District history, culture and the indisputable impact of Black-led journalism shone across 11:Eleven gallery Friday night, as Oct. 16 marked 62 years of The Washington Informer (WI).
Made possible through the DowntownDC Business Improvement District (BID), the reception unveiled a new temporary home for The Washington Informer’s Photo Gallery Exhibition, an homage first introduced for the publication’s 60th anniversary, bringing new meaning to the notion that “a picture’s worth a thousand words” –– or in this case, more than six decades of history.
“Every photograph in this exhibit tells a story––some capture major events, others preserve everyday moments that might otherwise have been forgotten,” said Desmond “DB Bantino” Barnes, son of WI Publisher Denise Rolark Barnes. “Today they remind us that history is not just something we read about in books; it’s something that we live, something we witness and pass on to the next generation.”
Featuring community leaders, faithful readers, and live entertainment, the evening soiree honored the visual legacy and evolution of the Black newspaper that began with Dr. Calvin Rolark in 1964 and has thrived for 32 years under the leadership of his daughter and current publisher, Rolark Barnes.
Honors included a special dedication and mayoral proclamation for Roy Lewis, a longtime photographer of the Black community and historian by lens, as well as celebratory words from staff, partners, and the fearless family bridging generations to build toward the next historic milestone.
“We must be doing something right,” Rolark Barnes told The Informer, “not that others weren’t, but we figured out a way to get a community that supports us and has been able to sustain us. And we’ve had our struggles; we had moments where I didn’t think we were going to make it another month, [let alone] another year, but we’re still here.”
Photos by Robert R. Roberts, WI Photographer
