Over 150 community members filled the room for Cracked Shells, Ruth Tedla’s documentary on gentrification and resistance in DC. After shared food and deep dialogue, participants left with renewed commitment to remember, rebuild, and reclaim the city’s story together.
Community gathers to witness gentrification’s impact — and to imagine what comes next.
In October, over 150 community members came together at the D.C. screening of Cracked Shells — a powerful documentary by filmmaker Ruth Tedla that centers the lived experiences of longtime Black Washingtonians confronting gentrification and displacement. The film featured familiar faces from our movement, including Dominique H. Molden and Tani’ya Rogers (and her children), alongside community voices that continue to keep the soul of Chocolate City alive. Partners including LEDC, SOME, Empower DC, Howard Fair Housing Student Legal Clinic, and ONE DC showed up in solidarity—tabling, connecting, and supporting neighbors who have been displaced or are struggling to remain in the city they built.
After breaking bread together—plates filled with catfish nuggets, cabbage, collard greens, and lemonade—the evening deepened into a powerful panel discussion moderated by Dr. Rosemary Ndubuizu. She guided participants through reflections on grief, survival, and the future of organizing for home rule and justice in DC. Panelists and attendees alike lifted up both the pain of loss and the determination to rebuild, not just tell the story of harm. This screening was not a conclusion but a call to keep organizing, creating, and remembering.
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