Category: Washington D.C. News

Scandal is quickly becoming the byword of Washington, D.C.’s new leadership. There was Council Chairman Kwame Brown’s pricey Lincoln Navigator and Mayor Vincent Gray’s hiring missteps and alleged quid pro quo arrangement. Now, the Attorney General’s Office is filing a $1 million lawsuit against Councilmember Harry L. Thomas Jr. (D-Ward 5) for allegedly using grant […]

In an effort to spearhead a change in the way construction companies do business in the District, Mayor Vincent C. Gray has launched an ambitious pilot project. This new initiative, called the Workforce Incentive Program (WIP), attempts to directly link more D.C. residents with jobs in the local construction industry. WIP, slated to begin on […]

While the job sector remains sluggish as the economy recovers from a recession, universities in the Washington area are employment hubs, pumping $11.3 billion into the region annually, according to a report by George Mason University. The study, which was commissioned by the Consortium of Universities of the Washington Metropolitan Area, revealed that universities have […]

Sulaimon Brown and Cherita Whiting are the sole witnesses in a June 6 hearing, the next phase of the hiring practices investigation led by D.C. Councilmember Mary Cheh. The pair was among a handful of employees who were fired or who resigned after newspaper reports raised flags about the new administration’s hiring practices, including improper […]

A Washington, D.C. police officer has been charged with first-degree murder after a Prince George’s County woman and her baby were found dead in Temple Hills. Prince George’s County Police charged Richmond Diallo Binns Phillips June 3 with the murder of 20-year old Wynetta Wright. Her daughter, one-year-old Jaylin Wright, was also found dead. Wright’s […]

The search is underway for a replacement for Gerri Mason Hall, Mayor Vincent Gray’s former chief of staff who resigned earlier this year after admitted hiring missteps in the fledgling administration. Doxie McCoy, Gray’s spokeswoman, said the mayor is looking for someone with proven managerial skills, who fully supports his four-pronged goals. “Mayor Gray will […]

They’ll be singing, dancing, twirling, rhyming and struttin’ their stuff. Not the kids, but mature women from across the District who will be competing in the Ms. Senior DC Pageant later this month. The annual pageant, organizers say and past participants say, helps to dispel myths about aging in the community.  “One of the reasons […]

Once again, as in every redistricting process using Census data collected every decade, neighborhoods are split, feelings are hurt and political deals are made. But what if the redistricting creates an area most Black political leaders normally dread? DC Councilman Tommy Wells (D-Ward 6) warned other members of the city council that the proposed ward […]

The public belief that youth are engaged in more crime during the summer is a myth, according to a report released May 26 by DC Lawyers for Youth. Using data from the Metropolitan Police Department, the report, “Debunking Urban Legends: Summer Heat, Vacation Don’t Lead to More Youth Arrests,” showed fewer youth arrested are made […]

The D.C. Department of Parks and Recreation on May 26 announced the opening of its pools just in time for a heat wave that blanketed the Mid-Atlantic this week. The National Weather Service on Monday issued a heat advisory for the Washington and Baltimore areas, saying temperatures on Tuesday would reach the lower to mid-90s, […]

Mayor Vincent Gray said he will sign the $5.8 billion budget passed by the D.C. Council last week despite the absence of a tax hike included in his budget plan. Chairman Kwame Brown’s (D) budget swapped out Gray’s proposal to increase taxes by 8.9 percent on residents who earned above $200,000 for an out-of-state municipal […]