Creators for Democracy - A Civic Festival
About this Event
The future of democracy requires imagination and joy.
Creators for Democracy is a two-day civic festival spotlighting DC-based creators expanding possibilities through storytelling, civic imagination, and joy.
Join DC's favorite creators and community builders for creator-led activations on photography, business building, design, fashion, storytelling, and health. Explore interactive maker stations, a creator marketplace, and incredible food and music.
Democracy's future is being built right now, in our communities, by creators with the courage to tell new stories about who we are and who we can become together. Podcasters and TikTokers. Newsletter writers and musicians. Visual storytellers and community organizers. This is for every kind of creator building the fabric of civic life, and for every community member who believes democracy is a living, evolving practice.
We are all creators. Libraries democratize storytelling. This is an invitation to tell yours. Hear others. Dream more. Discover the library services, tools, and resources that can help you create — studio space, archives, equipment, and a community that believes in what you're building.
Be part of something lasting: a national movement connecting creators and civic institutions to build a democracy rooted in imagination, possibility, and joy.
Free and open to the public. All are welcome.
Presented by Bold Impact and DC Public Library. Part of America's 250th anniversary commemoration.
Agenda July 1
🕑: 05:00 PM - 05:50 PM
BLK Flower Market Smudge Stick Lab- Kehmari Norman
Info: Presented by Kehmari Norman
Explore the intersection of creativity, identity, and cultural connection through flowers.
In this hands-on floral design workshop, participants will engage in reflection, sensory exploration, and creative expression while crafting a custom floral smudge stick to take home. Using a curated selection of fresh and dried herbs, flowers, and botanicals, guests will create a piece that reflects their personal story, values, and humanity.
Along the way, you'll be invited to affirm yourself through writing, connect with the stories plants carry, and experience the joy of creating something meaningful with your own hands.
Leave with a one-of-a-kind floral smudge stick and a deeper appreciation for the ways creativity can help us express who we are.
🕑: 05:00 PM - 05:50 PM
Creator workshop with Brianna Battle
Info: Hosted by @queertalkdc - more info coming soon!
🕑: 05:00 PM - 09:00 PM
Creator's For Democracy Festival Marketplace x Nubian Hueman
Info: Explore a vibrant marketplace celebrating creativity, culture, and community.
Browse a curated selection of local vendors and makers in partnership with Nubian Hueman, connect with community organizations working to strengthen civic life across DC, and discover opportunities to get involved in causes shaping our shared future.
Meet creators from across the forum, attend book signings, and engage directly with storytellers, artists, and movement builders using creativity to strengthen democracy.
Throughout the evening, enjoy food, music from our live DJ, and plenty of opportunities to gather, network, and spark new collaborations.
Come curious, leave inspired.
🕑: 06:00 PM - 06:50 PM
Design Like Your Life Depends On It: How To Design A Home That Feels Like You
Info: Presented by @imaniathome
You deserve a home that feels intentional, beautiful, and completely yours—and it's more achievable than you think.
Join interior decorator and content creator Imani Keal of *Imani At Home* for a practical and inspiring workshop on creating spaces that reflect who you are. Drawing from both her design expertise and personal journey, Imani will share room-by-room guidance, actionable tips, and the philosophy behind designing a home that feels authentic, joyful, and deeply personal.
Whether you rent or own, are working with a large budget or a small one, you'll leave with fresh ideas, renewed confidence, and the permission to create a space that truly feels like home.
🕑: 06:00 PM - 06:50 PM
Movement Activity- Community Through Movement, Brittany Greene, Chocolate City
Info: Presented by Brittany Greene and Chocolate City Relay
Most of us don't need more events—we need better ways of actually being together.
Join Chocolate City Relay for a community-centered movement experience exploring how walking, running, and conversation can create connection. Through a light walk or run paired with guided discussion, participants will experience how moving together changes the way we relate to one another and ourselves.
Whether you're an experienced runner, an occasional walker, or simply looking to meet new people, this session is designed to foster connection, reflection, and community through movement.
Come ready to move, talk, listen, and experience the simple power of gathering with intention.
🕑: 06:00 PM - 06:50 PM
Adjourn Teahouse INFUSION: LaTonia Cokely
Info: A Pause Practice for Pleasure + Release**
Presented by @adjournteahouse
Part tea ritual. Part sensory playground. Part permission slip.
INFUSION invites guests to gather around a living table of teas, herbs, spices, and botanicals and craft a cup guided by curiosity, craving, and feeling. No recipes. No rules. No take-home blend. Just the pleasure of creating something for yourself in the present moment.
Through tea, presence, and gentle reflection, we'll explore the practice of pause—making space for pleasure, release, and a deeper return to ourselves.
🕑: 07:00 PM - 07:45 PM
Live Podcast Recording
Info: There's something special about being in the room where the conversation happens.
Join us for a live podcast recording and experience the energy of a show as it's created in real time. Hear candid stories, fresh ideas, and thought-provoking conversations from creators, leaders, and changemakers shaping our shared future.
Podcast details coming soon—but trust us, you'll want a front-row seat.
Agenda July 2
🕑: 05:00 PM - 05:50 PM
Storytelling as Care and Cultural Preservation - Dee Dwyer
Info: Presented by @deedwyerjonts
What changes when we choose to tell our own stories with care, truth, and intention?
Join photographer, educator, curator, and cultural organizer Dee Dwyer for an interactive workshop exploring storytelling as a form of civic engagement, cultural preservation, and community care. Drawing from her work documenting everyday people and lived experiences—from founding The Chocolate City Experience to projects like A Great Day in Go-Go—Dee will share how storytelling can strengthen communities, support local culture, and preserve histories before they are erased or forgotten.
Participants will then put these ideas into practice through a hands-on storytelling exercise using their cell phones. After pairing up and getting to know someone new, attendees will create a portrait and capture a story from their conversation, exploring how simple acts of listening, documenting, and sharing can build empathy and create living community archives.
🕑: 05:00 PM - 05:50 PM
DC Fashion Fool Reads- Self Expression is Storytelling - Barnette Holston
Info: DC Fashion Fool Reads: Self Expression is Storytelling
Presented by Barnette Holston / The DCFashion Fool
A read-aloud activation exploring how self-expression becomes storytelling.
In this joyful, interactive experience, fashion correspondent and cultural voice Barnette Holston invites participants into a shared space of imagination, identity, and expression through story.
🕑: 05:00 PM - 05:50 PM
Movement Activity- Matthew Green, District Running Collective
Info: Stretch your legs, and connect with community through movement.
Join District Running Collective for an energizing rooftop movement session designed to bring people together, spark connection, and remind us that caring for ourselves is part of caring for our communities.
No experience required, just come ready to move, connect, and have a little fun.
More details to be announced soon.
🕑: 05:00 PM - 09:00 PM
Creator's For Democracy Festival Marketplace x Nubian Hueman
Info: Explore a vibrant marketplace celebrating creativity, culture, and community.
Browse a curated selection of local vendors and makers in partnership with Nubian Hueman, connect with community organizations working to strengthen civic life across DC, and discover opportunities to get involved in causes shaping our shared future.
Meet creators from across the forum, attend book signings, and engage directly with storytellers, artists, and movement builders using creativity to strengthen democracy.
Throughout the evening, enjoy food, music from our live DJ, and plenty of opportunities to gather, network, and spark new collaborations.
Come curious, leave inspired.
🕑: 06:00 PM - 06:50 PM
Storytelling from Art to Words- Shawn Martinbrough
Info: Storytelling: From Art to Words
Presented by comic book artist @smartinbrough
🕑: 06:00 PM - 06:50 PM
The Ownership Stack: A framework for building a creative business- Anela Malik
Info: Presented by @TheAnelaMalik
What does it take to build a creative business that can't be defunded, deplatformed, or erased?
In this interactive workshop, creator and entrepreneur Anela Malik will share the framework she used to crowdfund an independent Black food and travel series and grow a six-figure email audience she actually owns. Participants will explore four key layers of ownership—audience, distribution, funding, and intellectual property—and apply them to a story they believe matters.
You'll leave with practical tools, a clearer understanding of creative independence, and one concrete step toward owning your voice, your platform, and your future.
🕑: 07:00 PM - 07:45 PM
Fireside Chat
Info: Join us for a special rooftop conversation exploring the ideas, challenges, and opportunities shaping our shared future.
Set against the backdrop of the city, this intimate discussion will offer fresh perspectives, thoughtful dialogue, and space for collective imagination.
Speaker and conversation details to be announced soon.
🕑: 07:45 PM - 09:00 PM
Creator's For Democracy Closing Party
Info: Good music. Good people. Good food. Join us for an evening of connection, civic joy, and community as we gather to celebrate the creators, storytellers, and dreamers building our shared future. Featuring the DJs of @thenewfunset.
Where is it happening?
Event Location & Nearby Stays:
USD 0.00
