TMOTTGoGo Magazine | December 2014 | Page 1

TMOTTGoGo Magazine | December 2014 | Page 1
(gadoimages.photoshelter.com)
TMOTTGoGo Magazine | December 2014 | Page 2
Marion Shepilov Barry, Jr.
March 6, 1936 – November 23, 2014
was an American politician who served as the second Mayor of the
District of Columbia from 1979 to 1991, and again as the fourth Mayor from 1995 to 1999. A Democrat, Barry had served three tenures
on the Council of the District of Columbia, representing as an atlarge member from 1975 to 1979 and in Ward 8 from 1993 to 1995
and again from 2005 to 2014. In the 1960s he was involved in the African-American civil rights movement, first as a member of the Nashville Student Movement sit-ins and then serving as the first chairman
of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC).
Barry came to national prominence as mayor of the national capital,
the first prominent civil-rights activist to become chief executive of
a major American city; he gave the presidential nomination speech
for Jesse Jackson at the 1984 Democratic National Convention. His
celebrity transformed into international notoriety in January 1990,
when he was videotaped smoking crack cocaine and arrested by
Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) officials on drug charges. The
arrest and subsequent trial precluded Barry seeking re-election, and
he served six months in a federal prison. After his release, however,
he was elected to the Council of the District of Columbia in 1992 and
ultimately returned to the mayoralty in 1994, serving from 1995 to
1999.
Despite his history of political and legal controversies, Barry was a
popular and influential figure in the local political scene of Washington, D.C. The alternative weekly Washington City Paper nicknamed
him “Mayor for life,” a designation that remained long after Barry left
the mayoralty.[3] The Washington Post has stated that “to understand the District of Columbia, one must understand Marion Barry.”
Mayor 4 Life
DECEMBER 2014
Photo by Howard Sochurek of LIFE Magazine
Undergraduate studies at LeMoyne College - 1958
Master’s degree, Nashville Student Movement, SNCC - 1960
Doctoral studies
Working for SNCC
D.C. Board of Education (1971–1974)
D.C. Council (1974–1979)
Washington, D.C. Mayor (1979–1991)
Political comeback (1992–1994)
D.C. Mayor fourth term (1995–1999)
D.C. Council (2002–2014)
(Washington Post)
HOODIES & TEES
VISIT: www.tmottgogo.com
TMOTTGoGo Magazine | December 2014 | Page 10
Michelle V. Agins/The New York Times
Sons and daughters of Washington,
DC’s Marion Barry era are in mourning
today upon hearing the news this morning that the legendary civil rights leader
and former mayor of the city has died.
Marion Barry had a significant impact on
DC area’s Generation X, thanks to his
summer jobs program that employed
and empowered many young people in
a way that no area leader had before
or has since, as surmised by their anecdotes. High esteem for Mayor Barry
was deeply felt and powerfully sincere
among many DC area residents, but
also quite obviously a dividing line by
race, class, and personal and family
history. At times when Barry was covered negatively in the press, many of his
supporters identified not only with the
given newsworthy circumstance, but
the sentiment that major media outlets
shed more light on one’s personal flaws
than on one’s public prosocial deeds.
Unlike other local politicians who have
been accused of pandering to the gogo community when it best suited their
political needs, Marion Barry managed
to be continually regarded as a personal friend to go-go, even after media
reports highlighted his support for the
so-called ‘go-go crackdown.’
Mayor Barry was one of the featured
commentators on “Washington in the
’80s” and a major topic, himself, of
the documentary that debuted just last
week on PBS affiliate WETA. One of
the very best representations of his
legacy and what he has meant to his
supporters was captured in April 2013
by “Mayor of DC Hip Hop” Head-Roc in
a song entitled “Mayor 4 Life (Tribute to
Marion Barry).”
TMOTTGoGo Magazine | December 2014 | Page 11
Marion Barry to DC’s Gen X, Go-Go, & Hip Hop
By Tahira Chloe Mahid
@DCBrand99
www.DCBrand99.com
Three Days Of Services Planned For Marion Barry
Oliver Johnson, Jr., holds an acrylic painting he did of former Mayor Marion Barry
and Chuck Brown, during a vigil to honor former Mayor and current DC City Council
member Marion Barry, Sunday, Nov. 23, 2014, in Washington
Three days of services have been planned for former mayor and
D.C. Council member Marion Barry, who passed away on Sunday at the age of 78.
Starting on Dec. 4, Barry’s body will lie in repose in the Wilson
Building for 24 hours. The building will remain open to the public for the full period his body lies in repose.
On Dec. 5, his body will be transported from the Wilson Building
to the Temple of Praise on Southern Avenue SE for a musical
and video tribute and community memorial service. The processional from the Wilson Building to the Temple of Praise will travel through the city’s eight wards.
On Dec. 6, a public memorial service will be held at the Washington Convention Center. A private burial will follow.
Two books of condolence will be available in the lobby of the
Wilson Building through 5:30 today and from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
on Friday, Nov. 28.
TMOTTGoGo Magazine | December 2014 | Page 12
Photos Courtesy of The Great Ward Eight
TMOTTGoGo Magazine | December 2014 | Page 13
The Big Chair Being Draped As Ward 8 Mourns Marion Barry
Images of the Big Chair, which is located in the heart of Anacostia, SE Washington DC,
being draped as Ward 8 and the rest of Washington DC mourns Marion Barry, who
passed away early Sunday morning, November 23, 2014.
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Generations of Teens Who Got
Their First Employment Experience Under
Marion Barry’s SYEP
By Kato Hammond
@TMOTTGoGo
See this picture right here? It was taken in 1981 during a Street Theatre rehearsal of gospel musical entitled “Spirit
Song”. This production consisted of an
entire cast and crew of about 50 or more
teens (mostly students from the Duke Ellington School of the Arts) who were all
employees under Mayor Marion Barry’s
Summer Youth Employment Program
(SYEP). This was because Street Theatre (a Mike Malone Production) was a
program under Barry’s SYEP. (That’s
me in the bottom left corner.)
Therefore, our job for that entire summer consisted
of rehearsing and putting on this musical production
throughout the parks and neighborhoods of Washington, DC. I was 16 years at the time. And because of
Mayor Marion Barry, we were getting paid for doing a
craft that we all loved so much. In fact, it helped mold
us as we went into different areas of our lives continuing
in this field.
For example (in the photo above):
TMOTTGoGo Magazine | December 2014 | Page 16
Matt Dickens (RIP, standing far left in red) –
went on to become a professional dancer and
actor and can be seen in episodes of television’s “A Different World”.
George Dick (looking up in purple) – starred
in the Channel 9 series “In Our Lives”, and
went later went on into producing music.
Tony Terry (in burgundy with his back
turned) – went on to become a successful
music artist, with hits such as, “When I’m With
You”, “Lovey Dovey Feeling”, and “She’s Fly”.
Terrence Riggins (with muscles standing
in center) – went on to become a professional,
successful actor, starring in movies, such as
“What’s Love Got To Do With It” and “The Jesse Owens Story”.
Chuck Byrd (stooping directly behind Terrence) – went on to become a professional actor, playing in “Good To Go” and other movies,
and in television programs, such as “Martin”
and “Hangin’ With Mr. Cooper”.
Sean Hawkins (hovering behind Chuck,
with mouth open) – starred in “Buddies” (the
play I wrote that was featured Off-Broadway, starring Denzel Washington and Anna-Maria Horsford).
And we ALL worked as teens under the
program created for us by Mayor For Life
Marion Barry.
Since the passing of Marion Barry yesterday, there is so much that so many people
are remembering in the ways that Marion
Barry has played a part in the growth of their
lives. Memories that are just coming back.
Some that we haven’t even thought about
in a long time. And in thinking about these
moments, it donned on me. Just about
every single teen from my generation on
started working careers under Marion Barry’s SYEP. I honestly didn’t know that… or
rather, never really thought about it like that.
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