Malcolm X Park

Sounds of Malcolm X Park

If you follow The 42 Bus on Twitter you have probably noticed me talking up Sundays at Malcolm X Park. More often than not on a Sunday evening, I am there. Usually listening to the drum circle, but also walking the grounds, watching ducks in the fountain, eating snacks on a blanket or just hanging out. As I have said before, it is one of the best free activities in the District.

The drum circle jams are organic. That is, each performance is made up of 2-3 dozen separate, individual performances of single drummers. The only structure is the structure formed during each specific jam; it happens on the fly. Jams can last 90 seconds or 15 minutes. Each is unique and by nature, none are repeated. That's the beauty.

If you want to see it live, come to Malcolm X Park (aka Meridian Hill Park) at 16th and Euclid Sts NW on any Sunday, weather permitting. From about 5:00PM until 8:00PM there are drummers making music at the southwest corner of the top level, near the Joan of Arc statue. Here's one I recorded recently.

Memorial Wednesday: James Buchanan

Washington has one. Lincoln, yes. FDR has a one. Jefferson, too, of course. Wilson has a whole house dedicated to his presidency. And Eisenhower is getting his memorial soon. You may not have known, but Buchanan is on that list, too. James Buchanan, the 15th President of the United States, has a memorial in DC; just like some of the more well known and revered holders of the office. 

Buchanan is known mostly for1) presiding over the U.S. as the states slipped into the Civil War and 2) being the only President who never married. His bungling of the slavery issue and general reluctance to address tensions between the north and south tainted his presidency; arguably more than any other one-termer. 

His presidential statue is on what was supposed to be "The Avenue of Presidents." 16th Street NW has been envisioned as many things; the Prime Meridian, Embassy Row and the Avenue of Presidents among others. The Buchanan statue was finished in 1930, but was actually included in the original plans for Meridian Hill Park. The park's construction lasted from 1912 until 1936. It was donated by the President's niece and sculpted by Hans Schuler. It remains as the only presidential statue to grace 16th Street. The others are downtown on the National Mall. 

Buchanan's statue is located on the lower level of Meridian Hill-Malcolm X Park in the southeast corner, only steps from the 15th St entrance.

Video: snOMG 2010 Snowball Fight

Saturday at Meridian Hill/Malcolm X Park at about 3:00pm. There were dozens (hundreds?) of people in the park during the day Saturday. Football games on the green, dogs running in the show, sledding down snow covered staircases, and this. A not-so-massive snowball fight, but a fun one. Not a mean-natured person there. For the most part if you weren't holding a snowball, you were off limits, although I did get hit with an errant snowball while trying to jump off the stage and go home. Whatever! A fun day walking around the car-free streets.

Malcolm X Park Snowball Fight Take 2 from The 42 Bus on Vimeo.

Photos: Sunday in the Park

Oh goodness. Near perfect stroll and people watching at Malcolm X/Meridian Hill Park today. Just pure good times. Drumming, dancing, frisbee, soccer and laying in the grass. This event is uniquely tied to this spot, and to this park. For every cynical DC thought that floats through your head, come by this place on a Sunday evening and be recharged. And bring your drum, dancing shoes, friends or all of the above. Or just chill out and take it all in.

Malcolm X Park Called; Says "Fix Me"

Sunday afternoons at Malcolm X Park are the best. Especially during the summer. If you visit late in afternoon on a hot July or August Sunday, you'll see an amazing drum circle forming near the Joan of Arc statue on the upper level of the park. Its been around for decades and anyone with a drum can join. Or just go to watch the drummers and dancers; or watch the other people watching the drummers and dancers. The drum circle usually starts whenever the weather consistently permits. The gathering is one of the great examples of why its great to still live in the city. Sadly, in New York, new condo dwellers near Marcus Garvey Park in Harlem have forced their very similar drum circle to relocate, because of "noise." Luckily, we haven't had problems like those here in DC.

Most people now know Malcolm X Park as Meridian Hill Park. Its a federal park, administered by the National Park Service. Its about, oh, 4 blocks from the 42 bus route, with the northern tip of the park at Euclid and 16th Street NW. Oddly, it was one of the first public structures to be built with a new cutting edge construction technology: concrete aggregate. The park opened in 1936. During the 1980s it was considered very dangerous, with open drug use and criminal activity in and around the park. However, over the years with work from the feds and everyday folks like Friends of Meridian Hill, the park has done a 180. Now its time for the National Park Service (NPS) to finish the job.

NPS been working on restoring the park to its peak grandeur since 2003. Some of the changes have been noticeable, like repopulating the park with benches. They'd been removed to ward off "loitering." No loitering in a park. Or sitting. Must have been sad times. Other work is less visible, like fixing drainage issues underneath sidewalks and the grassy mall on the upper level. The NPS is scheduled to finish the repairs this spring, but it sure doesn't look close. This park could be one of the best of the East Coast when fully functional, safe and maintained. Too bad its still a "hidden gem" of sorts. It needs to be out front and center as a city asset and the NPS could help it get there with a wrap up of the renovations. I don't want to be too harsh; after all, its still winter. But I do want the Park servive to come thouhgh on the final renovations so we can get back to enjoying the drum cirlces in a clean, construction-free, safe, and aesthetically pleasing park. New condo dwellers who dislike like "noise" can go elsewhere.