Abstract

This is an individual interview of Lauren Paylor in which she discusses her experiences as a Black mixologist and bartender, being a part of the local Shaw community, and the community of Black bartenders in D.C. during the COVID-19 pandemic and 2020 protests.

Abstract Layne Garrett discusses growing up in a typical household in Tennessee and spending his childhood, visiting family on long road trips to Texas. While interest in music was always present in Layne’s life, it was in high school that exposure to outsider literature and open tuning in guitar brought him to be a part of music projects and pursue creative expression. He reflects on four years of living in a new city in Phoenix after college, where lack of social engagements got him to experiment...

Abstract

This is an individual interview of Mimi Evans in which she discusses being a Black mixologist, mother, and small business owner in the D.C. metropolitan area, and the effects of gentrification, the COVID-19 pandemic and 2020 protests on her personal and professional life

Abstract

This is an individual interview of Paul Taylor in which he discusses his bartending experiences in Virginia and D.C., his knowledge of cocktail history, the impact of gentrification in Shaw, and the effects of COVID-19, political protests, and complex issues of race and equity and inclusion on the local bartending community and broader service industry.

Abstract

From Pandemic to Protest: Black Bartenders in Washington, D.C. documents the experiences of bartenders in the Shaw neighborhood during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Narrators discuss the close-knit Black bartending community in D.C.; the impact of the Black Lives Matter and MeToo movements on the hospitality industry; the gentrification of the Shaw neighborhood; and the history of Black bartending.

Scope and Contents

This is the sixth and final session of an oral history interview with Cosby Hunt, a career educator, native Washingtonian, and creator of Real World History. In this interview Mr. Hunt discusses the Real World History program and the Real World History Collection at the DC Public Library. He also reflects on what he is most proud of about the class and how the course, in some ways, is connected to his family history.

Abstract

This is an individual interview of Will Alvarez in which he discusses his Salvadoran upbringing in the DMV, his experiences in the bartending industry as a Latino and U.S. Army Veteran, and the impact of COVID-19 on residents and service professionals in the D.C. bartending community.

Abstract Director of Public Relations at the District of Columbia Housing Finance Agency, Yolanda McCutchen, discusses her family’s roots in rural South Carolina and the aspirations that lead her to eventually work in Washington D.C. Beginning, first, by explaining her enjoyment of daily walks on the Wilson Bridge Trail and gardening at her home, Yolanda details the ways Covid19 has necessitated her making adjustments to her daily routine. Regaling memories from her childhood, as the youngest of many...