I've been living in the actual bounds of DC for the past seven months, in between Columbia Heights and U Street. 14th Street restaurants, fancy fitness studios, un-affordable rent, hipster flair and obnoxiously-marketed apartment buildings are increasingly becoming the norm. Head east and Bloomingdale and Shaw are heading down same path that U Street did a few years ago. Head north and friends are already being priced out of upper Columbia Heights and even Petworth. Where is the next spot for gentrification and should this continue to happen? I think about the evolving neighborhood climate of DC on a regular basis and I've only been in the metro area a year and a half.
DC USA by Ugly Purple Sweater was a song that made a statement about gentrification, alluding to the garish mall in the dead center of Columbia Heights. With lyrics of neighborhoods losing their character and long time residents being forced out, it was an honestly realistic track about the city we occupy.
The music video is one I remembered tonight. I could loop it over and over, recognizing more row houses and Columbia Heights landmarks with each view. DC USA is obviously prominent but the interactions at 14th and Columbia afterwards truly capture the difference between the past and present neighborhood.
Ugly Purple Sweater, unfortunately, retired at the end of last year. Listen to their songs on bandcamp still and catch the video for DC USA below.
Will I be part of the eventual mass exodus to make Brookland or Trinidad the next hip area? Who knows. While the prospect of an affordable studio is intriguing, my conscious is wary.
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