Paths to Social Justice 2800 block 16TH STREET nw
All Souls Church, Unitarian, has long been known for its social activism, starting with abolitionism in the 1 8 02 s. During segregation, All Souls was one of the few places in DC where integrated groups could meet. During the 1 98 0 s and ’9 0 s it (and other neighborhood churches) hosted concerts by DC’s influential punk bands Bad Brains, Fugazi, Minor Threat, and others. In the early 1 96 0 s, the church launched the model Girard Street Playground Project in response to growing neighborhood crime, and after the 1 968 riots, built housing on 1 4th Street, in cooperation with CHANGE , Inc. All Souls’ first African Ameri-can senior minister, Rev. David H. Eaton, opened the church’s doors to Antioch Law School and other groups. Eaton also became president of the DC Board of Education in 1 98 2 . Others shared All Souls’ commitment. Sojourn-ers, a Christian social justice community, ran summer and after-school programs at 1 3 2 3 Girard Street and at Clifton Terrace, and helped form the Southern Columbia Heights Tenant Union. Sojourners organizes nationally for social change. The Community for Creative Non-Violence grew out of anti-Vietnam War protests at George Washington University. Later CCNV opened soup kitchens, free clinics, and shelters. Eventually the group moved its headquarters to 1 34 5 Euclid Street. Led by Mitch Snyder, CCNV won political influence for its causes. The Mexican Cultural Institute, at 2 8 2 9 1 6th Street, offers exhibits and murals on Mexican life and history. The institute succeeded the Mexican Embassy in the 1 9 11 building originally the resi- dence of Chicago socialite Emily MacVeagh.
Made with FlippingBook interactive PDF creator