I’ve been in Washington, DC long enough that I can produce my own then and now photographs.
This one is from the corner of 14th Street, Northwest, and T Street Northwest, essentially the epicenter of the riots that destroyed Washington, DC after the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. With the exception of a few areas, much of 14th Street remained a place without much hope for almost 40 years. 10 years after the riots, the area and its residents were consumed by drugs and murder. If you have access to the Washington Post through your local library, this story from 1979 is on the chilling side: “Loretta Tofani Washington Post, Staff Writer. (1979, Aug 12). Drug trafficking forced off 14th street into residential areas. The Washington Post (1974-Current File)”
The photos used to put this together are below. What a huge difference can be made. And this technique is harder than it looks…