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Title: Denise Rollins
Description: Denise Rollins, current Chair of the Board of Directors at Dance Place, reflects on her life and relationship to the DC African dance community. Rollins speaks about her professional trajectory that began in public policy, which led her to spend a number of years working for the African American Institute and eventually USAID. Rollins recalls the early years of Dance Place and DanceAfrica, DC and how each remains important to her life today as Dance Place celebrates its 40-year anniversary as a dance presenter and school for dance in Ward 5’s Brookland/Edgewood neighborhood., Denise Rollins was born in Detroit in 1952. Rollins is the current Chair of Board of Directors at Dance Place. She is a retired U.S. Foreign Service Officer with the U.S. Agency for International Development. She served for 27 years, 23 years overseas in Jamaica, Ghana, Uganda, Nigeria, South Africa and Bangladesh. In Washington, Rollins served as Acting Assistant Administrator for Asia overseeing USAID economic development programs in 23 countries. Following her retirement in the foreign service in 2014, she became Senior Coordinator for the Africa Ebola Unit at USAID overseeing the Agency's response to the epidemic. Rollins currently volunteers with performing arts organizations such as Dance Place and Washington Performing Arts.

Title: Patricia Anderson
Description: Patricia Anderson discusses her childhood, adolescence, and adulthood in terms of her family, educational experiences, professional experiences, and extracurricular experiences in Kenilworth and elsewhere., Patricia Anderson is a long-time Kenilworth resident and volunteer with Friends of Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens.

Title: Arturo Griffiths
Description: Arturo Griffiths tells the story of how he got involved as a Latino immigrant teenager in the very first D.C. Latino Festivals held in Adams Morgan. He tells the story of various presidents, many of whom were elected before he was elected President in 1987. Griffiths, together with his committee, organized the last D.C. Latino Festival to b e held in the Adams Morgan neighborhood. In 1989 Griffiths took the Festival “downtown” – to the grounds of the Washington Monument. He tells the story of how hard it was to secure permits, convince authorities to allow the Festival to serve and sell homemade ethnic food on the Monument grounds. Negotiating with D.C. government officials, the National Park Service and community leaders took many months. Griffiths stresses the important role that the Parade groups had supporting the move to Constitution Avenue NW and their energy and commitment in organizing their floats and dance groups. Griffiths reflects on the importance of ethnic Festivals, and in particular the importance of the Latino community and its contributions to mainstream culture. Griffiths stressed the importance of educating the public about the different Latino cultures, racial backgrounds, and histories., Born in 1949 Panama City, Panama, Arturo Griffiths immigrated with his family to Washington D.C. in 1964. He graduated from Mackin High School. As a teenager, he was one of the founders of the Latin American Youth Center (LAYC). The LAYC youth founded the first Youth day- Saturday- at the early D.C. Latino Festivals when they were in Kalorama Park. Griffiths was involved in many of the Festivals from 1970 to 1987. In 1987 he was elected President of the Latino Festival and organized three Festivals: 1988, 1989, 1990. In 1989 he took the D.C. Latino Festival – Fiesta D.C. – to the Mall. Griffiths has worked for several labor unions. With his sister, Yasmin Garabito, he founded the Afro-Latino Institute. He ran twice for D.C. City Council and was D.C. Coordinator for the Safe Our Cities! Save Our Children! March. In 1992 he planned and coordinated the Citywide Multicultural Leadership Summit. In 2014 he founded Trabajadores Unidos de Washington D.C., a community-based nonprofit that advocates for and educates D.C. immigrant day laborers and low-wage workers.

Title: Willians Silva
Description: The interview is in Spanish. Willians Silva talks about his early years in Peru before he immigrated to the Washington metro area. He talks about his first job in housekeeping at the Grand Hotel in Washington D.C. He talks about being fired for trying to organize a union at that hotel. He talks about the difficulties of union organizing. But despite his despair at being fired, Silva met Arturo Griffiths who was an Organizer with Local 25. That friendship led to Silva's participation in the 1989 - 1990 Latino Festivals. Silva first participated selling homemade Peruvian food at the 1988 and 1989 Latino Festivals. Silva describes that in 1990 Griffiths asked Silva to be Director of the Parade of Nations on Constitution Avenue. Silva talks about organizing the Parade and why the Festival moved downtown to the Mall. Silva describes working with 25 countries who presented their floats and dance groups and the importance of making a good impression. Silva talks about the importance of leadership and the role of a volunteer Festival committee where everybody was trusted and worked together for months to produce the Latino Festival - Fiesta D.C. Silva talks about the impact the Festival experience had on his life: he has worked on many other cultural events in Arlington. In 1992 Silva founded a Latino tenant organization in the Buckingham neighborhood of Arlington Virginia. Silva helped the tenant organization (BU - GATA) start a local annual neighborhood festival that has been going strong for over 20 years. Silva talks about the importance of volunteer work and giving back to the community. Silva talks about delegating to others and teaching youth to fight for their rights. Silva describes a scholarship program that BU - GATA developed for young people, many of whom are immigrants and first generation college students. Building leaders, celebrating cultural traditions and heritage, exposing Americans to Latino culture and fighting to secure one's rights are major themes of this interview., Born in 1952 in Peru, Willians Silva immigrated to the Washington area in 1986. As a teenager and young adult in Peru Silva was active directing youth groups and participated in theater groups. After he immigrated to the United States, he worked cutting grass and cooking until he finally landed a housekeeping job at the Grand Hotel in Washington, D.C. in the 1980's. After leading a fight to form a union at this hotel, Mr. Silva was fired. He later found work at a union hotel: the Watergate Hotel in Washington D.C. When the Watergate Hotel closed, Silva found jobs at other D.C. hotels, including the Jefferson and the Washington Court. As of 2020 Silva works at the Embassy Suites Convention Center Hotel in Washington D.C. As an active union leader at his hotel that is a member of Local 25, Silva has been very active in union activities and union bargaining efforts. Silva lives with his wife, daughter and grandson in Arlington, Virginia.

Title: Herbert Freeman
Description: In this oral history interview, Mr. Herbert Freeman, owner of Freeman's House of Styles in Brightwood Park, discusses his life and experiences moving from Engelhard, North Carolina, to Washington, DC. Mr. Freeman discusses his early life in Engelhard, his move to Washington, DC, in 1962, his transition to life in the city, and his long and successful career as a barber in Washington. He also discusses violence against Black persons in both the past and present, segregation in North Carolina, and the 1968 Riots in Washington, DC after the assassination of Martin Luther King., Herbert Freeman was born on May 3, 1941, in Vanceboro, North Carolina. When Mr. Freeman was two years old his father became ill, and his mother moved him and his siblings to Engelhard, NC. In Engelhard Mr. Freeman's mother worked as a domestic worker and raised her six children by herself. Mr. Freeman attended school through twelfth grade in Engelhard and worked in tobacco during his youth. He later worked at a segregated white-only beach in Nags Head, NC. Though Mr. Freeman first came to Washington in 1962, he soon returned to North Carolina to attend a barber school. After he completed school, Mr. Freeman returned to DC, earned his barbering license, and began working as a barber in Washington. After working at several different barber shops, Mr. Freeman opened his own barber shop in Brightwood Park in 1976, Freeman's House of Styles. Mr. Freeman has been married for over fifty years, has two sons, and continues to work at his barber shop to this day

Title: Mabel Mitchell
Description: In this oral history interview, Ms. Mabel Mitchell, a long time DC resident, discusses her life and experiences moving from Raleigh, North Carolina, to Washington, DC. Ms. Mitchell discusses her early life in Raleigh, her move to Washington, DC, in the early 1950s, her transition to living and working in DC, and her long career in the government. Ms. Mitchell also talks about segregation and racial discrimination in Washington, as well as gentrification in the city in the 21st century., Born in the early 1940s, Ms. Mabel Mitchell grew up in Raleigh, North Carolina. When Ms. Mitchell was only three years old her father died, leaving her mother to raise her with the help of grandparents and extended family. Though Ms. Mitchell was her parents’ only child, she was raised with a cousin who was like a sister. After graduating from high school, Ms. Mitchell moved to Washington, DC, in search of work and lived with her aunt. After working a variety of jobs, Ms. Mitchell secured a job at the Bureau of Navy Personnel beginning a forty-one-year career in the government. Ms. Mitchell retired in 2010.

Title: Alvin Harris
Description: Mr. Alvin Harris discusses his life and experiences moving from Raleigh, North Carolina to Washington, DC. Mr. Harris discusses his early life in Raleigh, his family’s move to Southeast Washington, DC, and his upbringing and education in the city. He also discusses his life in Washington, his work as a carpenter and career in construction, and his transition to work for the federal government. Additionally, Mr. Harris talks about Marion Berry and “Chocolate City,” and the crack epidemic in DC., Alvin “Flooty” Harris was born on October 21, 1958, outside of Raleigh, North Carolina, and was the youngest of his parents’ five children. His mother, Betty Jean Lyn Harris (b. 10/22/1932), raised Mr. Harris and his sibling as a single mother with the help of grandparents. The family migrated to Washington, DC, in 1966, when Mr. Harris was only 8 years old, and moved into the Hill East neighborhood of Southeast. Upon moving to Washington, Mr. Harris completed primary school education at Thomas B. Bryan Elementary School, attended Charles W. Eliot Junior High School, and went on to graduate from Eastern High School in 1977. Mr. Harris then completed a four-year carpentry apprenticeship through the Joint Carpentry Apprentice Committee and subsequently spent nine years working in construction. After leaving construction, Mr. Harris got a job as a carpenter working the federal government. Mr. Harris worked for the government until his retirement.

Title: Shirley Debrow
Description: In this oral history interview, Ms. Shirley Debrow discusses her life and experiences moving from Infield, North Carolina to Washington, DC. Ms. Debrow discusses her early life in the South, her move to Philadelphia in 1966, and her move to Washington, DC, in 1966. Ms. Debrow also talks about her life in Washington, her career at the DC Department of Parks and Recreation, and her love of travel., Born in 1948, Ms. Shirley M. Debrow grew up in Infield, North Carolina, with her parents and two brothers. After graduating from high school in 1966, Ms. Debrow moved to Philadelphia, PA, to live with an aunt. After two years in Philadelphia, She then came to Washington, DC, where she has lived ever since. In DC, Ms. Debrow attended Federal City College (now UDC) and came under the mentorship of DC community activist, Kimi Gray. With the help of Gray, Ms. Debrow opened a daycare center and served as the center’s director. Ms. Debrow also worked on the campaigns of DC Mayor Marion Barry. In 1987, Ms. Debrow began a long and successful career as a recreation specialist with the DC Department of Parks and Recreation. From 1987-2008, Ms. Debrow worked at the Turkey Thicket Recreation Center. In honor of her contributions to the community and Turkey Thicket, she was featured in a mural at the recreation center in 2007. In 2008, Ms. Debrow went on to work at Volta Park Recreation Center in Georgetown, where she worked for about ten years before retiring. Ms. Debrow loves to travel, enjoys outdoor activities and lives an active and healthy lifestyle.

Title: Thelma Morgan
Description: The audio file for this interview only captures the final 5 minutes and 41 seconds of the interview. The interview transcription captures the entirety of the interview. This interview does not include an index. In this oral history interview, Ms. Thelma Morgan discusses her life and experiences moving from Louisburg, North Carolina, to Washington, DC. Ms. Morgan discusses her upbringing in segregated Louisburg, her decision to move to DC, and her transition into life in the city. She also recounts her initial search for employment and discusses her career working for D.C. government. Through this discussion, Ms. Morgan recalls the colorism and social hierarchy of the Black community in DC. Ms. Morgan also reflects on cultural changes she’s seen over the course of her life and discusses her experiences during the Civil Rights Movement., Ms. Thelma Morgan was born in 1930 in Louisburg, North Carolina. After graduating from Franklin County Training School, Ms. Morgan moved to Durham, NC, attended Durham Business College, and became a stenographer. During this time, Ms. Morgan married and had her first child, but she soon divorced her husband and moved to Washington, DC, to live with an aunt. After initially securing work through a temp agency, Ms. Morgan landed a job in the federal government working for Immigration and Naturalization Services. She later began a career with D.C. government and worked various jobs for city until her retirement. Alongside her career, Ms. Morgan got a master’s in religious education from Washington Saturday College and taught Sunday School. Ms. Morgan is also a singer, even singing professionally during her youth in North Carolina. In 1999, she won the annual Ms. Senior D.C. pageant organized by the Washington, DC, Office On Aging.

Title: Claudia Lewis
Description: In this oral history interview, Claudia Lewis, discusses her life and experiences moving from Ridge Spring, South Carolina, to Washington, D.C. She reflects on her childhood in the South, her family’s move to Washington in 1946, and her educational experiences in Washington. She also discusses her experiences with work, church, and family in DC, as well as her move to Prince George’s County Maryland in 1992. This oral history interview was conducted by a DC high school student as part of a class assignment on the Great Migration in Real World History., Claudia Lewis (née Claudia Johnson) was born September 30, 1937 in Ridge Spring, South Carolina. Ms. Lewis grew up on a farm in Ridge Spring with her parents, Charlie May Johnson and Ulysses Johnson, and six siblings. Though she was too young to do any serious farming, all of her siblings had to help operate the farm. In 1946, Ms. Lewis’s father made the decision that the family would move up north to Washington, D.C. Upon arriving in D.C., the family lived on Howard Road SE, but they soon moved to Northeast Washington. Ms. Lewis attended the Birney School on Nichols Avenue SE (now Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue SE) for a few months upon arriving in Washington, but after moving to Northeast during her sixth-grade year, she attended Burrville Elementary and later Merritt Elementary School. She went on to attend Kelly Miller Junior High before graduating from McKinley High School in 1956. Ms. Lewis then went to New York for a time before returning to Washington to begin a job at the Department of the Navy. She married her husband Elton Lewis in December 1969. After beginning as a mail clerk with the Department of the Navy, Ms. Lewis later became a secretary and remained there for her whole career. In 1992 Ms. Lewis moved to Prince George’s County Maryland. Ms. Lewis’s husband passed away in 2014, and Ms. Lewis currently lives with her daughter in Maryland.

Title: Bernice Pitts
Description: In this oral history interview, Bernice Pitts, a long time D.C. resident, discusses her life and experiences moving from Laurinburg, North Carolina to Washington, DC. Ms. Pitts discusses her upbringing in North Carolina and the farm work she did with her family before talking about her move to D.C. and the transition to city life. Ms. Pitts talks about finding work in the city, working for the government, and retiring after a workplace injury. She also reflects on raising her children and grandchildren and gives some advice to future generations., Bernice Pitts was born on April 13th, 1939, in Laurinburg, North Carolina, and was one of Mary Magdalena McCoy and Dan Mclean’s ten children. After her mother died in childbirth, Ms. Pitts and her younger siblings were sent to live with relatives. In 1956, at the age of 17, Ms. Pitts moved to D.C. to stay with one of her older sisters. After initially working different jobs as a cook and housekeeper, Ms. Pitts secured a job doing custodial work for the federal government. After moving to Washington she also married her husband, Nathaniel Pitts, and had seven children. Eventually, Ms. Pitts was forced to stop working for the government after a workplace injury. Since that time she has worked in the home, spent time with her husband until his passing, and helped raise her grandchildren. Ms. Pitts has a passion for cooking and baking and now spends her days cooking cakes and spending time with family.

Title: Detrice Belt
Description: Detrice Belt describes her early life, schooling, education, career, family and her experience as a resident of the Barry Farm Housing project, Detrice Belt is a D.C. native and a mother to one daughter, she works as a dental assistant and is the president of the Barry Farm Tenants and Allies Association, she has been on the forefront of the fight for Barry Farm, she currently resides in northeast D.C. after being displaced from Barry Farm.

Title: Jack Lee
Description: In this interview, Jack Lee discusses his family's arrival in Chinatown in Washington, D.C. after the Second World War, growing up in the center of Chinatown, his father's grocery store, and being a part of the Lee Family Association. Lee describes going to school in a majority-Black neighborhood, practicing basketball, and working for the Mayor's Office of Youth Opportunity program where he planned activities for the youth in Chinatown, before it was cut when Marion Barry took office. Lee recalls pursuing a job with the government, getting married to his wife Penny, learning the history of his parents, and the decline of Chinatown--starting with the construction of the convention center and sporting arena. Lee concludes by talking about learning more of the Chinese language, family traditions, and culture., Jack Lee was born in 1953, the fourth and youngest son to two immigrants who came to the United States from Taishan, China after the Second World War. His father owned the grocery store in Chinatown and his mother worked in Chinese restaurants while he was growing up. Lee attended Seaton Elementary school, Jefferson Junior High, and Duke Ellington (Now Western) High School. In 1971, he worked part-time for the Mayor's Office of Youth Opportunity in Chinatown before getting a position with the Secret Service and eventually the IRS.

Title: Michelle Hamilton
Description: Michelle Hamilton describes her early life, schooling, education, career, family and her experience as a resident of the Barry Farm Housing project, Michelle Hamilton is a D.C. native, she has a strong passion for her family and for working with children, she now resides in southwest D.C. after being displaced from Barry Farm.

Title: Nicole Odom
Description: Nicole Odom describes her early life, schooling, education, career, family and her experience as a resident of the Barry Farm Housing project, Nicole Odom is a D.C. native, mother of seven who works with Empower D.C. as an organizing assistant, she now lives in northwest D.C. after being displaced from Barry Farm.

Title: Jettie Brown
Description: In this oral history interview, Jettie Brown discusses her life and experiences moving from Blair, Virginia, to Chester, Pennsylvania, to Long Island, New York, and ultimately to Washington, D.C. Mrs. Brown talks about her upbringing and family life on the farm in Blair, segregation and race relations in Blair, and her family's migration to Chester, Pennsylvania, when she was twenty years old. Mrs. Brown also discusses moving to Long Island with her husband and their move to the Washington, D.C., area., Mrs. Jettie Brown was born on September 23, 1930, in Blair, Virginia, and grew up with her mother, father, and seven siblings. The family lived and worked on a farm as sharecroppers in Blair, but they migrated to Chester, Pennsylvania, after an incident in which Mrs. Brown's father was cheated at settlement by his employer. In Chester, Mrs. Brown met and married her husband, Rev. Ulysses Brown, and the two moved to Long Island, New York. Mrs. Brown got a job working for AT and T and was able to continue her education in Long Island, receiving a bachelor's degree in Christian Education. After her husband's retirement Mrs. Brown and her husband moved to Washington, D.C, and she has worked as substitute teacher since arriving in the District. Mrs. Brown also serves on the Mothers' Board of Greater Refuge Temple of Washington, D.C, and is currently taking classes at Liberty University.

Title: Lena Bradley
Description: In this oral history interview, Lena Bradley, a long time D.C. resident, discusses her life and experiences moving from Kenly, North Carolina, to Washington, D.C. She reflects on her upbringing and education in the South as well as her life in Washington and career as a beautician., Lena Mae Bunch Townsend Bradley was born in Wilson County, North Carolina, July 20, 1929 to Adelina Bunch and James Henry Bynum. She lived there until the age of five, at which time she moved to Kenly, North Carolina, in Johnson County, attending the city public grade school from the first to the sixth grade. She attended high school in Selma, North Carolina and graduated in 1950. She stayed with an aunt in D.C. during the summers starting in 1946, getting a job taking care of a wealthy older White woman in the community, and after graduating she stayed in the city, becoming a beautician, joining Second Baptist Church in 1953 and marrying in 1956. She participated in beauty competitions and won awards, traveling extensively with her husband, all the while remaining a member of Second Baptist for over sixty-seven years.

Title: Jimmie Suggs
Description: In this oral history interview, Jimmie Suggs, a long time D.C. resident, discusses his experiences moving from Stantonsburg, North Carolina, to Washington, D.C. He discusses coming up as a “southern boy,” being the first Black student to integrate the local public high school, the expectations of his household, and never losing his Southern identity after moving to D.C. He also discusses changes he’s witnessed in the city., Jimmie Suggs was born in 1952 in Stantonsburg, North Carolina, and has three brothers and three sisters. Mr. Suggs grew up working in tobacco fields, picking cotton and corn, and securing odd jobs around town. He also was a serious athlete (softball and basketball) and has continued playing sports throughout his life. He attended Speights High School in Saratoga, North Carolina, before integrating Lee Woodard High School in Black Creek, North Carolina, in his junior year. Mr. Suggs’ basketball coach from Speights drove him to and from Lee Woodard every day since he had gotten a job as assistant principal there. The same year he enrolled at Lee Woodard, 1969, Mr. Suggs began coming to D.C. for summer work. One of Mr. Suggs’ older brothers had moved to D.C. in 1966, and his mother had been encouraging him to do the same since there was little economic opportunity in their area. Upon graduating from high school, he moved to Washington for good. Mr. Suggs has worked a variety of jobs throughout the D.C. region including work as a Metrobus driver, truck driver, locksmith, construction worker, and mechanic/garage attendant.

Title: Jacquline Hines
Description: In this oral history interview, Jacqueline Hines, a long time D.C. resident, discusses her life and experiences moving from Wilson, North Carolina to Washington, D.C. She discusses her upbringing in Wilson, the reasons her family chose to move to D.C., her time at Ballou High School and Bowie State University, and her career as an educator and social worker. She also talks about issues she has faced since coming to Washington and some of the reasons she has never considered returning to North Carolina, Jacqueline Hines was born in Wilson, North Carolina on April 27, 1954. Though she was sixth of her mother’s seven children, she grew up with only her mother and younger sister in the home since her older siblings were from her mother’s first marriage and had already moved out. At the age of 15 in the summer of 1969, Ms. Hines came to Washington, D.C.; her mother and sister came north to join her that fall. Ms. Hines was the first in her family to have a high school diploma (Ballou High School) and to get a college degree (Bowie State University). She gave birth to her son after finishing at Bowie State in 1977, and, after staying home with him for a time, she began her career as an educator. Her first teaching job was in a correctional facility but she later began working in DC Public Schools (DCPS). Ms. Hines retired from DCPS in August of 2019.

Title: Jacqueline Hines
Description: In this oral history interview, Jacqueline Hines, a long time D.C. resident, discusses her life and experiences moving from Wilson, North Carolina, to Washington, D.C. She reflects on her upbringing in the South, her life in Washington, and her career as an early childhood educator and social worker., Jacqueline Hines was born in Wilson, North Carolina on April 27, 1954. Though she was sixth of her mother’s seven children, she grew up with only her mother and younger sister in the home since her older siblings were from her mother’s first marriage and had already moved out. At the age of 15 in the summer of 1969, Ms. Hines came to Washington, D.C.; her mother and sister came north to join her that fall. Ms. Hines was the first in her family to have a high school diploma (Ballou High School) and to get a college degree (Bowie State University). She gave birth to her son after finishing at Bowie State in 1977, and, after staying home with him for a time, she began her career as an educator. Her first teaching job was in a correctional facility but she later began working in DC Public Schools (DCPS). Ms. Hines retired from DCPS in August of 2019.

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