Abstract 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...

Scope and Contents

Arturo Griffiths discusses his childhood in Panama, his family's move to DC, learning English, attending Howard University, his political awakening, DC's latino community, Mayor Barry's relationship with the latino community, the ways in which the 1991 riot affected latinos in Mount Pleasant, and the effects of gentrification in the neighborhood.

Scope and Contents Rogelio Maxwell was born in Panama City, Panama. When he turned nine his mother brought him to Brooklyn, NY, where he was raised, went to school, and eventually attended the college at the School of Visual Arts (SVA). Convinced that he needed to experience life in order to be an artist, he dropped out of art school and made his way to Washington, DC where he would eventually set up a studio. With a background in both visual arts and music, he would eventually combine the two to become a...