There is a lot of talk about the latest round of gutting cuts to the staff writers at the Washington Post and what these dramatic changes will mean for international news, sports reporting, and its award-winning photography. However, the most recent assault on local reporting will have what I believe to be the most damaging impact – the downsize of the Metro section. The Post not only covered local news, but also significantly impacted systems reform in and around DC. The DC metro area represents millions of residents, and our local news often reverberates far beyond our borders. These layoffs made to local reporting are irreplaceable. Not only does democracy die in darkness, but so does local political accountability. Systems need to be held accountable in order to serve the public, and that is what the dedicated reporters and columnists at the Post have helped us do for over 20 years.
I want to take a moment to reflect on how much Playtime Project has appreciated the hard-working journalists at the Post for uplifting the stories of the children and families we serve.
Back in 2005, the DC Armory turned into a pop-up shelter for a handful of people fleeing the impact of Hurricane Katrina. The city-wide response was immediate, with donations of caviar and cribs pouring in. Meanwhile, at D.C. Village shelter, Playtime was serving local homeless families who were sharing cots with newborn babies in overcrowded rooms. In response to this discrepancy, the Post’s Courtland Milloy wrote a column spotlighting the harsh reality of shelter living in DC.
In 2016, we got a call from a Playtime family about their child who was stuck in detention because of a dress code violation; she went to school wearing polka-dot socks. This was the latest in a string of examples of how many schools’ strict uniform policies disproportionately punish our kids for poverty. So, we advocated for action the best way I knew how - I told Post columnist Petula Dvorak, who exposed this cruel practice. We called on her more times than I can count, and she wrote about everything from one of our teens being shut out of college, to Black NASA astronaut Leland Melvin visiting Playtime at DC General Shelter. Her articles illuminated our families' needs and inspired wide audiences to donate time and resources year after year - we called this "the Petula effect.”
When 8-year-old Relisha Rudd went missing from DC General in 2014, the Post’s talented investigative journalists published numerous exposes on institutional dysfunction in the homeless service system. The coverage held the city accountable and contributed to the closure of this dangerous, overcrowded shelter. Hundreds of children and their families were then moved to hotels along New York Avenue, without transportation to their schools across the city. Playtime families were spending hundreds of dollars for Ubers to get their children to school and themselves to work. With the help of Theresa Vargas and her compelling two-part column, shuttle buses were scheduled, and families were able to get their kids to school.
Last year, I got a call from Post reporter Ellie Silverman. She asked me for insight into a story idea she was researching. “I don’t know about that,” I replied, “But did you know that in Prince George’s County, a school principal told me in writing that a little boy in a wheelchair can’t go to his neighborhood school because it’s not wheelchair accessible?” Shortly thereafter, there was the story about Playtime’s student on the front page of the Metro section, and days later he was back in school. I value the delicate way that Ellie and the Post photographer treated the student and honored his story.
My nonprofit colleagues join me in mourning the fact that the Metro section has been dramatically reduced over the lifespan of our organizations. Now, families and individuals experiencing housing insecurity will rely on community voices and local organizing efforts to uplift their stories. So, what can YOU do?
- Engage with local media outlets, like Street Sense, The DC Line, 730DC, The 51st and so many others that now carry the weight of keeping these stories alive.
- Connect with your community. Whether that be through volunteering, organizing, or attending local events, get to know the people whose lives and histories make up this great region.
- Volunteer with Playtime – and talk about your experience! Share what you’re learning about families’ needs, struggles, and successes on social media, at a dinner party, or with your representatives.
I can’t yet imagine our world without the Washington Post. Nonprofit organizations like ours depend on Post coverage to elevate and inform. We will not let this blow to local media silence the stories that need to be told throughout the region. Thank you to all the Metro staff reporters over the years who took our calls and elevated the stories of real people whose voices would otherwise stay in the shadows of our nation’s capital.
