Hello friend,

My late grandmother, I recently learned, lived on Euclid Street NW in the late 1940s through the early 1950s. She raised my aunt and uncle in an apartment a stone’s throw away from Malcolm X Park. 

Earlier this month, I moved to Columbia Heights. I was drawn by the area’s walkability and easy access to transit – all things GGWash, with your help, is advocating for across the region. What I didn’t know was that I was moving just a couple blocks away from where my grandmother once lived. 

Naturally, when I found out, I wanted to see if the apartment building she lived in still stands, so I took a quick detour home after work. 

And there it was.

The front of my Grandmother's building in the 1950's.

As I stood on the sidewalk gazing at the building’s facade, I unexpectedly found myself flooded with emotion.

I was raised in Japan, pursued education in the US and the Netherlands, and until a few weeks ago, lived in Foggy Bottom. What are the odds that I would wind up living just a few blocks from where my grandmother lived seven decades ago?

Standing in front of her old building, I felt a sense of homecoming – and of community.

Community starts with connection. It’s about building a sense of place when I encounter the neighborhood cat, receive a friendly smile from the guy who people-watches near the corner store, and pass my grandmother’s old apartment when I go shopping.

The front of my Grandmother's former building now in 2023.

Community is also cultivated from feeling like you have a say in what happens in the place you call home. Many people are actively denied the chance to engage in decision making due to exclusionary policies and practices. In DC, for example, public hearings on transit issues are often inaccessible to most riders because they take place during the work day.

I think a lot about how our transportation system is an expression of power, but also of community identity and needs. The way we name our Metro stops. Our decision to plan for a bus lane instead of a lane for cars – or not. Our decision to install a bus shelter at a bus stop – or not. These decisions reflect who is being prioritized in our transportation system.

My main role at GGWash is managing the DC Transportation Equity Network. The DC TEN is a coalition of direct service and advocacy organizations that are committed to seeing a transportation system in DC that works for all residents, regardless of income or background.

I draw comfort from knowing that I’m doing my part to contribute to the city where, over 70 years ago, my loved ones walked the same blocks as I do now. The work I’m doing grapples with the aftermath of decisions made all those years ago, from the rise of car culture to white flight. There’s no shortage of work to do, and I’m so glad not to be doing it alone. 

Contributions from our Neighbors – GGWash’s incredible community of recurring donors – make my work possible. If you share my belief that better transportation ultimately means better communities, I hope you’ll support our work by joining the GGWash Neighborhood.

Here's to a greater, more people-centered region for all of us.

Kai Hall

Policy Officer

P.S. The DC TEN is organizing the first-ever National Week without Driving for DC in early October! Keep an eye out for what you can do to participate.

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