Districtly Speaking

Greetings Community Partners and Changemakers!

What a remarkable year of amplifying voices and capturing culture across the District!

In 2024, we launched our new blog "The District Speaks," celebrated Howard University's centennial homecoming through our photo series, created "Talk of the Town" - a dedicated space showcasing the vibrant events and conversations shaping our community and covered the 2024 election!

Now it’s time for a much needed break…

Wishing you a joyful holiday season, and looking forward to amplifying more voices and creating positive change together in 2025!

BREAKING NEWS: Former President Donald Trump has won the 2024 presidential election, defeating Vice President Kamala Harris in the Electoral College with 277 votes as of now; Arizona and Nevada are yet to be called. He is only the second president in American history to serve non-consecutive terms.

BREAKING NEWS: Democrat Angela Alsobrooks has defeated Republican Larry Hogan in Maryland’s senate race. At the time of the race being called, she is up by 9.8%.

Our photo series, “There’s No Place Like Home(Coming): A Century of Legacy at Howard University,” captured the essence of HU’s historic 100th homecoming. The celebratory experience featured an array of talent, music, fashion, and dance and honored unity, joy, and, most importantly, love. It brought together people of all ages and backgrounds, making it a family reunion of current Howard students, alumni, and friends to celebrate the university that gave so many a place to thrive and others a place to appreciate Black excellence. Relive the experience through our lens and immerse yourself in HU’s influential legacy.

Photo credits: and .ramadan

Join us for a special happy hour to toast over a decade of engaging conversations and community connections!

NEW BLOG POST: Shelved Voices: How Books Bans Impact Us

"Growing up, I didn’t see myself represented in books. I never saw the Black and Caribbean girl with curly hair at the forefront of a story and as the main character. I never read about her ambitions, hopes, and dreams. I never learned about her or her story." - Nicole Townsend

"This is a very deliberate attempt to suppress marginalized voices and ensure that students don’t question authority. These book bans have caused K-12 schools and even universities to drastically alter or remove certain courses about history. All of this leads to a declining educational system throughout the entire state, and more students that don’t understand the true fabric of our country. Simply put, book bans are a national tragedy." - Rabeh Ramadan

districtlyspeaking.com

Districtly Speaking was thrilled to attend the start of Banned Books Week in DC with the “Shelved Voices” event, and found it so incredibly insightful. The admirable work of librarians and the national issue of book banning is often under-discussed, and this event allowed us to truly understand this pressing issue.

We spoke to Richard Reyes-Gavilan, Executive Director of the DC Public Library System, to learn more about the problems we’re facing and why Banned Books Week is so important.

Interview With Richard Reyes-Gavilan Districtly Speaking was thrilled to attend the start of Banned Books Week in DC with the “Shelved Voices” event, and found it so incredibly insightful. The a...

The debate between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump happened nearly a week ago, and people are still talking about it. Read our new blog post, “A Trump Debate Loss Sparked by Anger” now on our website; the link is in the bio!

Meet Rabeh—a senior Political Science major at .edu who will be working as a Junior Media & Content Creator for Districtly Speaking! Hisprimary focus will be on writing informational pieces, creating social media content, and covering events in the area. He is excited to be working with veteran journalist and getting to create connections. Are you hosting an event or talk that Districtly Speaking should cover? Let us know and send us a DM!

Meet Nicole—a senior Journalism major at who will be working as a Junior Media & Content Creator for Districtly Speaking! Her primary focus will be on writing opinion pieces, creating social media content, and covering events in the area. She is excited to be working with veteran journalist and finally getting to explore D.C. Are you hosting an event or talk that Districtly Speaking should cover? Let us know and send us a DM!

We’re happy to announce that our new blog post, “Justice Brown Jackson pens ‘Love Letter’ to her Ancestors,” is now on the blog! You can check it out through the link in our bio. It focuses on Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson’s new memoir “Lovely One” as she kicked off her book tour at The Kennedy Center. Please go and read it now! 👩🏾‍⚖️