Name: Miriam Gusevich
Occupation: Former Professor of Architecture; Currently works independently on architecture and public art projects
Hometown: Havana, Cuba
Tell me a little bit about yourself. How long have you lived in DC?
I was born in Havana; I grew up under communism, with no democracy and no right to vote. My family and I came to the United States in 1968 — I was a teenager — and we became American citizens as soon as we could. We came as political refugees, which is important, because we had Green Cards from the beginning — we were very fortunate. I just want to reiterate that I’m very proud to be a citizen, and I treasure the privileges of voting.
I’ve lived in many parts of the United States — in New York, in St. Louis, Milwaukee, Chicago, Boston, Miami — and I moved to Washington, DC 26 years ago in 1998.
Why did you decide to move to DC?
I came to be a professor of architecture. I was first at the University of Maryland, and then I was recruited to go to Catholic University. I taught there from 2000 to 2020, for twenty years. I was a tenured professor.
What do you love most about living in DC?
As an urban designer, I believe that DC is one of the great cities of the world. Since I’ve been here for the last 25 years, it keeps getting better. It’s fabulous how much more vital, how much more diverse the city is, how many more young people are choosing to live here. I have always appreciated how international the city is, and the variety and diversity in every possible sense. People do things here they could never do anywhere else, and that’s always fascinating.
I also love how green the city is, and how beautiful — architecturally and urbanistically —and how memorable — it’s just a very beautiful, memorable place. I also love the broad range of culture and institutions — all the arts, all the museums, the music, the free zoo, which is a gift, plus all the parks. I hike regularly at Rock Creek Park— I actually live right next to it. I feel very privileged to live where I live, and that the park is right here, and anybody can walk there. I love seeing people with their children and their dogs, and I am a great believer in public space —I’ve pretty much dedicated my life to public art and public space. So I think Washington is just a treasure trove of wonderful public spaces.
When we first came to the U.S. with my family, we moved to New York. My parents stayed there until they moved here, and they were pretty elderly by then. People treated them so sweetly. People welcomed them with such open arms, and made them feel at home. They were newcomers, and I feel they were welcomed here in a way that they never were welcomed in New York. People talk about New York — how diverse it is — and that’s true, but people are not that friendly. In Washington, they’re really friendly and genuinely open, that’s a very special quality the city has. If you’re coming as a tourist, you might not understand it or realize it; living here, it’s really a very special quality of the city.
When you are in other parts of the country, Washington is so far away. People get a very distorted image of who we are and what we do. This was the case in the 90s when all they talked about was the crime. The press sometimes doesn’t do us justice in terms of portraying the city — it’s either Capitol Hill or a bunch of criminals running around. When people come to visit, they’re amazed. It’s wonderful to live here. We have so much to offer.
Could you talk about your own experience being disenfranchised, or in other words, what it has been like to lose the rights you had when you were living in one of the 50 states?
Of course it’s very frustrating not to have effective representation. I get very angry whenever members of Congress usurp our rights and impose laws on us that really do not represent the will of the people. It’s outrageous that we are treated as if we’re non-citizens. It's not right, it’s racist — don’t get me started— it’s very, very unfair. We should be like any other citizen in the United States.
It’s great when we have demonstrations and acts of public participation that are nationwide. It is a privilege to live here and be able to be active — I loved the Women’s March; hated that Trump got elected, but I loved that there was tremendous solidarity. I treasure it and I don’t take it for granted. Many Americans don’t understand. When I first came to the United States and there were demonstrations against the Vietnam War, I was amazed that people could even conceive of protesting, [and] felt free to speak openly. As a citizen, I believe the rights of free speech and being able to dissent are very valuable, but not having representation in Congress means that we really don’t have a voice where the institutional decisions are made. We have the voice to protest, but we don’t have the voice to impact decision-making.
The city gets hijacked by dreadful interests that use us as scapegoats. If people in Oklahoma want to carry guns, we wish them good luck, but I surely don’t want guns here. I just came from Florida; I’m appalled by what’s happening there. I surely don’t want guns in my city, and I frankly don’t want them in the Halls of Congress either. We deserve a vote where decisions are made; recently the DC Council voted and Congress got involved and started messing around with the decisions we made —Don’t they have enough to do? I think that was outrageous. They don’t do that to Maryland or Virginia.
What does achieving statehood mean for you?
It means full citizenship — respecting our rights. We’re entitled to rights under the Constitution, but they are not being respected. We have the right to protest, but we don’t have the right to vote for our representatives. We deserve full participation in our democracy.
What do you think needs to be done to get closer to achieving statehood?
We need to keep organizing and build coalitions with citizens of goodwill all over the country. My friend Barbara organized Quilts 4 DC Statehood— it was a very good way for people to reach out for each other. We also need to reach out to people in Congress, they need to understand that they need to support our rights.
Is there anything else you would like to say?
I’ve lived here for 25 years; DC Statehood has been a very long fight. My hope is in young people — they can make a difference. We need to support young people because they have the right ideas —they understand what the key issues are. I hope DC Statehood happens in my lifetime. And hopefully soon!