After Wednesday’s solemn 9/11 commemorations, it falls to the organizers of Listen! Dance! Unite! to show people around the Capitol that unity events can have a little flair as well.

“This past year, we hosted a couple of successful nightclub events that were designed to bring together people from different communities and backgrounds under the power of soul-edifying music that gets you on your feet,” said Jordan Wilson, one of the event organizers. “Following our positive experience with these nights, we decided to take the idea to the nation’s capital, where divisive partisanship and bitterness have become somewhat of a plague.”

That decision led to Thursday night’s dance party, which will take place on the West Terrace of the Capitol from 8 p.m. to 11 p.m. DJ “Stylus Chris” will spin the tunes for the fiesta, which is free.

“The purpose of the event is to use the power of music and dance to unite people, if only for one evening, on the footsteps of one of the most divided institutions in the country, the United States Congress,” Wilson said, adding, “and the tag line is ‘people over politics’ because it appears that amidst political arguments and debates, too often we lose sight of our shared humanity.”

Another organizer, Rev. Patrick Mahoney, told HOH that, “with the Capitol so divided, it is critical that we start putting ‘people over politics’ and start building personal relationships.”