Organizing Community Power!
1419 V St. NW, Washington, DC 20009 | (202) 234-9119
www.empowerdc.org | @EmpowerDC
May 29, 2015
Dear Friends,
My neighbors and I are fighting to save our home, Barry Farm – or the Farms, as
we call it. You’ll hear people say that my community is terrible, that it should be
torn down. But this place is ours. We are a community of people who look
out for each other, and we deserve to stay in our neighborhood, and in the
city we love.
You can only imagine how tired we got of being misled and ignored by the DC
Housing Authority and our city leaders. They treated us like we didn’t matter.
But then we joined Empower DC and got organized! From the City Council, to
the Zoning Commission, to the Mayor’s office, together we have challenged
policies, plans, and programs designed to displace us.
A letter from Detrice Belt,
Empower DC leader and Chair of
the Barry Farm Tenants and
Allies Association.
Fighting a battle like ours – to win improvements to our community and stop displacement – requires time,
energy, and resources. Please make a generous donation to Empower DC to ensure that they can continue to
support DC residents like me.
Empower DC helped my neighbors and me organize a tenant association – Barry Farm Tenants and
Allies – of which I am the Chair. To make sure that more than 400 families are not displaced and that our
rights are protected, we’ve held community forums; called
attention to the Zoning Commission’s developer-friendly, rubberstamp approval process; and led a tour of public housing units for
Councilmembers, among other things.
If you haven’t heard the details, the city plans to demolish
Barry Farm and replace it with privately-owned housing,
almost all for higher income people.
Public housing residents and supporters protest
Mayor Bowser’s lack of investment in public
housing at her first State of the District address.
They say that we can come back once the community is rebuilt, but
it’s not true. We know from previous public housing demolitions
that the city lies. Just ask the residents of Temple Courts and
Arthur Cappers – where more than 200 families are still waiting to
return to their community.
Despite DC’s affordable housing and homelessness crisis, city leadership plans to tear down much of the
District’s remaining public housing, not just Barry Farm. There are only about 8,000 units left, home to 15,000
low wage workers, seniors and people with disabilities. Without public housing many of us would no
longer be able to live in DC – or maybe we would be among the homeless.
The most difficult and most important parts of our fight are still
to come. That’s why your support is so critical right now. Your
donation allows Empower DC to continue organizing with
Barry Farm residents, building our capacity to be strong,
knowledgeable, engaged community leaders – and to win our
fight!
With your support, we will:
• increase the number of Barry Farm residents informed
about the plans for redevelopment, and who understand
the city’s pattern of deception despite promises of
“one-for-one replacement” of units and a “right to return”
Empower DC members lead Councilmembers Elissa
Silverman and Brianne Nadeau on a tour of Barry
Farm and other public housing properties, seeking
investment in desperately needed repairs.
•
provide training and support for Barry Farm residents to testify in front of City Council and the Zoning
Commission, meet with government officials, and talk with the media
•
carry out actions to publicize our concerns and hold decision-makers accountable.
Over the summer, we have planned a series of community events and trainings to build our network of
support among public housing residents from throughout the city. But in order to have an organizer on
the ground, begin scheduling events, prepare training materials, and have the resources to run an effective
campaign we need your support!
Our goal is to raise $10,000 by June 15 to kick off our
summer plans. Can you donate $50 or more to help us get
there?
Donations can be made at www.empowerdc.org (use the blue
donate box) or by sending a check to Empower DC. All donations
are tax deductible.
Thank you for your support of Empower DC, residents of public
housing, and our right to stay in the city we love.
Sincerely,
Barry Farm residents Paulette Matthews, Phylissa
Bilal, and Detrice Belt speak to more than 100
people at an Empower DC forum on the Barry Farm
redevelopment plans.
Detrice Belt
Empower DC Member
Chair, Barry Farm Tenants and Allies Association
PS. I am excited by our summer plans – please make a donation so we can make them happen! If $50
isn’t the right amount for you, please give what you can. Thank you!