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Chocolate City: A History of Race and Democracy in the Nation's Capital
Monumental in scope and vividly detailed, Chocolate City tells the tumultuous, four-century story of race and democracy in our nation's capital. Emblematic of the ongoing tensions between America's expansive democratic promises and its enduring racial realities, Washington often has served as a national battleground for contentious issues, including slavery, segregation, civil rights, the drug war, and gentrification. But D.C. is more than just a seat of government, and authors Chris Myers Asch and George Derek Musgrove also highlight the city's rich history of local activism as Washingtonians of all races have struggled to make their voices heard in an undemocratic city where residents lack full political rights.Tracing D.C.'s massive transformations--from a sparsely inhabited plantation society into a diverse metropolis, from a center of the slave trade to the nation's first black-majority city, from "Chocolate City" to "Latte City--Asch and Musgrove offer an engaging narrative peppered with unforgettable characters, a history of deep racial division but also one of hope, resilience, and interracial cooperation.
621 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 17, 2017
474 people are currently reading
3493 people want to read
About the author
Chris Myers Asch
3 books23 followersI lead many different lives. I’m a dad who left full-time work five years ago to raise three kids; I’m a historian who teaches at Colby College and just finished a book on race in D.C. (Chocolate City); I’m a social entrepreneur who has helped start and run three non-profit organizations, including the Capital Area New Mainers Project; I’m an athlete who loves baseball, martial arts, and hiking. It's a full life!
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 160 reviews
March 21, 2018
As a recent DC resident, Chocolate City gave me much greater insights to the cities' neighborhoods and how they came to be. Also gave me background on names and historical markers I see around town. Although the Book's length made it a challenge, it marched through history without a lot of wasted words or extraneous stories. Although it's the story of DC and its unique role as the federal city, it also tells the story of many cities and the history of shifting racial dynamics.
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July 24, 2024
So informative, so well researched, and so good.
I learned a hell of a lot about DC—how gentrification, segregation, classism and racism has been built into its core since its inception, and how activists have worked to break down racial barriers.
What I love is that how the authors recognize the research that has come before their work. That this book is written in community instead of an isolated and innovative approach that no one has done before.
I learned a hell of a lot about DC—how gentrification, segregation, classism and racism has been built into its core since its inception, and how activists have worked to break down racial barriers.
What I love is that how the authors recognize the research that has come before their work. That this book is written in community instead of an isolated and innovative approach that no one has done before.
December 15, 2020
As the title indicates, this book provides a definitive account of the District of Columbia’s history in terms of the advances and setbacks faced by its inhabitants in attaining racial and democratic equality.
Beyond describing the city’s racial dimensions, however, Asch and Musgrove also illuminated how economic conflicts affected the city. In the early-19th Century, the roots of the retrocession movement involved economically disaffected white Georgetown and Alexandria residents, worried as development centered around the growth of the Washington City Federal government. Later, the role of Alexandria as a slave port, in addition to the desire for voting rights, led white residents to petition and obtain retrocession to Virginia in 1846. Across the river, economic differences between the elite black residents of Washington such as Frederick Douglass, and the growing number of newly-freed slaves forming the working class (led by “Colonel Carson”) would characterize the city’s Reconstruction Era history. The city’s limited industrial presence minimized the number of working class white residents who would settle in the city, with those who lived in Southeast largerly dissipating in the 1960s as military shops closed and school desegregation was met with cultural strife.
The book describes how political leaders alternatively helped and harmed the District’s democratic aspirations. Mayor Sayles Bowen, a Marion Barry-like figure, but 100 years earlier and white, would integrate the local government and employ black workers in city works projects in the late 1860s. In the next decade, black voting rights were set back when Alexander Shepherd’s ‘territorial government’ plan ended locally-elected positions and congressional findings of the city’s graft led to the abolition of the territorial government as well in 1874.
These days, Federal government decisions governing local District matters tend to be cast as negative interference, but the book pointed out the times when historically it has been beneficial. One of the earliest Congressional uses of the District as a pawn in political power struggles came on the issue of slavery in the 1830s, with abolitionists publicizing the abysmal slave trading pens placed in the capital. Later, Lincoln’s early emancipation of slaves within the District significantly advanced racial equality and would help increase the black population. A century later, the influence of the Federal government would largely be the reverse, with delegate Walter Fauntroy needing to unseat a segregationist congressmen from South Carolina in order to be able to advance Home Rule legislation in the early 1970s.
Chocolate City contained a number of insights into Washington history that were new to me, and in its scope as well as some of its more amusing anecdotes (the barber of U Street's encounter with a policeman at a playground) this was probably the most enjoyable book on D.C. that I have ever read.
Beyond describing the city’s racial dimensions, however, Asch and Musgrove also illuminated how economic conflicts affected the city. In the early-19th Century, the roots of the retrocession movement involved economically disaffected white Georgetown and Alexandria residents, worried as development centered around the growth of the Washington City Federal government. Later, the role of Alexandria as a slave port, in addition to the desire for voting rights, led white residents to petition and obtain retrocession to Virginia in 1846. Across the river, economic differences between the elite black residents of Washington such as Frederick Douglass, and the growing number of newly-freed slaves forming the working class (led by “Colonel Carson”) would characterize the city’s Reconstruction Era history. The city’s limited industrial presence minimized the number of working class white residents who would settle in the city, with those who lived in Southeast largerly dissipating in the 1960s as military shops closed and school desegregation was met with cultural strife.
The book describes how political leaders alternatively helped and harmed the District’s democratic aspirations. Mayor Sayles Bowen, a Marion Barry-like figure, but 100 years earlier and white, would integrate the local government and employ black workers in city works projects in the late 1860s. In the next decade, black voting rights were set back when Alexander Shepherd’s ‘territorial government’ plan ended locally-elected positions and congressional findings of the city’s graft led to the abolition of the territorial government as well in 1874.
These days, Federal government decisions governing local District matters tend to be cast as negative interference, but the book pointed out the times when historically it has been beneficial. One of the earliest Congressional uses of the District as a pawn in political power struggles came on the issue of slavery in the 1830s, with abolitionists publicizing the abysmal slave trading pens placed in the capital. Later, Lincoln’s early emancipation of slaves within the District significantly advanced racial equality and would help increase the black population. A century later, the influence of the Federal government would largely be the reverse, with delegate Walter Fauntroy needing to unseat a segregationist congressmen from South Carolina in order to be able to advance Home Rule legislation in the early 1970s.
Chocolate City contained a number of insights into Washington history that were new to me, and in its scope as well as some of its more amusing anecdotes (the barber of U Street's encounter with a policeman at a playground) this was probably the most enjoyable book on D.C. that I have ever read.
September 26, 2020
Thanks to the random stranger online who needed me to read it for him (God bless you Juny). It was the first book I read on the history and politics of race in Washington DC. Or frankly, simply on race.
Reflects quite brilliantly with boring historical and very academic undertones on how Jim Crow was introduced cautiously after the First Reconstruction post Civil War in the Federal Capital, and how it developed into vivid segregation from DC to all over the USA, the internalization of the segregationist approach to identity among local Black leaders, lawyers, academicians, and just regular not-so-political folks, and its eventual consequences on the socio-economic situation of the Black Washingtonians through segregated schools, residential societies, public places, and justice system alike. Damn, it's one long sentence.
What else? The transformation to the integrationist approach post-Civil Rights Movement. Mayoral politics. Full Black versus Half-Black. And then no Black at all.
What is refreshing here is that there's nothing white about the book, except, of course, Chris Myers Asch himself. But I'll give him that.
Time spent well. Money earned. What else do you need?
Reflects quite brilliantly with boring historical and very academic undertones on how Jim Crow was introduced cautiously after the First Reconstruction post Civil War in the Federal Capital, and how it developed into vivid segregation from DC to all over the USA, the internalization of the segregationist approach to identity among local Black leaders, lawyers, academicians, and just regular not-so-political folks, and its eventual consequences on the socio-economic situation of the Black Washingtonians through segregated schools, residential societies, public places, and justice system alike. Damn, it's one long sentence.
What else? The transformation to the integrationist approach post-Civil Rights Movement. Mayoral politics. Full Black versus Half-Black. And then no Black at all.
What is refreshing here is that there's nothing white about the book, except, of course, Chris Myers Asch himself. But I'll give him that.
Time spent well. Money earned. What else do you need?
July 1, 2019
The history of DC is even more fascinating than I had realized, and this book really covers it all. I was extremely impressed with the thoroughness; that said the level of detail and length of time it covered made it a bit of a slog to get through at times. But, no stars removed because I wouldn’t have wanted them to cut any corners.
As a permanent DC transplant, I love this city and really make an effort to respect its history and people. This book will help a lot with that effort- I will definitely see a lot of things in a whole new light.
As a permanent DC transplant, I love this city and really make an effort to respect its history and people. This book will help a lot with that effort- I will definitely see a lot of things in a whole new light.
July 1, 2021
8 months and a 36 hour audiobook later… wow! This should be required reading for any (especially white) DC transplants or anyone interested in the DC statehood conversation. Asch & Musgrove do an incredible job explaining the specific stories and circumstances (i.e. gentrification, redlining) in the history of the District that so many vaguely allude to, but can be difficult to grasp. I would love to read a second a edition covering the last decade since it’s publishing!!
March 24, 2022
This should be required reading for all DC residents. The authors kept me engaged the entire time and I now have a much better understanding of DC's history.
August 18, 2018
Authors Chris Asch and George Musgrove end their book on the history of race and democracy in Washington, DC, by saying that their purpose remains to deepen “love for the city and inspire readers to engage in thoughtful conversation about race and democracy.” This thorough, well-documented history of the very unique and intriguing US capital city that is also a microcosm of race and democracy in our country does just that.
Laying foundations in the colonial developments in and around where Washington would develop, the book looks at how the city becomes a dynamic magnet for both white and black populations in the antebellum period, giving testimony for how the momentous change that emancipation brought energized and empowered African Americans on the decade following the end of the American Civil War. This promising start is just as quickly quenched when DC voters are disenfranchised in 1874, with DC residents having opportunity to vote taken away until just shy of 100 years later. Under Congressional authority, DC residents had no vote for mayor, city council and other governing bodies until 1972. Amazing! And poignantly because DC became a majority African American city following the Civil War period.
Even so, through unjust trials of disenfranchisement, Jim Crow segregation, redlining, poverty and unfair wage and labor practices, African Americans were able to find not-too-infrequent moments of courage and self-empowerment in order to coax their stamp on the city with the promise that they would create possibilities for a more just and equitable city, organized into neighborhoods of familiarity that show a way to a diverse and creative future. Asch and Musgrove detail not only such highlights, but also the diversity of an eventual multicultural city, albeit one that struggles with systems of white privilege and supremacy.
What I noticed in reading this history, is how close the past is to the present. Gentrification and developments that prosper the city as a national treasure and attraction come with a high price tag for poorer citizens, destroying the familiarity of neighbors and communities. Political leadership within the city continues to show high promise because of the giftedness of its mayors, council members and multifaceted community leaders and organizers. It was instructive to read of the high minded purpose of Marion Barry and of his bonds especially, but not by any means exclusively, with his poorer African American base. The helpfulness and courage of church leaders, grassroots, academic and business leaders is also well-documented and inspiring. Of course, uniquely, all of this is happening within the population if the city, while Congress and Presidents use DC as a political foil for constituencies far removed from the neighborhoods and citizens of Washington.
As a pastor and one deeply interested in the District of Columbia, I highly recommend this book to my colleagues in church ministry as we seek the welfare of the city where we find ourselves.
Laying foundations in the colonial developments in and around where Washington would develop, the book looks at how the city becomes a dynamic magnet for both white and black populations in the antebellum period, giving testimony for how the momentous change that emancipation brought energized and empowered African Americans on the decade following the end of the American Civil War. This promising start is just as quickly quenched when DC voters are disenfranchised in 1874, with DC residents having opportunity to vote taken away until just shy of 100 years later. Under Congressional authority, DC residents had no vote for mayor, city council and other governing bodies until 1972. Amazing! And poignantly because DC became a majority African American city following the Civil War period.
Even so, through unjust trials of disenfranchisement, Jim Crow segregation, redlining, poverty and unfair wage and labor practices, African Americans were able to find not-too-infrequent moments of courage and self-empowerment in order to coax their stamp on the city with the promise that they would create possibilities for a more just and equitable city, organized into neighborhoods of familiarity that show a way to a diverse and creative future. Asch and Musgrove detail not only such highlights, but also the diversity of an eventual multicultural city, albeit one that struggles with systems of white privilege and supremacy.
What I noticed in reading this history, is how close the past is to the present. Gentrification and developments that prosper the city as a national treasure and attraction come with a high price tag for poorer citizens, destroying the familiarity of neighbors and communities. Political leadership within the city continues to show high promise because of the giftedness of its mayors, council members and multifaceted community leaders and organizers. It was instructive to read of the high minded purpose of Marion Barry and of his bonds especially, but not by any means exclusively, with his poorer African American base. The helpfulness and courage of church leaders, grassroots, academic and business leaders is also well-documented and inspiring. Of course, uniquely, all of this is happening within the population if the city, while Congress and Presidents use DC as a political foil for constituencies far removed from the neighborhoods and citizens of Washington.
As a pastor and one deeply interested in the District of Columbia, I highly recommend this book to my colleagues in church ministry as we seek the welfare of the city where we find ourselves.
April 10, 2024
This did take me 3 months to read but it wasn’t because it was boring! It was just long but I learned so much! So glad I read this, I know so much more about the city I’ve grown up around my whole life and particularly the racial dynamics within it. As a contributor to the yuppie gentrification of the city it’s important for me to understand how my presence in the district is affecting its history as a black-majority urban environment.
January 17, 2021
Definitely a must-read for anyone living in DC or planning to live in DC. Very impressed by how well-researched this book was (I would say a sixth of the book is Works Cited!). It stretches from pre-European settlement up to present day. It was great to spot landmarks referenced in my own neighborhood. Would very much recommend
November 1, 2020
Wow. If you have any interest in nonfiction or history books, this is such a great read, especially if you’ve lived for some amount of time in the DMV. This book is only the tip of the iceberg, but enough to give me (or someone like me lacking DC’s basic historical context) a better sense of what gentrification means here, and how local history is pretty much indivisible from race and civil rights. A much needed reorientation leaving me to reconsider our neighborhoods, establishments, and local politics through a new lens. Very much recommend!
September 27, 2024
Expansive survey of many of America’s essential problems through DC, a microcosm of attempts to control politics and race and the many forms of resistance to these attempts. Greatly appreciated the dense research in grassroots and community organization, spanning all the way to the origins of this town back when it was just a port at Georgetown and the city of Alexandria. Also, very well-written and articulated.
December 9, 2025
Was reading this on kindle and then lost my kindle so couldn’t finish but such a great read. Very dense but anyone living in DC should read this.
July 27, 2020
This sweeping history of Washington, DC relentlessly centers the racial tensions that have marked the history of this nation and it’s capitol city. It’s far and a way the most thorough, poignant, and engaging work on our city I’ve read to date. The book ends with the following appeal from the authors, an appeal I feel challenged and stirred by, an appeal that reminds me of why I moved into the city in the first place:
“We hope that this book will inspire Washingtonians to take up the challenge of black and white abolitionists, of former slaves and Radical Republicans, of civil rights and home rule activists, of freeway protestors and cooperative organizers, to build a more just, egalitarian, and democratic nation’s capital.”
Count me as one of the inspired.
“We hope that this book will inspire Washingtonians to take up the challenge of black and white abolitionists, of former slaves and Radical Republicans, of civil rights and home rule activists, of freeway protestors and cooperative organizers, to build a more just, egalitarian, and democratic nation’s capital.”
Count me as one of the inspired.
July 4, 2021
Really enjoyed this book! It is somewhat academic in tone, so not for everyone. But the narrative moves quickly and I learned so much.
I have been a DC-area resident on and off since 1984, when I moved there for college. I wish I could have read this book way back then, because it would have provided so much context for the politics that went on in the 80s and 90s. I remember hearing about The Plan, for example, for a white takeover of the city. Well, turns out there actually was a Plan! There had been various Plans for over a century. And while Marion Barry was becoming a cartoon version of a mayor by the time I got there, I now understand better why he inspired so much loyalty in the black community.
I'm a history geek and so I also was fascinated by the chapters regarding the earlier history of the city. I did not know that there was such a thriving free black community there even before the Civil War. The long history of the fight for Home Rule--struggling to get some kind of autonomy from under the thumb of a racist, reactionary Congress--puts so much of the present day into context, and reflects in many ways the story of our country.
When I arrived, crime rates were high and things were looking pretty shabby, but there was also a clear sense that DC was indeed Chocolate City. To me, coming from a southern city myself, it seemed much more normal back then. Since then, the downtown area has become safer, but also glitzy, overcrowded, and unaffordable. As a native of a city that has seen a similar transformation (Nashville) I can completely understand why many residents would feel that is has been a hostile takeover, and particularly in the case of DC, the racial element of the equation simply cannot be ignored. Black communities have simply been shoved aside, over and over again, in the name of redevelopment. This happens in many cities, but was especially pronounced in DC. I was stunned, for example, to learn that Southwest DC once looked pretty much like Capitol Hill. The whole quadrant was simply razed to the ground.
This book will make a lot more sense to anyone who has lived in DC and has a "mental map" of the landscape. If you don't already more or less know the layout of the city, it will be confusing. But for residents, ex-residents, and future residents with Google Maps on hand, it's a must-read.
Also, it's way, WAY past time DC became a state.
I have been a DC-area resident on and off since 1984, when I moved there for college. I wish I could have read this book way back then, because it would have provided so much context for the politics that went on in the 80s and 90s. I remember hearing about The Plan, for example, for a white takeover of the city. Well, turns out there actually was a Plan! There had been various Plans for over a century. And while Marion Barry was becoming a cartoon version of a mayor by the time I got there, I now understand better why he inspired so much loyalty in the black community.
I'm a history geek and so I also was fascinated by the chapters regarding the earlier history of the city. I did not know that there was such a thriving free black community there even before the Civil War. The long history of the fight for Home Rule--struggling to get some kind of autonomy from under the thumb of a racist, reactionary Congress--puts so much of the present day into context, and reflects in many ways the story of our country.
When I arrived, crime rates were high and things were looking pretty shabby, but there was also a clear sense that DC was indeed Chocolate City. To me, coming from a southern city myself, it seemed much more normal back then. Since then, the downtown area has become safer, but also glitzy, overcrowded, and unaffordable. As a native of a city that has seen a similar transformation (Nashville) I can completely understand why many residents would feel that is has been a hostile takeover, and particularly in the case of DC, the racial element of the equation simply cannot be ignored. Black communities have simply been shoved aside, over and over again, in the name of redevelopment. This happens in many cities, but was especially pronounced in DC. I was stunned, for example, to learn that Southwest DC once looked pretty much like Capitol Hill. The whole quadrant was simply razed to the ground.
This book will make a lot more sense to anyone who has lived in DC and has a "mental map" of the landscape. If you don't already more or less know the layout of the city, it will be confusing. But for residents, ex-residents, and future residents with Google Maps on hand, it's a must-read.
Also, it's way, WAY past time DC became a state.
January 16, 2026
This tome chronicling DC’s 400-year history took me a month to get through, but I’m glad I stuck with it, even though the 19th century chapters felt about a millennium long. I learned a great deal about my adopted home, and I now have a lot more context for understanding some of the city’s continuing challenges. The style of the book was a bit of a challenge for me - I felt like it tried to walk a fine line between being a vast survey and a dense anthropological study, doing neither perfectly. It had too many individual stories thrown in as minor details while not providing enough national or historical context for certain events. Setting that aside, though, it is a valuable book that makes clear how race has and continues to shape the life of the city.
October 22, 2019
This is an excellent history of Washington DC, viewed through the lens of race. The authors argue that race explains much of the city's history:
“Race, above and beyond other factors (including class, region, politics, and religion), has proven to be the most significant explanation for social, economic, and political divisions in the city. Race may be a social and historical construction with little basis in biology, but it is also a powerful lived reality that has influenced how (and where) Washingtonians of all races have lived, worked, voted, and interacted.”
The authors make a convincing case for this approach to Washington's history as they explore themes about “the enduring significance of race and the shifting dynamics of racial power, the debilitating effect of D.C.’s undemocratic political status on race relations in the city, and the catalyzing and demoralizing effect of being the nation’s capital on local racial struggles.”
As a relatively recent transplant to the Washington DC metro area, I found the book to be fascinating and educational. It is thorough, detailed, and well-researched. Although it's long and sometimes dense, it is still very readable. I recommend Chocolate City to anyone who wants to know more about the history of Washington DC, the history of urban America, or the history of race in the United States.
“Race, above and beyond other factors (including class, region, politics, and religion), has proven to be the most significant explanation for social, economic, and political divisions in the city. Race may be a social and historical construction with little basis in biology, but it is also a powerful lived reality that has influenced how (and where) Washingtonians of all races have lived, worked, voted, and interacted.”
The authors make a convincing case for this approach to Washington's history as they explore themes about “the enduring significance of race and the shifting dynamics of racial power, the debilitating effect of D.C.’s undemocratic political status on race relations in the city, and the catalyzing and demoralizing effect of being the nation’s capital on local racial struggles.”
As a relatively recent transplant to the Washington DC metro area, I found the book to be fascinating and educational. It is thorough, detailed, and well-researched. Although it's long and sometimes dense, it is still very readable. I recommend Chocolate City to anyone who wants to know more about the history of Washington DC, the history of urban America, or the history of race in the United States.
July 4, 2020
This was such a good and important read. Especially as the House voted for the first time to approve DC statehood and as Black Lives Matter protests continue, but really for any time. The book was so well-grounded in DC as a place and in its people - I frequently opened up a map on my phone to look at where the landmarks they referenced were or are. And I learned so much about the particular history of race, racism, and Blackness in DC.
December 7, 2020
One of the most informative, well-written, and well-researched history books I have read in a long time. I am forever impressed by how deftly the authors were able to cover a long span of time/many different historical eras, AND different aspects of society in relation to race (local politics, national politics, social classes, enslavement, immigration, business, etc.). I have walked away better understanding the city I live in, and feeling like I know even less about the world than I did when I began reading it--truly the sign of a great book. It was worth the investment in time.
September 21, 2021
though undoubtedly a tome and a bit slow-moving at first, it is incredibly well-researched, informative, and thorough. the history of dc is endlessly fascinating and complex, yet utterly contradictory; intended to serve as a shining beacon of democracy for the world, yet simultaneously a testing ground for some of the nation's most anti-democratic and harmful policy, dc perfectly encapsulates the contradictions inherent to american politics. the fact that metro pd incarcerated 25% of the city's black men aged 18-29 between 1985 and 1987 is truly unfathomable. i despise the term "required reading" but this book is absolutely essential for transplants to even begin to understand and interrogate their role in the city's problematic reality, as well as its path forward.
July 6, 2020
All my dc goodreads friends need to read this book
May 21, 2021
This should be required reading for every DC resident. The authors paint a nuanced and detailed picture of how race and lack of governmental representation has impacted DC from even before its founding to the present day. Chocolate City also left me with many hard questions about how gentrification is changing the city today, and I know I’ll continue to consider those questions (with the crucial context of everything I learned from this book) for a long time.
March 15, 2020
Fascinating history of my city that I sadly didn’t know fully before. Must read! Densely written but good.
October 31, 2022
This doorstopper of a book is an extraordinary achievement. I have technically read this book twice, but on this second reread, I feel like I was able to retain so much more information about race and democracy in the nation's capital from the indigenous poeples who were here before us to the present day struggle for home rule and voting rights. This book made me aware of so many aspects of DC history that I did not know, and it filled me with so much more love and passion for this city that so often gets overlooked and misunderstood. DC is so much more than Capitol Hill, and this book will teach you why. I think anyone who has ever lived in DC should read this book. Even if you haven't, this book serves as an excellent microcosm of America's struggle for racial justice and equality, and it's well worth picking up. It will take a chunk of your time, but it is time spent well.
September 21, 2021
An excellent read about race and DC! You could tell it was full of primary sources and was balanced to show a wide variety of perspectives on the demographic shift in DC throughout the years. Would highly recommend this read to anyone that has lived in the area or is interested in this core part of our nation’s history
November 23, 2021
Absolutely a must-read for anyone living in DC to dig deeper into its history and contextualize its rapid demographic changes. I listened to the book on audiobook and it was so enriching to walk around the city learning about all the layers of history in my surroundings. But this book isn’t just about local history; it’s the story of race in America told through the lens of DC. The book juxtaposes our national symbols of democracy and equality with the brutal realities of enslavement, segregation, disenfranchisement, and socioeconomic inequality. Highly recommend!!
February 19, 2020
I'm possibly biased because I live 3 miles from the DC border, but I found this captivating and interesting and informative throughout. In fact, it changed my entire attitude to the District. I may even support statehood over retrocession now 😛.
August 10, 2024
Completely changed how I view DC! There is so much history here.
September 23, 2018
A really good and detailed social and political history of Washington, DC. Although formally a history of race in the District, it necessarily ends up covering just about everything else along the way.
July 24, 2022
I learned so much!! And it was important, so much of it made me mad, but it was so important to know the history of this great city that I live in.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 160 reviews