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Brown Club of DC, 4900 Puerto Rico Ave NE, Washington D.C., DC (2026)

06/20/2026

Thank you to everyone who joined BCDC and IPC DMV for our 1st Annual Juneteenth Celebration yesterday!

Our inaugural Juneteenth cookout was filled with joy, fellowship, laughter, and meaningful reflection. It was wonderful to see Brown alumni and students, families, and friends come together to commemorate Juneteenth while celebrating the strength of our community.

Our hope in creating this event was to begin a new Brown tradition—one that honors those who fought for freedom, teaches future generations about the significance of Juneteenth, and provides a space for our community to gather in celebration each year. Thanks to yesterday's strong communal response, we are well on our way.

A special thank you to everyone who volunteered, brought food and supplies, helped with setup and cleanup, shared music, and contributed to making the day so welcoming. We look forward to doing it all again next year and for years to come!

Brown Alumni & Friends Brown Univ. Inman Page IPC

06/20/2026

This week for our Local Arts Hero, we are highlighting the Center Arts Gallery, the heart of arts and culture programming at the DC LGBTQ+ Community Center!

The DC Center has spent decades working to educate, empower, celebrate, and connect DC's le***an, gay, bisexual, transgender, and q***r communities, organizing its work around four pillars: health and wellness, social and peer support, advocacy and community building, and arts and culture. That last pillar lives in Center Arts, the umbrella for the Center's creative programming, which includes the Reel Affirmations Film Festival, the OutWrite LGBTQ Literary Festival, the DC Q***r Theatre Festival, and the Center Arts Gallery itself, a rotating exhibition space showcasing visual art created by LGBTQ+ artists across every medium and experience level.

Since opening in 2017, the gallery has hosted a steady rotation of exhibitions spotlighting local talent, with the majority of its most recent shows featuring work by local BIPOC artists. Past installations have ranged from full-color collections of paintings and mixed media to deeply personal group shows born out of peer-support art circles, where participants used visual storytelling to process experiences like isolation, stigma, and living with HIV/AIDS, turning individual pieces into shared narratives of resilience. More recently, when the Center moved into its new permanent Shaw location, it put out an open call inviting LGBTQ artists working in painting, photography, sculpture, and other mediums to help fill the walls of its new home, selecting submissions lottery-style so the gallery could reflect the full breadth of the community rather than a single curated vision. Taken together, these exhibitions make the gallery as much a community archive as an art space, one that captures DC's q***r history and present in real time.

To learn more, get involved, or support the DC Center's mission, visit their website at thedccenter.org!

06/19/2026

Congratulations to the 2026-27 Brown Club of DC Board! Our amazing team of volunteers, which officially begins its term on July 1, met for the first time on Wednesday evening.

We're grateful to have fourteen dedicated board members continuing their service, and we're immensely excited to be joined by six eager and talented new additions, who we'll be introducing to the community in more depth over the summer! Our team will be led by our Executive Board:

Co-Presidents: Emily Stovall '06 & John Roberti '91 P'28

Vice President: Farha Mithila PhD '24

Secretary: Kevin O'Brien '13

Treasurer: Corey Lipow '08

Communications Co-Chairs: Sean Siperstein '05 & Jillian Talenda '22

Events Chair: Joanna Abousleiman '09

And joining the E-Board in service to our community will be:

Membership Chair: Dawn Crumel '89

Young Alumni Co-Chairs: Khadija Salman MPA '22 & Aric Fulton MA '22

Affinity Chair: Jasmine Plummer '08

Service Chair: Christine Ruffo MA '02

At-Large Members:
Priya Parrotta '12
Hannah Schafer '09.5
Marnix (”Mark”) Koumans '86
Praises Amponsah '24
Fatema Zerin '14
Renee Kleris RES '15
Isabelle Sharon '23.5
Joe Van Wye '15

Congratulations and thank you once again to this Ever True group of community builders, which spans five generations of Brunonians. We can't wait to get to work with the new team!

06/12/2026

This week for our Local Arts Hero, we are highlighting We Make DC, the vibrant new Dupont Circle space that is part store, part art installation, and part crafting hub!

We Make DC is the latest venture from Stacey Price, the founder behind the classic local retailer and previously featured Local Arts Hero, Shop Made in DC. Produced by Shop Made Brands and led by Stacey Price, the project is timed to America's 250th anniversary. The space is part store, part exhibit, and part event space, telling the story of DC through art and the many voices and many hands of the people who make up the District of Columbia.

At the "We Live Here" activation, visitors can take a trip through DC's eight wards, each represented by murals painted by local artists. For those who want to get hands-on, the Make It Bar invites visitors to walk in, sit down, and leave 30 minutes later with a DC candle, watercolor, or charm bracelet they made themselves, with activities ranging from $5 to $25. Longer workshops led by local makers, from candle-making to DIY stationery, are also available to sign up for. The space will also host events like panels and live music, as well as a pop-up cafe featuring rotating coffee and matcha vendors.

Visit their website at https://www.wemakedc.net/ to learn more!

wemakedc

06/06/2026

This week for our Local Arts Hero, we are highlighting DC's Different Drummers, Washington DC's very own LGBTQ+ community band and performing arts organization!

DC's Different Drummers (DCDD) is a le***an, gay, bisexual, transgender, and q***r-plus band organization that welcomes all musicians as it fosters pride, inclusivity, and engagement across the greater Washington DC region through music. The organization began in 1980 as a pioneering community ensemble, and has grown into a rich, multi-faceted organization with six distinct groups: a Symphonic Band, Marching Band, Jazz Band, Color Guard, a small ensemble, and the group 2nd Independence.

The Marching Band is the organization's most visible group, performing annually in DC's Capital Pride Parade and at Pride festivals up and down the East Coast, as well as at DC United and Nationals games through the summer. The Symphonic Band, DCDD's largest ensemble, spans everything from classical to modern compositions. The Jazz Band performs regularly at beloved DC-area venues including the Capitol Hill Arts Workshop, Twins Jazz on U Street, Mr. Henry's at Eastern Market, and the Torpedo Factory in Old Town Alexandria. And the Color Guard brings dazzling visual artistry to the stage during its summer and winter performing seasons.

This Pride Month, DCDD has performances across DC that you won’t want to miss. Look out for the Marching Band in the Capital Pride Parade on June 20 and performing at the Capital Pride Festival on June 21.

To learn more about DC's Different Drummers, catch an upcoming show, or join this welcoming community of musicians, visit their website at https://www.dcdd.org/!

06/05/2026

Next week, BCDC will hold annual elections for our all-volunteer governing Board, and Bruno wants YOU! We've put on a lot of truly memorable and meaningful programming this past year, thanks to the work of our diverse, multi-generational Board officers and support from community members.

Do you have an activity you’ve been wanting to try in the DMV but just haven’t gotten around to it because you haven’t gotten a group together? Help us plan events! Have a specific skill you’d love to practice or learn (communications, administrative skills, creative skills, etc.)? We can help!

There are a variety of positions available, including leadership roles like Co-President and VP, specific portfolios, and more general support - something for everyone! (And if there’s a role we haven’t thought of that you’d be interested in filling, or another way you'd like to help out, let us know.) Our 2026-2027 service year runs from July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1TOHsZXxPr_ilCq_5JNkc595u6IkBDrXle_eg8o3COUU/edit?usp=drivesdk

If you're ready to self-nominate for a Board position, fill out our nomination form by EOD on June 7 (link below). Email us at [email protected] if you have any questions about board positions or other volunteer opportunities, and someone from our team will be in touch!

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSc5Bq2G11DCqpYzgfwNczA-e8vie6E0BNY3O1gwZJKje6RFjQ/viewform

05/31/2026

What a wonderful introduction to Mahjong, its history, and its cultural relevance--we learned so much last night in just a couple of hours at our sold-out private class at Lucky Danger. Special thanks go out to Tim and the rest of the team for their tutelage and hospitality!

Many thanks as well to all who joined BCDC and A4 for this enriching evening and to our friends Harvard for joining. It was lovely to gather as a cross-Ivy community and honor AANHPI Heritage Month!

.brown

05/31/2026

Our May spotlight is a scholar, public historian, and proud fifth-generation Washingtonian whose work bridges museums, history, and lifelong learning. Meet Izetta Autumn Mobley '03!

Izetta grew up here in Washington, DC. Having concentrated in American Civilization (now American Studies), she found that DC offered the ideal backdrop for her field of cultural studies, with its unparalleled concentration of museums, archives, and public history institutions. For Izetta, the city isn't just where she lives; it's both her subject and her workplace.

Professionally, Izetta describes herself first and foremost as a scholar – a title that encompasses a wide-ranging practice of consulting, project management, program development, writing, and public history work. At its core, her mission is to create more spaces for lifelong learning, pursued through reading, writing, organizing, and planning in equal measure.

When she's not working, Izetta is an enthusiastic champion of DC's cultural riches. A self-described lover of the free Smithsonian museums, she sees access to world-class scholarship and creativity as a genuine civic privilege. She is equally devoted to the city's thriving independent bookstore scene, frequenting spots like Loyalty Books, Little District Books, Mahogany Books, and Solid State Books, alongside beloved institutions like Politics & Prose, Kramer's, and Capitol Hill Books. For hidden gems, Izetta points to the Botanical Gardens and the Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens. She also spends time crafting and making, and appreciates the DCPL's maker space and Merry Pin.

05/30/2026

This week, as we close out Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, our Local Arts Hero is Kānepō Ka Lua, the sacred volcanic stone now standing watch at the Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian on the National Mall!

Kānepō Ka Lua, meaning "Kānepō the Second", is a volcanic stone from the district of Kaʻū on the island of Hawaiʻi, loaned to the museum for a 20-year period by Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park in consultation with their Kūpuna (Elders) Consultation Group. The stone serves as the western cardinal direction marker at the museum, one of four stones placed at each cardinal point as part of the building's original design. The group of elders recognized the importance of sending a new stone to serve as the museum's western cardinal marker and as an ambassador for the Native Hawaiian people in Washington.

Kānepō Ka Lua made its public debut on May 16th at a joyful Hawaiian celebration on the museum's grounds. The family day welcomed Kānepō Ka Lua to Washington with curator tours, hula performances, and music by the Aloha Boys – our Local Arts Hero from last week!

To learn more about Kānepō Ka Lua and reflect on the deep roots of Native Hawaiian culture that he represents, visit the National Museum of the American Indian. More information can be found at https://americanindian.si.edu/!

05/17/2026

As we commemorate Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) Heritage Month, A4 and BCDC are teaming up (no pun intended) for a private Mahjong lesson at Lucky Danger DC, an American Chinese restaurant on the edge of Chinatown (May 30 @ 6 to 8 PM)! We can't wait to learn this popular and historic Chinese tabletop tile game that's become quite the rage lately!

Our lesson will be in Lucky Danger's Mahjong Room, which was directly inspired by the parlor in the movie "Rush Hour," from 6 - 8 PM. Whether you heard about Mahjong growing up from your Chinese or Jewish grandmother (it is also Jewish American Heritage Month!), first heard of it thanks to "Crazy Rich Asians or "Rush Hour," or just want to have fun learning an essential bit of Chinese and Chinese-American culture, this is your chance to dive in alongside fellow Brunonians!

Space is limited to the first 15 registrants to ensure an interactive experience, so secure your spot today!

https://brownconnectplus.brown.edu/networks/events/257849

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