennedy Center brought back!
SATURDAY, JULY 18
Community garden design workshop ⏰ 12 - 2 p.m. 📍 The Festival Center (1640 Columbia Rd. NW) Ward 1 Mutual Aid and Nature Sacred are teaming up for a final workshop on the design plan for the forthcoming Baldwin House community garden. It'll be the public's last chance to give feedback on the design. There will also be food and a free workshop on medicinal herbs by a clinical herbalist.
Free tour of the Frederick Douglass House ⏰ 10:30 - 12 p.m. tour of the site, 12:30 - 2 p.m. panel at Busboys & Poets 📍 Frederick Douglass National Historic Site (411 W St. SE), Busboys & Poets Anacostia (2004 Martin Luther King Jr Ave. SE) Rising Organizers' final event of their DC Summer of Freedom Campaign will be a tour through the Frederick Douglass House, followed by an intergenerational panel of movement leaders — Judy Richardson, Bill Fletcher Jr., and Aaron Booe — discussing the past, present, and future of organizing.
Free DC Campaign Orientation ⏰ 10 - 11:30 a.m. 📍 Ward 3 (location shared upon RSVP) If you're looking to get involved in the local movement to protect D.C.'s autonomy, this is where to start. Free DC is hosting this orientation as part of the nationwide weekend of action in memory of Congressman John Lewis, whose concept of "good trouble" serves as a guiding principle for local resistance movements. Get caught up to speed on the workings and goals of Free DC while putting Lewis' legacy into practice. RSVP here.
For the Culture Community Day ⏰ 12 - 5 p.m. 📍 Anacostia Park (1900 Anacostia Dr. SE) Black Lives Matter DC is hosting a bash in the park, full of food, games, music, and community. Bring the whole family! No RSVP required.
Colleen is a 51st co-founder and a former DCist reporter. Her work has appeared in NPR, Street Sense Media, and The Washington Post. She currently lives in New York, where she's pursuing an MFA.
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