Greg Rogers

Councilmember @ZacharyforWard5, happy to answer. We contribute our own time and money. @AshleySchapitl paid for the domain out of her own pocket. She edits articles, I spend hours designing graphics, and our writers do their own research. We all have full-time jobs. The Substack costs nothing to read because we believe in accessible information for our readers. After my campaign for local office, I wanted to keep advocating for the city we both love. Ashley invited me to write for this ragtag publication, and my first two pieces covered DC’s corruption culture and the struggles of our small businesses. I’d still welcome your response to that first piece, including where you stand on accountability for Trayon White. I’m so proud of our reach and how much we have grown thanks to Ashley’s leadership. You can disagree with what we write. I’d welcome that debate. But questioning who funds us without engaging with what we actually say feels like a convenient way to avoid the substance of our arguments. We live here and we pay taxes here. We watch businesses close and neighbors struggle to get basic services, issues attributable to failures of this sitting Council. Some of us have grown frustrated enough with the policies you and your colleagues defend to spend our evenings writing, organizing, and asking for better. I respect your office, Councilmember, and I hope you’ll extend some of that respect to residents organizing on their own time. Grassroots advocacy doesn’t become suspicious simply because you disagree with it.