This year marks 52 years since District residents won and implemented Home Rule. For over 200 years, we have called for our full democratic rights and the ability to govern ourselves. Today, that momentum grows with the launch of the Together for DC campaign.
Together for DC, led by District residents, aims to build allies nationwide in support of autonomy and statehood for the District of Columbia. The campaign is led by the Fair Budget Coalition, DC Fiscal Policy Institute, and DC Vote, alongside 13 local and national organizations that make up its inaugural steering committee, including Public Citizen, League of Women Voters DC, and the Taskforce for Democracy.
“DC can only achieve statehood by building alliances beyond our borders, which is why Together for DC is organizing to build solidarity with people across this country who are committed to democracy, freedom, and equality. We are sounding the alarm about the reality that nearly 700,000 DC residents are experiencing escalating interference from the president and Congress, but they do not enjoy the same rights as other Americans,” said Amy Vruno, executive director of DC Vote. “We are working for statehood to achieve full equality for the people of DC, the same autonomy over local affairs as other Americans, and the same representation in Congress: two senators and at least one vote in the House. At a time when people in communities across the country are increasingly concerned about the erosion of democracy and escalating attacks on voting rights in America, DC residents are fired up to make common cause with allies to strengthen democracy for everyone.”
Building on the movement for statehood through people power
The campaign builds on the fight we’ve waged for generations for the rights every American is promised: voting representation in Congress, control over local laws, and the ability to spend our own tax dollars on our own priorities.
“DC’s lack of rights and inability to decide our own laws and policies, including how we spend our local tax dollars, is a longstanding failure of American democracy and one that everyone should know about and be part of remedying. Together for DC is how Americans everywhere can join the movement to strengthen democracy for DC and for all of us,” said Erica Williams, executive director, DC Fiscal Policy Institute.
What Together for DC adds to this movement is a national solidarity infrastructure — an organized, people-powered movement of out-of-state and national allies who can apply pressure that DC residents alone cannot.
“When we fight, we win — but we cannot fight what is coming alone. DC has been federally occupied since August of last year. Our residents and community members are increasingly being profiled, harassed and, at times, violently detained by the National Guard. The federal agencies that make up the ‘Safe and Beautiful Task Force’ are leaving our communities feeling anything but, as we watch neighbors being kidnapped and disappeared,” said Niciah Mujahid, executive director of the Fair Budget Coalition. “With America’s 250th and the summer surge looming in the coming months, it’s impossible not to see the writing on the wall: the federal occupation is escalating its violence against our communities, and we must escalate our response accordingly. That’s why we are organizing folks at a national scale who will be willing to rise with DC and stand ready to act to defend our autonomy. The erosion of rights in DC should be a signal to Americans everywhere.”
We’re just getting started
We kicked off the campaign through a local launch party in Southeast DC, bringing together 200 neighbors and champions, and now the real work begins. Democracy starts in DC, and Together for DC turns that belief into action through a strategic network of organizations and citizens across the U.S. who will receive training, resources, and opportunities to act on behalf of DC autonomy.
Join the Together for DC campaign today and become a campaign champion for DC statehood. Visit www.togetherfordc.org to become a champion and stay connected with us on BlueSky, X, and Instagram.
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About Together for DC
Together for DC is a campaign led by District residents aimed at building allies nationwide in support of DC’s autonomy and statehood. DC residents have been calling for our full democratic rights and the ability to govern ourselves for more than 200 years and momentum is growing. Learn more about the campaign and platform at www.togetherfordc.org