Movie tomorrow!

This is a great book about community organizing and urban revitalization. Some of the stuff inside will blow your mind (arson as a "redevelopment strategy" or discussion of the brutal redlining of neighborhoods to foster segregation and profit).

Holding Ground is a movie about the Dudley Street Neighborhood Initiative in Boston, a ground-up revitalization and redevelopment effort that is democratically run. It is well known for having "eminent domain" powers, which is why I am always hesitant to mention this example in DC, because here community development corporations are more well known for not being democratically run, for holding properties for years (called "mothballing"), for the demolition of historic properties, and for building horrendously ugly new buildings. Since eminent domain is a special power to be used carefully and lightly, I don't think DC's cdcs, have by and large, "earned the right" to execute such powers.

Since people in DC aren't too good about drawing the right lessons from revitalization (see Jane Jacobs' letter in the previous entry, making the distinction between ground-up revitalization vs. big projects and economic development "extravaganzas"), I hesitate to trumpet this example.

Nonetheless, the great grassroots community organization "EmpowerDC" is showing the movie "Holding Ground" tomorrow nite. This movie is about the organizing of the Dudley Street Neighborhood Initiative (as is the book) and it is an inspiring story.

_______________From the flyer:

Gentrification out of Control!

Residents Can Fight Back and Win!

Holding Ground

Tuesday, May 24th
6:30 – 8:30 PM
1419 V St, NW
Basement Conference Room
RSVP Empower DC (202) 234-9119

Holding Ground: The Rebirth of Dudley Street
A story of Hope about Residents who Came Together to form the Dudley Street Neighborhood Initiative and Rebuild their Community through grassroots Organizing and planning.


Parisa B. Norouzi
Co-Director/Organizer
District of Columbia Grassroots Empowerment Project
(Empower DC)
1419 V St, NW
Washington, DC 20009
(202) 234-9119