Power & Light: Exhibition Spotlight

A stunning moment-in-time photography show is open for a few more months at the National Archives. "Power & Light: Russell Lee's Coal Survey" is a show made up entirely of survey photography focused on coal mining communities in the U.S. The survey was commissioned by the federal government in an effort to stunt 1946 coal miner strikes across the nation.

The exhibition displays just a fraction of Lee's 4,000 total photos and depicts workers in the coal mines, at home with their families, doing every day tasks like going to the doctor, attending church, or just existing in their communities. Essentially, life as a miner-- the good, the bad, and the ugly.

This honestly broke a lot of my pre-conceived notions of the coal industry and the workers themselves. Worth a visit. Closes December 7th.

LGBTJews in the Federal City: Exhibition Spotlight

When exploring museums in this city, it does feel special when curators & designers set out to represent District culture and history, specifically. Even within those exhibitions, it’s perhaps more rare that curators intentionally and skillfully juxtapose DC history with national history in the same room at the same time.

This is precisely what I experienced at the newest exhibition by the Capital Jewish Museum, “LGBTJews in the Federal City.” I had been in this exhibition space before, most recently for JewCE: The Jewish Comics Experience. Perhaps due to the layout, or perhaps due to the spatial organization of this new exhibition – either way – this space felt more expansive than ever, and the museum uses that space well.

A timely show that will be with us for quite a while (closes January 4) LGBTJews in the Federal City overachieves in an exploration of Queerness + Jewish Washington, across various perspectives, while offering multiple thematic entry points. Here were some of my favorite aspects:

• Timelines. You probably know this about me at this point (or if not, now you do): I love timelines. One event can be a significant turning point in a struggle or campaign, but unless I understand the context, I’m not fully grasping the full narrative. In what might seem overwhelming to some, I absolutely loved the detailed timelines, from the late 18th century to essentially, the present day. They are cleverly paced and broken down with contextual subheadings for added focus.

• Defining the narrative. This is something I have come to expect from the Capital Jewish Museum and as an historian who is keenly aware that what I don’t know exponentially dwarfs my actual knowledge of the human experience, I like to learn the definitions of terms referenced in an exhibition. This exhibition actually greets visitors with clear and understandable explanations of symbols we may have all seen, but perhaps didn't understand the origin of like the Lambda symbol, Pink Triangles, or Red Ribbons. Later, a text panel sharing Jewish values and concepts referenced within, or important to the understanding of, the material in the exhibition. Wall space and floor space are precious in exhibition bays and I appreciate that some of that was used to, essentially, set the table for basic understanding for visitors.

• Treating DC like a real place. What do I mean by this? In national museums or outside presentations of DC, the District is often presented exclusively as the capital of the United States containing the federal government. What’s not always acknowledged are the ways decisions made on the federal level elevate or challenge District history, its people, and their cultural values and practices. This exhibition presents a perfect example of how to integrate a national timeline of events alongside the local timeline of events with the added context of why each timeline matters to the other. Three examples that shone through for me were:

  • The founding of Bet Mishpachah (a congregation for LGBT & queer Jews) here in Washington DC reverberated in Jewish communities across the U.S. It may not have been the first or largest congregation of its kind, but since we are the capital, what happens locally often lands in the spotlight of communities nationwide.

  • Of course federal policy handed down in the form of laws, executive orders, or Supreme Court decisions apply to DC and Washington area residents, too. The exhibition does a Civics 101 level explanation of how recent federal precedents affects the LGBTQ population, but expertly juxtaposes, in the same exhibition bay, how the DC area Jewish community has participated in the national story of evolution of LGBTQ rights and challenges. From simply being acknowledged in the history books to present day activism over life & death issues that captivate traditional and social media today.

  • I love maps. I was pleased to see a visual representation of past and present Navy Yard neighborhood represented in a walking tour map. In a sort of built environment cultural archaeology, this one map helps contextualize the loss of safer places for queer Jews including bars & clubs that used to exist in the neighborhood. Many, if not all of the clubs were displaced over the course of the last 20 years of real estate development re: gentrification in the neighborhood.

• Interactive. Truly a hallmark of exhibitions at the Capital Jewish Museum, visitors can make the choice to react to, reflect on, and generally immerse themselves while engaging the material. A tri-fold exhibition guide prompts readers to ask themselves questions such as “What do you feel?”, “Does anything inspire you to act?”, or “Did anything offer you a new perspective?” In another example, near the end of the exhibition is a clever word matching game to learn a bit of non-binary Hebrew vocabulary not far from a wall panel about present day queer positive movements within Judaism regarding language. This exhibition is deep without being overwhelming. 

World Pride just concluded in Washington, DC. Pride month continues through June. And the LGBTJews exhibition has been open for a little less than a month as of this writing. Even beyond this month the exhibition will stand as another great companion to the permanent exhibitions at the Capital Jewish Museum. On view through January 4, 2026. General admission to the museum is free (with a $10 suggested donation). Special exhibitions, including this exhibition, are $12. Check the calendar of events for Community Days this summer when all visitors are able to enter for free. The Capital Jewish Museum is open Wednesday through Sunday.

THANK YOU to all Patreon members who made this Exhibition Spotlight post possible. The Attucks Adams Patreon page features early access to all Looking Blog posts, behind the scenes access to all tour building & writing, street & landscape photography, and regular DC history posts not available anywhere else. Join the free tier for limited access, or support our work with a paid tier for full access to 300+ archived entires. Check it out here!

New Tour Alert: Music & Social Change Debuts May 31

It’s official! We have a new tour. This one has been in the works off and on for a few years. I have given privately commissioned tours of Adams Morgan and Mount Pleasant in the past — but each separately. In 2019, I worked on an amazing project, co-developing a tour for the Smithsonian Folklife Festival in 2019 with friend and colleague Natalie Avery. And six months ago I was commissioned to combine both neighborhoods in a private tour that took place in early spring. It worked really well and was actually what convinced me to greenlight this tour as a new permanent offering. Here’s the description!

Music and Social Change: Mount Pleasant and Adams Morgan

Explore the deep histories of Mount Pleasant and Adams Morgan on this unique walking tour. Delve into the area's rich musical heritage, from the "hillbilly music" of the mid-20th century to the influential punk and Riot Grrrl scenes of the 1990s.

Discover how the arrival of streetcars shaped these neighborhoods, leading to bustling commercial strips and two diverse but linked communities. Learn about 16th Street's past identity as Embassy Row and uncover the origins of the Adams Morgan name, a testament to the neighborhood's commitment to racial integration.

From historic libraries and grand movie houses to the hidden stories behind local businesses and community spaces, this tour offers a captivating glimpse into the evolution of these iconic Washington, D.C. neighborhoods.

Duration: 90 minutes. About 1 mile total distance. Private group torus start at $125 and public tours are $25 per person.

The tour book is open for private bookings, but the big kick off is on May 31st, with two tours offered at 10am and 2pm. These are public tours and open to everyone. Tickets are $25. Book here!

To everyone supporting Attucks Adams on Patreon, you can register for either of the May 31 tours for half off. Email me for more information. As a reminder Patrons get early and behind the scenes access to my research and photos that inform the tours themselves.If you’re interested in joining Patreon, check out the tiers here!

A final note — I lived in Mount Pleasant for nearly 15 years. Mount P and Adams Morgan are both near and dear to my heart and really important to how I view DC as a long time resident. I hope that comes through in the tour.

This has been a fun tour to build an I look forward to growing it, adapting to how the neighborhood changes, and sharing even more about another DC neighborhood with the world!

Public Service Recognition: Free Tours

We're partnering with Washington Walks and several other tour companies to offer free walking tours to federal workers next week!

During Public Service Recognition Week (May 3-11, 2025) anyone employed by the federal government as of January 1, 2025, regardless of current employment status, can take walking tours free of charge!

Anyone can reserve a spot on these walks, but federal employees attend for free.

As for Attucks Adams, we're offering two sessions of Eyes on Emancipation: Black History on Pennsylvania Avenue. Tour 1 will be the morning of May 4th. Tour 2 will be the morning of May 11th. As of today there are a few spots open for each session.

This was a true partnership between six indie tour companies in DC. There are many other tours to choose from!

Head to this page and check them out: https://www.washingtonwalks.com/psrw/

Many thanks to the organizing done by Washington Walks and all our partners, including:

• Washington Walks

• Black Broadway Travel

• DC Design Tours

• Off the Mall Walking Tours

• A Tour of Her Own

Please pay them a visit. They all offer their own compelling tours and I'm happy to have them as industry colleagues. 🫶🏽✌🏾💪🏽

The Future of Telling Stories Part II: Tours

In 1862 a man named Charles Stuart traveled to the Washington City Hall building on Indiana Avenue and turned in a set of important and valuable papers. The papers documented 10 people that were enslaved by Stuart. Enslaved — in the past tense. On April 16th, 1862 President Abraham Lincoln signed the District of Columbia Emancipation Act, freeing all enslaved people in the District of Columbia.

This was a full 8 months before the Emancipation Proclamation freed enslaved people in the rebellious southern states. In DC, there were 10,000 Black people living within the borders of the capital in 1862, but only about 3,100 were enslaved. Most Black people in DC were free. Those enslaved Black people became free under this act of Congress. However, enslavers in DC were given reparations for loss of their “property.” Enslavers like Charles Stuart could petition the government to get up to $300 per enslaved person they “lost” under the act. Each enslaved person could receive up to $100, but only if they engaged in "voluntary emigration,” i.e., leaving the United States for countries such as Liberia or Haiti. I discuss all of this and more on a tour titled Eyes on Emancipation: Black History on Pennsylvania Avenue.

The buying and selling of people, the compensation of enslavers, and the related histories are not fun facts to be relayed on a walking tour. However, these stories give context and meaning to the sites we see on tour. And these enable a better understanding the 150 years of political and cultural development that occurred here in DC post-emancipation. 99% of my guests understand this. They understand that the history of the United States is fraught. There are gruesome parts, frustrating parts, repellent parts, and dismal parts. There are also stories of triumph, inspiration, revolution, advancement, and preservation. All of those moments are part of the historical fabric of this nation and of this District. Can I cover it all on a 90 minute tour? No, of course not. But I trust my guests to let my storytelling be a guide to how they reckon with the present by way of understanding the past. Each person does it in their own way and I always plan to connect with different learners in different ways. 

What we must not be forced to do as educators is to edit the historical content of programs because of so-called “divisive” topics. I have no doubt that the principle behind the recent Executive Order concerning Smithsonian museums (I wrote about last week) will make its way to other educational venues. Of course K-12 classrooms come to mind, out-of-school learning programs, colleges & universities, and beyond. 

There is a fine line between worrying too much about a theoretical, potential scenario and actually preparing for what is likely to come. In that vein, I am prepared for walking tours and other informal teaching spaces to be challenged. The 250th anniversary of our nation, by way of the Declaration of Independence, is upon us. People from around the world will look not just to Washington, DC, but all corners of the United States as we reflect on, well… how we’re doing at the quarter millennium mark as a nation. Part of the reflection is learning about the problematic and tough parts of our shared history.

I can not edit those parts out of the narrative. I do not delight in telling the Charles Stuart story, but if did happen. Slavery was an institution. But then it came to an end here in DC, and later the U.S. This was partially due people like Charles Stuart complying and also due to the steadfast bravery of the United States Colored Troops, which we also teach about on tour.

Does discussing these topics "...degrade shared American values?" Does shining a light on the USCT "...divide Americans based on race?" Does explaining compensated emancipation "...promote programs or ideologies inconsistent with Federal law and policy?" In my view, of course not. I believe most of my guests agree. The day may come when tour guiding and other forms of speech & teaching are challenged on these grounds. In the meantime, I will continue to keep learning, updating current tours, and introducing new tours all about DC and how we got from there to here and then to now. The future of telling stories is good.