Mayor Bowser Announces FY2020 African Community Grant Awards
On Tuesday, October 8, 2019, Mayor Bowser and the Mayor’s Office on African Affairs (MOAA) awarded a combined $100,000 in grant funding to 11 community-based organizations that serve Washington, DC’s African residents.
“As a city that values and embraces our diversity, we are proud to partner with these community-based organizations that are advancing DC values and helping us build a safer, stronger, and more inclusive Washington, DC,” said Mayor Bowser.
The following organizations and programs will receive renewed funding for FY20:
- African Women’s Cancer Awareness Association will use Community Health Cultural Ambassadors to provide cancer outreach and screenings.
- Asylum Seekers Assistance Project will connect African asylum seekers to the knowledge, skills, and professional connections necessary to secure and retain safe, legal, and meaningful work.
- Ethiopian Community Center, Inc. will provide cultural and linguistically enriched summer programs to Ethiopian children and youth.
- Hepatitis B Initiative of Washington, D.C. will provide outreach, screening, education and linkages to health care to reduce Hepatitis B and C infections and liver cancer rates among Africans.
- KanKouran West African Dance Company will produce the 37th Annual African Dance conference, “Visit Casamance.”
- Life Asset will provide microloans and training to low income African entrepreneurs.
- Mary’s Center will provide teens with the skills they need to pursue post-secondary education.
- Multicultural Community Services will train community interpreters to provide African-language translation services.
- Renaissance Center for Culture and Education will engage children and their families through a culturally tailored after-school STEM, homework assistance, and nutrition program as well as a summer camp program.
- Torture Abolition and Survivors Support Coalition International will provide career services and assist African born residents in securing meaningful employment.
- Your Ethiopian Professionals Network will provide STEM training for newly-arrived young African immigrants.
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Braiding Bootcamp, hosted by MOAA and DCRA
 Thinking about establishing or enhancing your hair braiding business? Join the Mayor’s Office on African Affairs and the Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs at Braiding Boot Camp to learn about business licensing, the regulation renewal process, and small business legal information. Don’t miss a unique opportunity to connect with other hair braiders in the District and get tools to set your hair braiding business up for success.
When: Friday, October 25, 2019 | 10:00 am - 11:30 am
Where: Aisha Hair Braiding | 7323 Georgia Ave NW #100 | Washington, DC | 20012
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In Case You Missed It...Multicultural Community Service’s Community Interpreter Training Graduation
 Multicultural Community Service’s Community Interpreter Training Graduation took place on September 18, 2019, with two African interpreters, who between them speak Amharic, Tigrinya, French, and Arabic, crossing the stage. The newly-minted graduates are involved in refugee and translation work.
The Mayor’s Office on African Affairs is proud to support Multicultural Community Service and its Language Services Program through the Mayor’s Office on African Affairs’ FY19 African Community Grant. The program reduces language barriers for DC African residents, provides workforce development opportunities for multilingual African residents, and creates a stronger citywide understanding of emerging languages spoken by DC’s African community.
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Mayor Bowser Makes Washington, DC the First City in the Nation to Set Affordable Housing Goals by Neighborhood
On Tuesday, October 15, 2019, Mayor Muriel Bowser was joined by DC Office of Planning (OP) Director Andrew Trueblood to release the Mayor’s Housing Equity Report and the District’s draft Comprehensive Plan proposal. By establishing goals specific to each planning area of the city, the Housing Equity Report makes Washington, DC among the first cities in the nation to create area-specific goals for affordable housing and dedicate an entire initiative to examining the barriers and opportunities within each area.
“What both the Housing Equity Report and the updated Comprehensive Plan recognize is that housing is a citywide challenge that requires citywide solutions,” said Mayor Bowser. “Washington, DC will continue to change – we can be sure of that. These plans are focused on how we manage that change and balance competing interests in order to ensure a vibrant, equitable, and resilient city, not only for us, but for our children and grandchildren.”
The Office of Planning and Department of Housing and Community Development collaborated to produce the Housing Equity Report. The report provides an analysis of current affordable housing distribution and proposes specific targets to achieve Mayor Bowser’s bold goal of building 36,000 new homes, including 12,000 homes affordable to low-income residents, by 2025.
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Mayor Bowser Launches 2019 Fall Crime Prevention Initiative
On Friday, October 11, 2019, Mayor Muriel Bowser launched the inaugural 2019 Safer Stronger DC Fall Crime Prevention Initiative (FCPI) – a coordinated effort to reduce violent crime in specific areas in the District through strategic prevention and coordinated enforcement. Patterned after the Summer Crime Prevention Initiative, the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) will focus on deploying available resources, crime-fighting technology, and coordinated programing with government agencies to targeted neighborhoods in the District. Every year for nearly ten years, MPD has identified areas of the city that have experienced a high density of violence and utilized all available resources, including collaborative outreach, to prevent violent crime in focus areas.
“We know that when we focus our policing and resources in our hardest hit areas, we can make our neighborhoods safer,” said Mayor Bowser. “The Fall Crime Prevention Initiative will engage the community, particularly our young people and their families, to reduce violent crime and save lives.”
During the next 60 days – October 14 through December 15 – MPD will lead an effort to reduce violent crime in specific areas – including some recent upticks in gun-related activity. The goal of FCPI is to reduce violent crime through strategic prevention and focused enforcement. During the fall months, MPD will:
- Focus resources on repeat violent offenders through intelligence, tactical operations, gun recovery, technology, and patrol enforcement;
- Use crime analysis to track and address crimes in near real-time;
- Conduct outreach and youth/family programs;
- Implement various policing strategies; and
- If a crime occurs in target areas, all law enforcement and community resources will be utilized (call-in, door-to-door, heightened outreach).
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Uganda’s Jessica Nabongo Is the First Black Woman to Visit Every Country in the World
Cue the parade, it's finally happened. Jessica Nabongo has officially become the first black woman to have visited every single country in the world. The Ugandan-American touched down in Seychelles on Sunday—the last to be visited on the long list of 195 countries. Over 50 friends and family members traveled with her to the East African archipelago to mark the historic event.
Nabongo has been traveling since the age of 6. Though she was born in the US, her parents are Ugandan and she's used both passports to travel the world. What's most remarkable is the frequency with which she's done so. As Africa News reports, Nabongo made the decision to attempt the global feat in 2017. At the time she had only traveled to 60 countries–-meaning she's travelled to 135 countries in just 2-and-a-half years, an average of just under 7 days per country.
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Resettled in Sacramento, a couple sends help one bottle, can and chicken at a time
An ancient proverb says, “Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime.” For Kenyan immigrants Moses and Emily Osoro, however, it’s not fish but chickens that change lives.
For the past six years, the Osoros have invested their time and resources into developing a chicken farm co-op in Moses’ home village of Mahondo, Kenya, with a goal of helping to reduce poverty in the region and encourage skill development. Remarkably, they’ve funded their vision primarily by capitalizing on something their American neighbors’ discard: recyclable cans and bottles.
Their story began in 2007, when the Osoro family settled in Sacramento after a five-year struggle for asylum. Almost immediately, the calls from Kenyan relatives and neighbors started coming: “Can you help pay my child’s school tuition?” “I can’t afford my medical bills. Can you help?”
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DC Public Library Little STEM Explorers
Little STEM Explorers is the perfect introduction for toddlers to basic STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) concepts. This interactive story time experience concludes with self-directed, hands-on experiments for children. Suitable for ages 2 and up. This event is ticketed on a first-come, first-served basis.
When: Thursday, October 24, 2019 | 10:00 am
Where: Mt. Pleasant Library | 3160 16th St. NW | Washington, D.C. 20010
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Job Seekers Clinic
Are you a job seeker needing help with your job search process? Come to the Job Seekers Drop-In Clinic, where you will receive one-on-one support in areas such as conducting online job searches, building and typing a resume, completing online job applications, etc. Assistance is given on a first-come, first-served basis.
When: Monday, October 28, 2019 | 5:00 pm - 7:00 pm
Where: Capitol View Library | 5001 Central Ave SE | Washington, DC | 20019
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Free Legal Help at DC Public Library
Get help with Criminal Records, Credit Reports, Background Checks, DC’s Child Protection Register, Student Loans and other issues. Intake and consultations with an attorney are confidential and done on a walk-in basis in the order of arrival, however RSVPs are preferred.
When: Monday, October 28, 2019 | 10:00 am
Where: Benning (Dorothy I. Height) Library | 3935 Benning Road NE | Washington, DC | 20019
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Register to Exhibit at the Multilingual Education Fair of DC
Calling all exhibitors and sponsors! Now in its fourth year, the Multilingual Education Fair of DC, organized by the DC Language Immersion Project in partnership with the education institutions of the DC region, is the premier event for families, young professionals, teachers and administrators gathering to celebrate multilingualism. The fair welcomes over 1500 visitors from DC, Virginia, and Maryland looking to gain and improve linguistic skills, cultural competence and find language-related job opportunities. Join us on January 25th, 2020 from 10 am to 3 pm, with an exhibitors-only networking event from 3-4 pm. For questions, please contact johanna@dcimmersion.org.
Exhibitor Registration (Deadline November 1st)
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Free Teen Musical Master Class, hosted by the Capitol Hill Jazz Foundation
 This musical master class series aims to better prepare young musicians between ages 13 -18 on the audition process by grouping students by instrument class with a college professor who will be able to accurately assess the students development. Students must have access to their primary instrument and should have at least 2-3 years experience or be able to demonstrate the ability to read music, perform scales and rudiments.
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Carlos Rosario School: Community Language Classes - Amharic
 Are you interested in learning Amharic? Know someone who is? The Carlos Rosario School's Community Language Classes are a way to develop skills to connect with your clients and community members! This is an introductory level class for students who have never studied Amharic. You will learn the basics of the alphabet, vocabulary, and grammar necessary to have simple conversations. Ethiopian cultural considerations and traditions will also be covered.
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Young at Art Weekly Seniors Program
 Promoting healthy aging through the arts and creative expression, Young at Art allows seniors aged 55+ to explore activities in painting, drawing, ceramics, and crafts. This free, weekly hands-on, instructor-led program goes beyond the traditional “arts and crafts” activities; allowing participants create original works of art that articulate the richness of their life experience.
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Office of the State Superintendent of Education (OSSE) Preschool Development Grant Birth Through Five, Parent Survey
 Attention DC families! Are you a parent or guardian of a child 5 years old or younger? We want to hear from you! Tell us about your experiences with different programs, services and benefits by taking a survey and you can enter into a random drawing to win a $100 gift card! You can complete the survey in Amharic or French.
GED and High School Skills Tutoring
Join DC Public Library for skill assessments for adults who need a high school diploma (GED or National External Diploma) and tutoring for those with skills at the high school level. Tutoring takes place on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays, 4 to 7 pm Assessments take place on Wednesdays only.
Please note: In order to qualify for tutoring, you must take the assessment first.
When: Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays | 4:00 pm - 7:00 pm
Where: Shaw (Watha T. Daniel) Library | 1630 7th St. NW | Washington, DC | 20001
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Want Your Event Featured in the African Beat?
'The African Beat' is distributed to over 8,000 subscribers every other Friday. If you would like your event to be featured in our newsletter, please submit the following details: what, when & where, and provide a link to where readers can go for more information. Submission deadline for the next edition is Wednesday, October 30, 2019 by 5:00 pm. Send all materials, along with any questions, to oaa@dc.gov.
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