51 is an ugly number. I say that because Washington DC would become the 51st state in the United States of America, if the Senate passes the DC Admission Act.
The fight for DC statehood is a long one, which began during the Civil Rights era in the 1960s and, clearly, has continued to this day. However this is not to say that this battle has been without wins; in 1960, Congress approved the 23rd Amendment which granted DC citizens the ability to vote in presidential elections and gave them three electoral votes. This was ratified by the states in 1961. This success spurred a new mission to gain representation in Congress and control over local affairs and decisions. The hard work of advocates paid off: the Columbia Delegate Act of 1970 allowed DC residents to elect a non-voting delegate to the House, and the Home Rule Act of 1973 allowed them to elect their own mayor, alongside a 13-member city council. Unfortunately, this success did not extend to the D.C. Voting Rights Amendment which was passed by the Senate and the House in 1979; however, it was only ratified by 16 out of the 38 states needed for the amendment to take effect.
It is impossible to ignore that a large part of the reason that DC has not been admitted as a state with full power and representation is because of DC’s large Black population. The Compromise of 1850 banned the slave trade. Later in 1862 the District of Columbia Compensated Emancipation Act encouraged enslavers to free their enslaved people for federal compensation. Establishing DC as a state would give more voting power to Black Americans, which America has resisted since its inception.
It’s important to recognize how DC suffers from not being a state. The most blatant issue is our lack of representation in Congress. DC residents pay the most in federal taxes but have no influence over the DC budget, meaning that Congress can nullify any legislation passed by the DC government.
All of these issues are addressed in the DC Admission Act which has been repeatedly passed by the House but has yet to be passed in the Senate. The act involves turning almost all of DC’s territory into a state called Washington, Douglass Commonwealth. The new state would have equal standing with all other US states including two senators and one representative. A smaller federal capital, including the Capitol complex, White House, National Mall, and other federal grounds, would remain under Congressional Authority as the seat of power for the federal government.
DC’s status is the same as any other US territory, with the key exception of being able to vote in national elections. Our population exceeds that of both Vermont and Wyoming, yet those states have congressional representation that DC has never had. This status is unacceptable given the 702,250 residents living in the nation’s capital. The fight for DC statehood is also a fight for Black American rights, a fight against tyranny, and a reflection of American democracy.