Are you a Ward 8 resident who is frustrated with the lack of jobs, retail, grocery stores, etc?

As you know The Advoc8te has a lot of Southeast Love for Ward 8. We have great neighbors, we have amazing artists, community leaders, historic homes, charm and amazing events. In Ward 8 there are many things to love in all the neighborhoods, from Anacostia to Washington Highlands. 

But that said, doesn't it feel like we are always struggling for every little thing? When you go west of the river  do you feel like you are in another world when you see all of their grocery stores, retail options, places to play or just sit and enjoy? Does it feel like you have to leave the community for every single little thing such as a job or quality healthcare? Do you feel that you live in a different kind of DC than the one we see flourishing (almost too fast) across the river? 

Have you asked, "why don't we have more than one full-service grocery store?" only to be told by government representatives or members of the private sector that Ward 8 doesn't have the income diversity needed to justify more retail and food options. And hearing that justification, that Ward 8 is under-resourced because we lack income diversity, are you frustrated by those same people then ONLY investing in bringing more income-capped housing to this under-resourced community, while they cut ribbons on million dollar condos, grocery stores, restaurants, etc. west of the river? 

Do you feel like a DC resident in name only? That we view from across the river prosperity of jobs, options and opportunity. Then we look down in our own community and we are surrounded with the discards of having to make do. To find a way to get over there so you get the basic things you need to live over here?

I was walking my dog Teddy and as always we notice the garbage that lines the streets, the liquor bottles, the discarded ride share bikes, the empty chip bags and I saw it through an entirely different lens. I saw us trying to survive on a combination of the discards of west of the river amenities, the generosity of nonprofits and the occasional government-funded move night or community day. 

But how are we really living? Driving west of the river for everything I need to live has become such a regularity that sometimes I forget -- until I cross the river and see all the options available in "that DC" and then it all comes crashing back. 

So, I took out my phone and started taking photos. I wasn't sure of what at first but over our 1-hour walk an idea emerged. And from that idea, that spark of a concept that became #TheDiscards emerged. This is my first tweet, written this Saturday morning, on a sidewalk on Malcolm X Avenue SE. Phone in one hand and leash with bag of dog poop in the other hand. 

To be clear, this is not about being anti income-capped housing. It's about shedding a light on the imbalance of moving low-income DC residents away from west of the river, away from jobs, grocery stores, childcare, etc. and concentrating income-capped housing in communities that are under-resourced and that suffer from high unemployment. We don't have any mid to large scale income-cap free rental housing in Ward 8 so we can't even keep our own residents who earn a modest $50,000 a year who want an apartment in Ward 8.  So they leave and move to MD or west of the river. On so many fronts our ward 8 dollars go to support grocery stores, retail and restaurants in other communities. Talk about taxation without representation. 

So, I invite you to tweet your reality via black and white photos. Use the #TheDiscards and be sure to tag @TheAdvoc8te and friends on both sides of the river. Lets educate folks on our reality. A community we love enough to demand more the opportunity to have a vibrant economy. An economy that can generate living-wage jobs, quality healthcare and diverse food and retail options. A Ward 8 that isn't always sacraficed so that west of the river communities can prosper.