My name is Claude Elliot. I'm here with the
executive director of the DC Commission on the Arts, Aaron Myers. We're here at the closing
of the reception for the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities exhibition Legacy:
Civil Rights at 60. Today is March the 1st, 2024. Aaron Myers has agreed to take a few minutes
to tell us a little bit about his life story, and how the story is related to civil action.
And Aaron you have agreed- I have permission to record this interview? Yes, you do. Oka
y so let's
start from where you grew up, where you're from, and what brought you to DC. I was born in Dallas
Texas. I was raised in a sharecropping Community called Goodlow, Texas. And all of the popul- the
most of the population were descendants of other slaves and sharecroppers who had worked the land
that we still lived on. And it was outside of a larger community of about 1700 people called
Kerens, Texas. and my family had been in that region since about the 1850s. In what year were
yo
u born? I was born in 1983. and what brought you to Washington DC, and when did you arrive, and
why? I had been living in Los Angeles. and during the 2008- well 2007 Democratic primary, one of the
young people I had been mentoring mentioned this fellow named Barack Obama to me. And as I learned
more I realized that I wanted to be- to play a more active role outside of just entertainment in
the election. And so when I left Los Angeles in, I believe I left September'ish...August,
September of
2007, I immediately joined and started volunteering with the campaign in Texas
first, which then took me- I worked the general election in Fort Meers Florida. and afterwards I
came to Washington in December of 2008, which was initially supposed to be for 5 days, to support
another organization that needed some organizing skills, and ahead of the inauguration but also
ahead of global family day. I had been working some with a woman name of Linda Grover with the
global family program. and af
ter those five days I had a conversation with her and John Conyers, and
they thought that it would be more advantageous for me to stay and help the organization here in
Washington. and since then I've been here for 15 years. okay so did your- let's talk a little bit
about your initial interest in social justice, prior to meeting who was to become President
Obama. so I come from a family...actually my great great great grandfather I believe is on
the Congressional Record as testifying before
I believe is the Voorhees committee, senate
committee in 1880, and they were discussing why Blacks were migrating from the south up north. and
my family, in the rural community that I had been in, had been quite active in the community and
leaders in the community. my cousin was president of the NAACP my mother had been City Secretary,
uncle had been Alderman, I mean this is something that we've just done, and did not consider it
to beso much as community activism but being a responsible c
itizen. and taking on the mindset
of not just the greatest good for the greatest number, understanding the rights of the minority,
standing up for the rights of the minority. and when you are from a community that, by design, is
disenfranchised, you see the pain, the suffering, the injustice really in every in any situation
that you you walk into. and I was raised to know that that is just one civic responsibility,
to position oneself to be on the right side of history, and to do the work n
ecessary to make
sure that the group can benefit, not just one own's goal of self-preservation. yeah that's a
great family tradition of giving back. oh yes. yeah so once you moved here where were you living?
I lived off of it was 18 Rhode Island Avenues, at right at the corner of North Capital and Rhode
Island on the northwest side. okay in addition to your involvement with the campaign, what what
else were you doing in terms of making a living? I was mostly- I was a full-time entertainer.
so I'm a jazz artist I was acting doing comedy, writing music, playing music, and club promoting
as well for events in Los Angeles. okay so that's what you were doing in LA, and you continue to do
that in DC? when I came to Washington I was the national director for the global family program
that only lasted a year before we Sunset, and I circled back into entertainment so doing music
and acting and that kind of uh situation when I got here yeah. so living in DC, there's always
a national
issue. let's talk about some local issues you may have been involved in. oh local
issues, I was a member of the young Democrats here of Washington DC. there were several- over
the years there was- power shift was a big, dealing with climate change and green energy that
was something that was important to me in 2009 and 2010. being a young Democrat was also something
that was very important to me during that time, and of course, through that, we were associated
with many different issues. at
that time we were trying to get health care passed, that was from a
national level. when I decided to make DC my home, and knew I wasn't going to be leaving anymore, it
went primarily toward artist rights, and making sure equity was available for artists. we saw
that like in 1917, for instance, Duke Ellington would make $100 per gig on U Street. in 2017
an artist would make $100 per gig on U Street. and so being able to afford to live in the city
in which you played and produced your music
was something that we advocated greatly for, and so I
began to really focus on from a municipal level, a district level, what could the city do to
support this particular industry. and it was clear that unlike other cities that had a mainly
entertainment focus, Nashville, Memphis, Atlanta, Los Angeles, New York, we didn't have- I I felt we
did not have adequate infrastructure here. don't forget Detroit. oh Detroit yeah Motor City. you
know a lot of those guys also move. the talent comes fr
om Detroit, I would say that indeed.
but what we- what I worked to do was to unite a community. I had a, at the time it was Blog Talk
Radio and internet radio show called The Exchange, where politics met pop culture. and I think I
was the most abreast of anything during that time because it was a daily program Monday
through Friday, and I was able to interview both local leaders and the national leaders around
topics of the day, issues that ranged from local to national. once you go through
several local
campaigns and federal campaigns, you find yourself taking positions and, siding here and there. but
you always see that there are familiar faces in the room. and then you see the importance of being
in the room while ideas are being discussed, and by default policies are then being constructed.
and I noticed in Washington, where people have to travel miles and miles away to get face time with
their federal leaders, both in Congress, you know, we could walk up the street. I th
en noticed
how diff- how...disappointing it was that, from a local level, all we had to do was walk
up to the Wilson building, and get access and face time with our local representatives. and many
people who had resided in Washington, DC had never been in the building, and didn't know what that
was like. and so I wanted to create a pathway, through my entertainment, to advocate and teach
people how to go and to speak up for their own rights okay. was this the Wilson building? for
The Wil-
oh absolutely yeah. and in terms of your talk shows, was that a radio program? I did that
for three years, and then I had a show on WPF of course for...from two thousand I think '18 to '22
okay four years and of all the issues you've been involved with which one do you think you had the
most impact? ooh that's a very good question I've never been asked that before. I would say during
the pandemic- before the pandemic and after the pandemic there's been a few. before the pandemic,
I would sa
y it would have been organizing artists and musicians around policy and support across
disciplines. and we formed an ad hoc cohort called the DMV Music Stakeholders, which unified
both the people on the stage and off the stage, all of those who are in the ecosystem. and that
model of how we had those meetings, we saw adopted by many other groups around the country. so
you then saw the formation of things like NIVA, the National Independent Venue Association. we saw
that we were able to have
members of Congress AND members of the city council speak directly
to this group. and this is the first time, for the most part, many of the artists had an
opportunity to speak to me their representatives. we- before that I was integral in the first music
census for Washington, DC, that was a partnership that I was able to broker between George
Washington University and the city, at the time, the entertainment office. what year? this is 2019.
oh recent.yeah but we didn't- they didn't the c
ity didn't release the census. and it- the release of
it, unfortunately, kind of butted up against the pandemic as it started. before that, from a local
level, I was able to have my church grant Black Lives Matter room to organize and to have space.
I thought about how SNCC and many of the Civil Rights organizations in the 60s and 50s often
organized in churches. and I felt that at Covenant it was diff- was not good that we were not a
part of that. and so at no charge, the church provided s
pace to Black Lives Matter. before that
it would have been LGBTQ rights because Covenant is an open and affirming and fully inclusive
church. and so in 2000, I believe it was 2009, I played at the first lesbian wedding that was
there at the church, and was a part of a group that was trying to have safe space conversations
as well as educate people on affirming ministry here in the District of Colombia, which was not
popular at the time. right. now we are finding, as we just saw the PBS docu
mentary around gospel
music, we see that it's been here for the whole time, right. and many of those people in who
was in that documentary are friends of mine or have been at Covenant as I've been the minister of
music at Covenant Baptist UCC now for 14 years. so you still are? I still am, currently today yeah.
I'm glad you mentioned partnerships, because often times it's a situation where you may be the only
Black person in the room or at the table. so in terms of looking at the future, in
terms of social
activism, what are some suggestions you may give to young activists? look to the past, because the
organizing principles have not changed. you look in ancient times, even up until today, organizing
must happen people must come together, ideas must be embraced. it takes more than one. one of the
mistakes I think that, and this I think the media played a big part of this, we often forget that
the Civil Rights Movement was a Black middle class movement. you had of course those
in Mississippi
who were fighting for voting rights, and so on and so forth. however it was the middle class
folks who had money to go to college, and could afford to bus down to where wherever, and then
to have interface with people of other cultures, other colors, other sexes, to even engage in this
type of thing. but it's when the poor people come together, those who are completely less than
and those who are marginalized, pull their resources and don't- not picking one leader.
but as a
group, as an aggregate, coming up and taking charge throughout history that's been the
mechanism. and it will remain the mechanism. today we saw the Black Lives Matter movement. that's a,
that was, that was not a middle class movement, it may have evolved into something of that nature.
The #DontMuteDC movement, that was not a middle class movement. we all know the people who are out
enjoying, or who live on the streets, or who are are walking the streets of U Street, and all of
those peopl
e know the music that's there. we've all watched as new condominiums came up. and while
the music and while that activity was happening, that building was happening and people were
moving there. and then once they got there, they wanted the music in that neighborhood to
then change for some reason. one piece of advice I'd give to young people to remember, wherever
they move or occupy, life happened there before they arrived. you're moving and you're joining
a community that's already in exi
stence. learn about that said community, so that you might be
the most effective. and you talked about looking at the past, when you look at the fact that so
many youth, especially in the South, are very much involved in the protests and things, getting
jailed etc, do you see that tradition continuing now, as we look at Black Lives Matter and other
issues that we're addressing? yeah it must, it must. because when we think of- I think of the
community that I grew up in, they're still dealing
with housing issues, voter suppression. it's- if
you look at where the um poverty line is, how many people live at or below the poverty line, how many
of those people look alike, and is that looking alike disproportionate to the overall population?
yes they must. we forget. we think about the revolution, and we always throw around the term
"revolutionaries", and this that and the other. but...when we think of the word "revolution" we
must associate it with the death of something. I wanted
to ask- or someone, the death of people. of
someone. of someone or some people. people have to die you don't have revolution and nobody- there's
no blood. you're right. someone...everybody wants change, but no one wants to die. yeah. what I
would tell young people- there's a song about that. oh really. there's something I learned, is
that a lot of the rights that we will march for as young people, we must be willing to continue
to march understanding that we may not be able to enjoy them wh
ile being young. we may only get
an opportunity to enjoy these particular rights after we have not- we're not spry or after we've,
you know, gotten gray hair, or we are no longer as agile as we once were. and we're still fighting.
and you have to still fight then. you know the gospel song, I think Inez Andrews wrote, said "the
blood stained banner, I've got to hold it up until I die right". right. and it's a fight yeah. so
my next question is why do you think exhibitions like Legacy: Civil
Rights at 60 are important, and
why they important for the community? well what it does, it high- specifically for a community, it
highlights what the hot topics may have been, but more over what the impact, and how they impacted
the artist. the artist in this country is the one being- it's the court jesture the person who gets
an opportunity to speak truth to power with one's paintbrush, with one's song, in this particular
instance is the paintbrush. and so as people come to this exhibit,
they may not realize that
there were so many different issues that you know really touched this particular place, Washington,
DC. but then they may see some familiar moments, and be reme- they may be reminded of. "I
didn't remember-", "I didn't know that-", "I forgot about that happening", "I forgot that we
were a part of this situation". and that happened to me. when I went to the gallery first, there was
a picture out in front of the the church that's by the White House, and I was there t
here when the
tear gas happened. I had just toured the burned out building, and then we, as I was walking out
of there, I saw people starting to run. there had not been a disturbance. the crowd was peaceful.
right. I know what- water, water was being given out. masks were being given out. and then all of
a sudden you smell tear gas. and I was baffled, because you mean to tell me in the height of a
global pandemic that impacts one's air flow and lungs, you're going to then put out tear gas,
where people now have to remove their mask, and cough and cry and be huddled together. and the
first thing I did I called Councilmember White, I called Councilmember Nadeau, asked them why was
MPD present, and did they launch out the tear gas. I let everyone know that I could know within my
Rolodex there's a problem here. this is this is a type of terrorism in a sense, up on one's own
people. did you get a response from those- they had no idea that it was happening, because it was
in real
time. they were calling- they called the MPD. they went into action themselves. and so I
walked home. and I live off- I now live off of 18th in Park Road. I walked from that intersection
to- yeah I walked all the way home trying to get my breath all the way back, you know.. but out
there in the gallery is a picture...of that church...where we all ran to. and I had forgotten,
in a sense, about that moment. but you can't help but to be reminded once you see that image. and
someone else though
t enough of that particular space to paint it and to memorialize it, and now
it's hanging in the gallery. and now somebody who was not there can walk by and be educated about
it. right, right. that's the power of art, to tell stories, to bring back memories. yeah. I want
to give you an opportunity to talk about anything else you want to talk about, as relates to your
life and your involvement in the community. as it as it pertains to Washington, DC, I would say
that once I decided to make t
his place my home, and not just a landing place, you know many
people who live in Washington are- they don't get comfortable, they don't get- they're not going
to put pictures on the wall, you know, they won't buy new furniture, you know, because they don't
know how long they plan to be here, the moment I made the decision to say I want Washington to
be my home, and I knew why I wanted Washington, DC to be my home, I was raised in a share cropping
community that was predominantly Black. whe
n I moved here I was amazed by seeing the power that
Black people specifically had. and I think that it's important that the Black people who have not
been to my sharecropping community understand the jewel that they have here in this city, and the
power that they have here in this city. because it is unique to the city. it does not exist
in New York, it does not exist in Chicago, does not exist in Los Angeles, it only exists
here, the population that has the most interface with those writi
ng the policies that shape the
world of people of color. now we can use our presence to either influence set policy for the
right thing or we can shirk the responsibility, and drive past the White House as if it's
just another landmark, not visit the Mall, not go into the Wilson building, not stroll the
halls of Congress, as we could and we have a right to do. we could do that and let that opportunity
slip past us. but I hope that people who live here in Washington, DC understand the power
simply of
their presence. and also the fact of where the galllery is located, it gets people away from the
Mall and into the community. yes. thank you very much. thank you. I appreciate the interview. I
hope that it's helpful to somebody. thank you.
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