Club Dread

A look at the feuds, money, and violence behind Ibiza, D.C.’s ill-fated and notorious megaclub.

Published: Aug 31, 2015
Length: 19 minutes (4,884 words)

Haven Is For Real

How D.C. churches helped Central American refugees fleeing political violence in the ’80s.

Published: Sep 19, 2014
Length: 19 minutes (4,906 words)

My So-Called Stalker (1999)

(Via David Carr’s Reddit Q&A) A woman recounts what it was like to be stalked by one man for years—and how police ignored her plea for help:

“Ron left frequent answering-machine messages that had no real pattern. Sometimes they were weird, nonsensical treatises, accusatory and rambling, definitely creepy, but not exactly life-threatening. Certainly not enough for the authorities to care–and not enough to motivate me to file a report.

“Then he started showing up at the store and lurking on the sales floor, peering at me. It was a busy place, and he often got by without anyone’s seeing him. I felt him even when he wasn’t there.

“One day, I was stocking shelves and sensed someone standing behind me. Minutes went by, and I realized the same person was still standing over my shoulder. I scooted to the right a bit, thinking perhaps he was trying to look at the shelf I was blocking. I heard the rustle of his pants as he shifted with me. Oh my god oh my god, I thought frantically, Oh my god it’s Ron. It has to be. He’s right fucking behind me! The breath left me, and I stared straight ahead at the shelves, immobilized by something I couldn’t explain. In that split second, I finally understood that my life would never be the same.”

Author: Anonymous
Published: Jan 15, 1999
Length: 52 minutes (13,094 words)

Diane Ravitch, the Anti-Rhee

In the month of April, Diane Ravitch, the 72-year-old preeminent historian of American education, sent 1,747 tweets, an average of about 58 messages per day, many between the hours of 11 p.m. and 1 a.m. On May 20 alone, Ravitch tweeted 99 times to her 13,000 followers. Linking to the news of a D.C. Public Schools investigation into test tampering under former chancellor Michelle Rhee, she asked: “How can teachers be evaluated by student test scores, when the scores are so often manipulated and inaccurate?”

Published: Jun 22, 2011
Length: 15 minutes (3,901 words)