Wards 5, 7, and 8 – DC’s Most Undeserved but for How Much Longer?

Any conversation about income disparity, affordable housing, food deserts, or high infant mortality usually centers around three wards; 5, 7, and 8. It’s said with such frequency and flippancy that it belies the true impact to the quarter of a million residents in those 3 wards. That’s over 35% of DC residents that live in some form of disparity. So what is the District doing about this?

This is the first of a series of posts that take a closer look at the issues these 3 wards face. These posts will take a deeper dive below the recycled rhetoric to look at the real-life impacts. It’s too easy to say “east of the river” as if that says all there is to it. The 2 wards that fit that geography, Wards 7 and 8, don’t deserve less. In fact, they deserve more. Although Ward 5 isn’t east of the river, it borders the Anacostia and shares a lot of the same concerns. We start this series with a brief bio of the councilmember of those wards and what they see as their priorities to bring parity to these wards.

 Kenyan R McDuffie – Ward 5 Councilmember

McDuffie is a Howard University graduate who’s been representing Ward 5 since 2012. He was born in the Stronghold section of the District and often points to his family’s continued roots in that neighborhood. He also serves as the Chairperson of the Committee on Business and Economic Development. This committee is responsible for a long list of small and local business development activities such as:

• matters related to economic, industrial, and commercials development
•  the disposition of property for economic development purposes
• the regulation of alcoholic beverages
• public utilities
• and a host of other business-related services

It will be interesting to compare how much progress Ward 5 has made in the 9 years since McDuffie pointed to crime, affordable housing, and educations as priorities in this 2012 Kojo Nnamdi interview.

 Vincent C. Gray – Ward 7 Councilmember

Gray served as the Mayor of the District from 2011 – 2015 and became the Ward 7 representative in 2017 and serves as the Chairperson for The Committee on Health. The committee is responsible for matters concerning health and environmental health; the regulation of health occupations and professions, and health-care inspectors.  Gray’s byline touts that he is “laser focused on the quality of life for Ward 7 and residents on the East End of the District of Columbia.” A significant accomplishment in improving access to health care in Ward 7 includes the very first urgent care center in Ward 7 that will be operated by MBI Health Services. MBI also operates several mental health clinics east of the river.

Gray won re-election in November by receiving a shattering 94.47% of the vote. This despite his challenger’s complaints that “Ward 7′s residents are tired of lagging behind much of the city, their neighborhoods remaining starved for commercial development and plagued by crime while those in the western half of the city have prospered for years. They argue Gray hasn’t fixed the problems fast enough.”

Trayon White, Sr. – Ward 8 Councilmember

One of the youngest and most energetic voices on the city council is Councilmember Trayon White, Sr. White is a community activist born and raised in Ward 8. His passion for his ward is unmistakable. The excerpt below from the Rock Newman Show gives you a sense of this young councilmember’s commitment to improving the conditions in Ward 8. However, that is a steep climb.  Ward 8 has the deepest economic disparity of the 3 wards in this post.

Deep Dive – Ward by Ward

We will take a deeper dive into each of these Wards throughout the month of March. We will look at the healthcare, education, affordable housing, and other social impacts to each of these wards. That will include actions being taken by these councilmembers and the Mayor to address these concerns. Along with that, we will Zoom into the local ANC meetings to get a closer neighborhood view of these residents. Particularly wards 7 and 8. The DC Voice invites you to stay with us as we explore DC’s most underserved wards and answer the question; How much longer?