There appear to be 88 places with the name Washington. So if ‘Washington is broken‘, as they say, off to the other Washingtons to see what’s up there, journalist Laila Frank thought. On her journey she meets colorful people, all equally proud and hospitable, even hopeful, in what often sounds like a desolate place to us. In the first episode, she goes to Washington (California), a village of 160 inhabitants, with no formal government. Mayor Crystal received her title after putting out a collection box. Whoever collects the most money wins the title. A dog, a rooster and an unborn baby preceded her. Crystal places handwritten notes on tourists’ cars: “Don’t fucking park here, we don’t like it – Major of Washington, California”.
A version of this article also appeared in NRC Handelsblad on 8 January 2022
A version of this article also appeared in NRC on the morning of January 8, 2022
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