D.C. Social House Links New Generation of Black Culture to Black History

Washington D.C.- Nestled on the corner of Washington D.C.’s most famous ethnic district is the upbeat café Busboys and Poets. The restaurant sits at 14th and U Street, the heart of black culture in D.C. Coffee houses and lounges serve as hubs for many Web surfers. The fairly new hotspot has turD.C. Social House Links New Generation of Black Culture to Black History

ned into a melting pot–with all different cultures, ages, and backgrounds enjoying the comfort and modernized space full of enriching black artwork, performers and literature. The unifying elements are food and African- American art. Rolling Out sat down with the creative composer and owner of the artsy establishment, Andy Shallal, to explore the unique connection to the legendary poet Langston Hughes and Black culture.


The Resumé:
Name: Andy Shallal
Origin: Iraq, D.C. Native for over 40 years
Occupation: Owner, Busboys and Poets Café


Where did the name Busboys and Poets originate?
Busboys and Poets is named after the great Langston Hughes who worked as a busboy in the mid 1920s. He was discovered one day by Vachel Lindsay. The story goes that Langston slipped one of his poems under Vachel Lindsay’s plate and he then announced that he just discovered a Negro Busboy poet and there you have the name ‘busboy poet.’ When I wanted to open a place in Washington, being that Langston lived in Washington for some time, we decided to honor the great Langston Hughes by naming it Busboys and Poets.

What was significant about U Street when you made your decision for location?
This is an area that was historically a black neighborhood. It was called black Broadway, where the artist cultural icons, writers poets and so on. Washington at that time was very segregated so they could not go anywhere else. So it developed a world that set the stage for the Harlem Renaissance that was in New York. Washington was really [considered] in many ways to be the birthplace of the Harlem Renaissance.


What was your inspiration for creating a place like Busboys and Poets?
bushboys and poets

 Often young people don’t see the possibility of a major change through action. I think the Civil Rights Movement gives us a lot of hope that change can happen if you organize and you force it to happen. I wanted to create a space that speaks of that era.

Busboys and Poets’ aesthetic is inspired by Black art and culture. Where did you draw your passion for Black arts from?

A year after I arrived here in Washington D.C. Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated. Washington was on fire at that point, literally. People were rioting, burning buildings and stores. It really created an interest in my mind of what the Civil Rights Movement was all about. I recognized that this was an important era in American history that really needs to be revisited and seen through the eyes of people today.

Busboys and Poets Café is the stomping grounds for many famous black authors and poets who come to display their talents and works. It is the modern face of what the historical U Street has become. ~kim smith

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