BOMBSHELL RESIGNATION THREATENS TO SPOIL MARY MCLEOD BETHUNE'S 150th BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION
LINCOLN PARK NEWSLETTER: Annual celebration for beloved civil rights leader tainted by sudden retirement of the chief of the federal parks in eastern D.C. and Maryland. PLUS: FIREWORKS PICS
RETIREMENT IS AWKWARD TIMING FOR BETHUNE SESQUICENTENNIAL EVENTS
by Scherzer Bernstein
It should be a cause for celebration. Thursday,, July 10 marks the 150th anniversary of the birth of Mary McLeod Bethune, founder of the National Council of Negro Women and beloved humanitarian, educator, presidential advisor and civil rights leader.
Every July, the National Park Service holds a birthday celebration with the NCNW at Lincoln Park, where a statue of the pioneering civil rights leader sits opposite the first statue of Abraham Lincoln in the District of Columbia.
This year, the celebration comes in the wake of the departure of National Park Service Superintendent Tara Morrison, who oversaw Lincoln Park and other historic sites in the National Capital Parks-East region. Morrison has left her role as chief of federal parks in the eastern part of the District of Columbia and parts of southern Maryland after eight and a half years.
Morrison retired on June 30 from the National Park Service after 28 years. NPS workers, who asked not to be identified, told the Lincoln Park Newsletter that her departure was unexpected and a disappointing shock, and many felt abandoned to deal with a hostile Trump administration.
The superintendent’s departure comes as NPS faces headwinds in the Trump administration, which is slashing funding, staff and services in the Department of Interior and amid a war on diversity, equity and inclusion, which Morrison championed.
Bethune was born on July 10, 1875 in Mayesville, South Carolina. Last year, the National Park Service held an event to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Lincoln Park memorial in her honor. The statue of Bethune with two children was unveiled in 1974 in Lincoln Park by the organization she founded, NCNW.
NPS in the past has incorporated the memorial statue into its programming to honor the first memorial to an African American and a woman erected on public land in the nation’s capital.
The community celebration at Lincoln Park is Saturday, July 12, two days after Bethune’s birthday.
Schedule
4:30 PM – Ceremony
6:30 PM – Performance by The Tribe Band (R&B music)
Given President Trump’s antipathy to civil rights and diversity, equity and inclusion, it remains unclear how celebratory the celebration will be this year.
PLEASE SPRUCE UP YOUR URNS FOR BETHUNE BIRTHDAY
Please water your plants and check on your urns before the event on July 12. Last year, the National Park Service ripped out flowers in urns near the statue and replace them with vinca.
This urn is a candidate for replanting. It was untended by Friends of Lincoln Park, a 501c3 organization that raises money in Lincoln Park. A new urn gardener is scheduled to take over this week.
VIOLENT CRIME INCREASES 29% LAST MONTH
Fueled by an increase in homicides, violent crime increased 29% in the First District (which includes Capitol Hill) from May 10 to June 10 compared to the same period last year, DC police Capt. Adam Crist told ANC 6b.
The figures were published in this month’s Hill Rag.
LINCOLN PARK GROUP’S ANNUAL JULY 5 CLEANUP
Friends of Capitol Hill Parks, the largest volunteer group serving Lincoln Park, once again conducted the annual July 5 cleanup of Lincoln Park the day after the illegal fireworks show put on by area residents.
The volunteers filled up numerous bags. Swept the sidewalks and piled up debris for the Park Service.
ILLEGAL FIREWORKS SHOW IN LINCOLN PARK PLEASES ONLOOKERS
MANY FIRECRACKERS BOUNCED TOWARD CROWD, BUT NO ONE INJURED
THE BAND OF THE NATION’S CAPITAL TO PLAY JULY 10 IN LINCOLN PARK — ON THE BETHUNE BIRTHDAY
The 257th Army Band, sometimes called the Band of the Nation’s Capital, will perform on July 10 in Lincoln Park. The 257th is the official musical representative band of the D.C. Army National Guard.
The band boasts a proud lineage going back to the organizational lineage and association with the legendary Corcoran Cadets, the D.C. militia that inspired John Philip Sousa to compose his march of the same name.
Noteworthy performances include musical support for the Inauguration of President Obama, performances in Greece, Jamaica, the U.S. Virgin Islands and Panama.
Within the 257th Army Band, there are several musical groups which play a variety of music including classical, jazz and rock.
In addition to a concert band, the 257th has several music performance teams, including: jazz combo, rock band, pop ensemble, brass quintet and duet teams.
Lincoln Park hosts the 257th Army Band this Thursday at 7 p.m.
Here’s the UPDATED urn map
https://docs.google.com/drawings/d/1VAZgfCet1HjsOZBS8_WRa9vYzJILYqlRLcaXCnOL7Lw/edit?usp=sharing
The Fine Print
Copyright © *2022* *Friends of Capitol Hill Parks, All rights reserved.
PLANTS People Living Actively Near Their Site *
We are dog-friendly, plant-friendly, tree-friendly, eco-friendly, NPS-friendly and just generally friendly (most of the time.)
THE BEST NEWSLETTER SERVING LINCOLN PARK
*People Living Actively Near Their Site *
All subscribers to the Lincoln Park Newsletter, a parody and news publication, become automatic members of FRIENDS OF CAPITOL HILL PARKS, the largest volunteer charitable organization serving Lincoln Park, Washington, DC, Mary Farran, president, chairwoman, CEO and Lincoln Park mayor-for-life.
If you do not want to be a free member of FRIENDS OF CAPITOL HILL PARKS, you can resign and subscribe to the newsletter and be a non-member subscriber by signing up for a very expensive, exclusive, premium over-priced pay subscription. Dogecoin is no longer accepted since it is part of an illegal global scheme linked to the richest man in the world.
Through consultation with NPS, PLANTS volunteers will purchase and install plants, which will also include aromatics.
The Lincoln Park Newsletter is parody, opinion and news serving the area sort of around Lincoln Park.
MASTHEAD
Helen Betts is the chief copy editor and president of the proofreaders’ union.
Mary Farran, ceo, president and publisher and queen of the parade
Send your comments to friendsofcapitolhillparks@gmail.com
