PHOTOGRAPH BY KK OTTESEN

First Person Singular

Making the

commitment

Vincent Gray, 67 // D.C. Council chairman, mayoral candidate

INTERVIEW BY KK OTTESEN

In graduate school, I had a professor who said to me, “What do you know about mental retardation?” I was a clinical psychology major, and I said, “Well, to be honest, not a lot.” She said, “I’m on the board of the Association for Retarded Citizens, and I would really like you to think about taking a summer job there and see what you think.” So I did. They sent me to a conference at Forest Haven, a really infamous institution. I walked around the grounds, up to this really high chain-link fence. While I was standing there, this staff person literally herded about 20 women out who had absolutely no clothes on and started hosing them down. It was one of the most dehumanizing things I’ve ever seen. I stood there, I looked at it, and it was one of those defi ning moments. I said: I think I could do something that makes a difference here. ¶ So I went to work for the ARC. After a couple of years, I became the executive director and set out on a journey to reform how people with (Continued on Page 6)

{

Who Knew | Name this local landmark Constructed in 1893 with guidance from Alexander Graham

Bell + Neoclassic design in yellow brick and sandstone + Functioned as a center of information for the deaf and hard of hearing + Built across the street from Bell’s father’s house, where the center originally was housed = (Answer: See next page)

MAY 30, 2010 | THE WASHINGTON POST MAGAZINE

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