May 31, 2026, AFRO News, How Ownership Helped Black-Owned U Street Businesses Survive Gentrification

Washington, D.C., once dubbed “Chocolate City” for its majority Black population in 1957, has now become one of the most gentrified cities in recent years, according to the National Community Reinvestment Coalition. Today, about 43 percent of the city’s population identifies as Black, which has reshaped historically Black neighborhoods like the U Street corridor.