Dear Members and Friends,
My letter is late this month because a lot has happened, and I wanted to include all of it. For those who missed our March meeting, the information we received on Health Link and the panel discussion on DC Statehood was enlightening.
We have a new feature on our website, dccitizensfederation.org, for our members only. Click on news and two boxes drop down. One for events and one for issues. Our members now can list events in their neighborhood and list issues that are important to them for anyone visiting our website to see.
Our Federation continues to grow with the addition of the Brookland Neighborhood Civic Association, brooklandcivic.org. I know they will be an active member. Our motto has always been “We are stronger together”
On April 13 for the first time in both our histories, members of the Federation of Civic Association’s Board and members of the Citizens Federation Board met at my home for a meal and conversation. We had a facilitator to help us with our discussion. The history of our interaction has not been good. Eighty years ago, when the negro associations applied for membership in the segregated Citizens Federation, they were refused and formed their own Federation. That act has haunted both our organizations to this day. We acknowledge our role in the despicable era of segregation in our city. However, we have not been that organization for many years. Our discussions showed we all have much in common. The Board of the Citizens Federation voted several years ago to pursue a merger with the Civic Federation. We understand that they are not ready to take that step, but we stand ready when and if they are. We hope to have more opportunities to interact with the Civic Board members. We welcome your comments and thoughts on this initiative at president@dccitizensfederation.org.
Earl Williams
President