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Tag: ward 7

  • ‘It probably saved my life’: DC residents share what Fort Dupont Ice Arena means to them – WTOP News

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    This is the first weekend that the people of D.C. can head over to Ward 7 and enjoy the nearly $40 million showplace that is the Fort Dupont Ice Arena.

    This is the first weekend that the people of D.C. can head over to Ward 7 and enjoy the nearly $40 million showplace that is the Fort Dupont Ice Arena.

    While the multipurpose complex not only has an NHL-size hockey rink, beautiful locker rooms, and space for parties, the arena, built in the 70s, has a near and dear spot in a lot of people’s hearts.

    One of those people is Haretta Hairston Pearson.

    To look at this D.C. resident, you would be shocked to find out that she was only weeks away from turning 65.

    Turning the clock back to when she was in middle school, Pearson watched the original area get built from an eagle eye seat. Her father was one of its security guards.

    “My dad used to sit right outside in a booth,” said Pearson. “He watched over the material that they left. He would sit out here all night long in the dark.”

    When the rink was finished, she had saved around $5 in coins and asked her father to use the money to buy her skates.

    “He came to me one day with some radial boots and with mercurial blades, and I’ve been skating on them ever since,” said Pearson.

    The amount of time Pearson spent at the ice arena cannot be overestimated.

    “It probably saved my life,” said Pearson. “I didn’t get caught up or be in the wrong place at the wrong time because I was always here doing the right thing, the right people and having fun.”

    Not only was Pearson here on the rink, her brother was also on the ice.

    “Neil, the gentleman who founded the Hockey League, my brother used to skate with him,” said Pearson.

    The hockey league is the Fort Dupont Cannons and was founded in 1978 by U.S. Hockey Hall of Famer Neal Henderson.

    “Well, hockey is a love that you grow into, and it’s something that I thought would be great for the area and for the kids in my neighborhood,” said Henderson.

    The 88-year-old, who was born in St. Croix, fell in love with hockey while his father was stationed in Canada during World War II.

    While Pearson, who was at the new ice arena with her grandson and niece, looked around and saw Henderson was there, smiled and said, “It’s great to be back home.”

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    © 2025 WTOP. All Rights Reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.

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    Jimmy Alexander

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  • White House says many arrests are being made in DC’s Wards 7 and 8 – WTOP News

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    The White House is pushing back against criticism that the federal takeover of D.C.’s police department and National Guard personnel is not focusing on the high-crime areas of D.C.

    The White House is pushing back against criticism that the federal takeover of D.C.’s police department, along with the growing number of National Guard personnel, is not focusing enough on the high-crime areas of D.C.

    Democratic members of Congress, as well as community activists, have accused President Donald Trump and his administration of using National Guard members as props for photo ops in heavily trafficked tourist areas.

    They argue that federal law enforcement has not been placed east of the Anacostia River, where the highest concentration of violent crime occurs in the District, according to crime statistics maps.

    “All of this is a total abuse of power. It’s a manufactured emergency,” U.S. Sen. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland said in a weekend interview on ABC’s “This Week.”

    White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt on Tuesday addressed criticism linked to the city’s crime hot spots.

    “In fact, nearly half of all of the non-illegal alien arrests have occurred in Wards 7 and 8,” she said.

    A White House official told WTOP that between Aug. 9 and Aug. 17, there had been a total of 212 non-immigration related arrests. Of those, 101 were in Wards 7 and 8.

    Of those 101 arrests, 40 arrests were made in Ward 7 and 61 arrests in Ward 8. The greatest numbers were for gun-related and drug-related charges. Twenty-four of the arrests were for gun-related charges in Ward 8, along with 13 arrests for drug charges.

    Crime was already trending downward in the crime hot spots

    Residents in the two wards have complained for years about the high level of crime and many residents say they are glad the issue is being taken seriously across the city.

    But there has also been skepticism about the latest crime-fighting efforts, since so much attention has focused on National Guard members and law enforcement in other parts of D.C.

    Crime, while still high in the two southern wards, has been trending downward, according to numbers provided by D.C.’s police department.

    In Ward 8, there were 99 murders in 2023. Last year, there were 66.

    As of Tuesday, there had been 38 murders in Ward 8 this year. By comparison, there have been four murders in Ward 2, which includes the National Mall and Georgetown.

    D.C. crime data shows that motor vehicle thefts in Ward 8 spiked in 2023 at 1,014. That figure dropped to 732 last year; and in 2025, there have been 443 so far.

    However, those crime numbers have come under scrutiny. Earlier this year, a Metropolitan Police Department commander suspected of manipulating crime data was placed on paid administrative leave, NBC Washington reported. The Justice Department has opened an investigation into whether D.C. police officials falsified data to make crime rates appear lower than they are. 

    The White House has been releasing daily figures related to arrests made by federal authorities, and Leavitt said Tuesday that it will continue to do so.

    While many Republican-led states are sending additional National Guard members to D.C., one GOP governor has decided not to. Vermont Gov. Phil Scott (R) has “politely declined” a federal request.

    A spokesman for the governor said he did not view enforcement of the law as a proper use of the National Guard. He said the outcome might be different if officials with the D.C. government were making a request related to an emergency situation.

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    © 2025 WTOP. All Rights Reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.

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    Mitchell Miller

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  • Red Rabbit plans to bring ‘culturally relevant’ meals to DC Wards 7 and 8 – WTOP News

    Red Rabbit plans to bring ‘culturally relevant’ meals to DC Wards 7 and 8 – WTOP News

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    New York-based social justice organization, Red Rabbit, is looking to expand to D.C. Wards 7 and 8’s school cafeterias.

    New York-based social justice organization, Red Rabbit, is looking to expand to D.C. Wards 7 and 8’s school cafeterias.
    (Courtesy Red Rabbit)

    Courtesy Red Rabbit

    A member of Red Rabbit’s kitchen staff practices making rice and chicken that they will serve in D.C.’s schools next year.
    (Courtesy Red Rabbit)

    Courtesy Red Rabbit

    Red Rabbit kitchen staff practice making the meals that will serve D.C.’s southern schools next year.
    (Courtesy Red Rabbit)

    Courtesy Red Rabbit

    Some of the meals that Red Rabbit will prepare in D.C. schools next year.
    (Photo By Erica Price for Red Rabbit)

    Photo By Erica Price for Red Rabbit

    A New York-based organization which works to bring “culturally relevant” meals to school cafeterias is looking to expand into D.C.’s Wards 7 and 8. Red Rabbit currently serves meals at schools in the Big Apple, New Jersey and in Philadelphia.

    “We try to provide them, to the best of our ability, with nutritious, culturally relevant, scratch made and soul-affirming foods so that they feel their best and are able to perform their best both inside the classroom and outside,” said Nausher Khan, vice president of partner relations for Red Rabbit — which calls itself a social justice organization.

    The organization started providing meals in 2005 and is now studying the areas east of the Anacostia River, Khan said. The two wards were identified as having the most need, according to Khan, by examining socioeconomic indicators such as food insecurity levels, education attainment, literacy and even graduation rates.

    While the exact meal needs are still being determined, Khan said by the start of the next school year, the organization hopes to begin providing meals to K-12 students.

    He said the area they look to serve in D.C. appears to be similar to Philadelphia demographically. This includes a large percentage of African American and Latino students in need.

    “We are still in the process of that fact-finding, of really getting to understand the cultures at a granular level in Wards 7 and 8, but at a larger bird’s eye view, this is what we have identified so far,” he said.

    Khan said he could see meals they are serving elsewhere fitting in well in the two wards.

    “Ropa vieja is a Cuban beef stew that is sort of ubiquitously appreciated by a lot of the cultures of the Caribbean. Similarly, pollo con arroz, which is chicken with rice, is again another sort of really popular menu with students from the Caribbean, or from Latin countries,” he said.

    When cafeterias have space, Khan said they can open up a kitchen at a school, otherwise they can cook the daily meals elsewhere, and bring them into the cafeterias they support. They still don’t know which method would work best in the District.

    From those who work with students, to organizations that already provide food assistance in areas that are considered food deserts, Khan said they are examining the area and hope to have more concrete plans over the next six months. Some of the conversations taking place include talks with possible partner organizations such as D.C. Hunger Solutions and DC Central Kitchen.

    The plan is to grow the program and potentially reach out to areas of Maryland and Virginia down the road, he said.

    “The aim is, with each successive year, we get to learn a little bit more and we get to expand our offering to make sure it is tailored to the needs of that community,” Khan said.

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    © 2024 WTOP. All Rights Reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.

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    Mike Murillo

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