OUDC at Mt. Zion Female Union Band Cemetery

The participants of Operation Understanding DC (OUDC) recently attended a program at Mt. Zion Female Union Band Cemetery in Georgetown, Washington DC. They learned from Lisa Fager of Black Georgetown about the history, abandonment, and process of restoration of this resting place. Once a sheltering stop on the Underground Railroad, it also marks a significant era of Black life in the nation's capitol. 

Thanks to the staff of OUDC and to Ms. Fager.

Operation Understanding DC | weekend retreat, meeting with Shoah survivors

Operation Understanding DC, a program for Black and Jewish teenagers in the DC area whose mission since 1993 is "... empowering a generation of social justice leaders who will promote respect, understanding and cooperation while fighting to eradicate racism, anti-Semitism and all forms of discrimination."

The participants recently visited relevant sites in Farmville and Richmond, Virginia, and returned to DC to hear testimony from two Holocaust survivors,  Peter Feigl and Rose-Helene Spreiregen. They also met with students from an allied program from Atlanta, Georgia, the Black Jewish Teen Initiative.

Thanks to the OUDC students, to Mr. Feigl and Ms. Spreiregen, and OUDC's staff, Dr. Linda J. Mann, Xochi Quetzali Cartland, Kyla Goldsby, and Alix Swann.

I have been documenting OUDC since its founding by Karen Kalish in 1993.

Peter Feigl

Rose-Helene Spreiregen.

Hands Off! protest, Washington DC

Hands Off! Rally, Washington Monument grounds, National Mall, Washington DC.

It was difficult to estimate the number attending, but it was a minimum of 100,000 protesters, and perhaps as many as 150,000. There were rallies held in hundreds of additional locations across the United States.

“From the Hands Off! website: This is a nationwide mobilization to stop the most brazen power grab in modern history. Trump, Musk, and their billionaire cronies are orchestrating an all-out assault on our government, our economy, and our basic rights—enabled by Congress every step of the way.... They want to strip America for parts—shuttering Social Security offices, firing essential workers, eliminating consumer protections, and gutting Medicaid—all to bankroll their billionaire tax scam. They’re handing over our tax dollars, our public services, and our democracy to the ultra-rich. If we don’t fight now, there won’t be anything left to save.”

The speakers pictured are Congressional Representatives Don Beyer, Ilhan Omar, Eric Swalwell,  Al Green,, and Lateef Simon

The band I documented is the DC Activist Street Band, consisting members of The Honk Situation, Mrs. Torestsky’s Nightmare,, and others.