Newsroom

Under an act introduced by at-large Councilmember Christina Henderson in January, the Attendance Zone Boundaries Amendment Act of 2022, redistricting would occur every ten years (due next in 2024). “I am bracing myself for a very ugly conversation because it brings out the ugly in people when you talk about education, housing, diversity, and ownership,” said Henderson. “Which is strange because we’re in a progressive city, right? People say they like diversity but when you start having these conversations, there are limits to how much diversity works for you.”

We’re just over a week away from the start of D.C.’s school year, and students and staff will be required to submit a negative COVID-19 test before returning to the classroom. Plus, courts upheld a D.C. requirement for early childhood educators to have certain higher education degrees. D.C. Councilmember Christina Henderson (I-At Large) joins us to talk about the latest education news and the District’s handling of monkeypox.

A four-year legal battle over D.C.’s new requirements that many child care workers get a college degree has seemingly come to an end. Last week the three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for D.C. dismissed a long-running lawsuit challenging the education requirements, which were first adopted in 2016 and start taking effect later this year after a series of delays. Under the new rules, directors of child care centers will need a bachelor’s degree in early education, teachers will need an associate’s degree in early education, and assistant teachers and caregivers in home-based daycares will need a Child Development Associate’s credential.

Last week, Council member Christina Henderson (I-At Large) said she had asked D.C. Health for a breakdown of monkeypox cases by race, gender and ward, and had pushed for the information to be published and regularly updated online.

This legislation works in tandem with the Enhancing Reproductive Health Protections Amendment Act of 2022, recently introduced by Council member Christina Henderson (I-At Large), which protects access to self-managed abortion in D.C. It also builds on three bills introduced by Council member Robert C. White Jr. (D-At Large) that require insurance coverage for abortion without cost-sharing and that protect practitioners’ licenses and insurance from attack.

In DC’s 2020 general election, the at-large council seats were won with only 26% and 15% of the vote — incumbent councilmember Robert White and Christina D. Henderson, respectively.

Last year, I introduced the Voter Ownership, Integrity, Choice, and Equity (VOICE) Amendment Act of 2021 (B24-0372) to bring RCV to our local elections. This legislation would mandate a robust voter education campaign to be carried out by the Board of Elections. The Committee on the Judiciary and Public Safety held a hearing on the bill in November 2021, but party politics stalled its advancement. Quite simply, the votes on the DC Council are not there yet, but we can change that if we keep educating, organizing, and building coalitions.

Commissioners voted to approve a resolution supporting The Human Rights Sanctuary Amendment Act of 2022, which was introduced last week by D.C. Council member Brianne Nadeau, who represents Ward 1, and the Enhancing Reproductive Health Protections Amendment of 2022, sponsored by Council member-at-large Christina Henderson in March. The two bills would protect the right to an abortion for people from outside of D.C., as well as protect them from potential lawsuits or penalties because of their seeking an abortion.

Ward 6 Council member Charles Allen led the letter, which was also signed by Ward 1’s Brianne K. Nadeau, Ward 3’s Mary Cheh, Ward 4’s Janeese Lewis George, and At-Large members Elissa Silverman, Robert White and Christina Henderson.

The Cannabis Employment Protections Amendment Act of 2022 was first introduced as Prohibition of Marijuana Testing Act of 2021 in February of last year by Councilmembers Trayon White, Charles Allen, Christina Henderson, Kenyan McDuffie, Brianne Nadeau and Robert White.

Project DASH is DoorDash’s initiative to empower food banks, food pantries and social impact organizations to leverage DoorDash's last-mile logistics to carry out their mission. Project DASH has powered over 2 million deliveries of an estimated 35 million meals.

“We want to encourage families not to wait till the last minute,” said Christina Henderson, an at-large member of the D.C. Council. “Go ahead and schedule that now, so that you can get in for an appointment.” She added, “I think anyone who has young children knows that when you call the doctor’s office and they say ‘Oh, we don’t have any appointments until September!’ You have that frustration that builds up.”