It’s one of those predictable calamities—the debt ceiling, the annual spooging of the ginkgo trees, fourth and 10 for the Washington football team. June has come and nearly gone, but there’s no Fort Reno schedule up.
Worse than that, though: Fort Reno only just launched the fundraiser it should’ve announced weeks or months ago. Last year, the National Park Service threw a wrench into one of the District’s favorite outdoor concert series by requiring it to pay for mandatory U.S. Park Police security. Fort Reno’s organizer, Amanda MacKaye, threatened to cancel Fort Reno before relenting and asking for donations—which punks and families alike tendered happily. This year, the same set is grumbling that MacKaye is dragging her feet.
So it’s time for MacKaye to pass the hat around—a proud punk tradition—and, for future years, to build security costs into the planning for Fort Reno. It really shouldn’t be this way: In an ideal world, the National Park Service would yield its micromanagerial authority over D.C.’s parks to the D.C. government.
But things could be worse for Fort Reno. Here’s a peek at the darkest endgame, in which Fort Reno bows to our capitalist overlords and relinquishes its DIY cred completely.
Reagan National Airport presents: Stranger in the Alps, Baby Alcatraz, Oddisee, the Caribbean
National Harbor presents: the Sea Life, Young Rapids, Shark Week
The Washington Post presents: Puff Pieces, Typefighter, Dot Dash
Georgetown Visitation presents: Teen Mom, Art Sorority for Girls, Glitterlust, DJ Lisa Frank
Catholic University presents: Priests, Mary Christ, the Sweater Set
The DC Abortion Fund presents: Kid Congo Powers, Baby Bry Bry & the Apologists, and the roster of Babe City Records
The Metropolitan Police Department presents: Alarms and Controls, Protect-U, Criminal Activity, Jail Solidarity, Wanted Man, Chain and the Gang, Coke Bust
The Church of Scientology presents: Möbius Strip, Ex Hex, Godisheus
Bang Salon presents: Foul Swoops, Coup Sauvage & the Snips, Golden Looks, Beauty Pill
National Geographic presents: GEMS, Black Clouds, Two Inch Astronaut, Homosuperior
The Trust for the National Mall presents: Brutalism, Monument, Soccer Team
The U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives presents: Fugazi
Top photo by Darrow Montgomery. National Airport photo by Flickr user m01229, Creative Commons