2015 D.C. Latino History Project

Mapping D.C.’s Latino History & Affordable Housing  |

La Historia de los Latinos y la vivienda de bajo costo en el Distrito

During the summer of 2015, Hola Cultura put together a team of local high school and college students to examine the history of Washington, D.C.’s Latino community and the role housing costs have played and continue to play in where the community has settled. Led by our staff and University of Maryland Professors Ana Patricia Rodriguez and Ronald Luna, these young investigators recorded oral histories with longtime residents and mapped D.C.’s Latino community.

Their work culminated in a special presentation at the GALA Hispanic Theatre in July 2015 and a four-day special issue published on this website. Below, you will find links to the articles, interviews, maps, and photos originally published in September 2015.

Browse the Stories

Meet the Team

Leading our investigation into local Latino history are Dr. Ana Patricia Rodriguez and Dr. Ronald Luna of the University of Maryland; Hola Cultura’s Christine MacDonald and Alberto Roblest; and Senior Intern Byron Marroquin. Drs. Rodriguez and Luna designed and implemented the Oral History and GIS mapping components, respectively. Marroquin, a UMD graduate student, completed the initial research in the Spring of 2015. We also have a group of high school, college and graduate school interns working on everything from mapping and web design to interviewing, writing and presenting our findings. Hola Cultura’s Summer 2015 Interns are Antonio Garcia, Cristian Cruz, Emily Birnbaum, Elvis Herrera, Esteffany Lemus, Ingrid Serrano, Jasmin Avila, Julie Hollinsed, Nancy Reyes, Nicholas John, Oliver Garretson, and Ronal Reyes.

Acknowledgements

We’d like to thank the funders and supporters who made this project possible.

• The Washington, D.C. Mayor’s Office on Latino Affairs included Hola Cultura in its 2015 Summer Youth Employment Program, enabling us to include D.C. teenagers to our team of interns.
• Humanities DC (formerly the Humanities Council of Washington DC), which awarded Hola Cultura with a Soul of the City grant this summer.
• At the University of Maryland, we’d like to thank professors Dr. Ana Patricia Rodriguez and Dr. Ronald Luna who lead, respectively, the oral history and online mapping segments of the program. The University’s Department of Geographic Science also provided crucial support.
• We’d also like to thank the 14th Street NW Trader Joe’s for donating healthy snacks to help keep interns going during our busy summer schedule.