By: Miriam Edelman
In light of the 2024 elections, which will result in a Republican trifecta (control of the presidency, Senate, and House) starting early next year, some Republicans think that Republicans will take control of D.C.’s public safety. In light of this speculation, it is timely to recall when then-President Donald Trump sent federal law enforcement officials to handle demonstrations near the White House. This action was described in DCNOW’s blog piece, entitled “Speculations of Local D.C. Leaders about the Nation’s Capital’s Future .” Trump’s action led to the creation of local D.C. landmark, Black Lives Matter (BLM) Plaza. This piece provides a history of BLM Plaza, a symbol of local D.C. autonomy, since its creation in 2020.
African-Americans Alicia Garza, Patrisse Cullors, and Opal Tometi created BLM in 2013 in response to the acquittal of George Zimmerman, who killed 17-year old Trayvon Martin. On February 26, 2012, Zimmerman allegedly murdered Martin while Martin was walking home from a store. BLM’s “mission is to is to eradicate white supremacy and build local power to intervene in violence inflicted on Black communities by the state and vigilantes.” Now, more than 40 chapters compose this global network.
Creation of BLM Plaza
BLM Plaza was created between K and H Streets on 16th Street, blocks away from the White House, on June 5, 2020. Reportedly “in a rebuke to President Trump,” D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser renamed that area “Black Lives Matter Plaza” and had those words painted in large yellow letters on the street in the dark. According to D.C. city officials, this work honored demonstrators who wanted changes in law enforcement after police murdered George Floyd on May 25, 2020, in Minnesota.
After Floyd’s death, protests opposing racial violence and policy brutality occurred globally. These demonstrations reignited BLM. The U.S. protests were the nation’s biggest racial justice protests since the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s.
Starting in late May 2020, some protests occurred near the White House. Some were peaceful. However, during not-peaceful demonstrations, protestors broke into office buildings, destroyed windows, began fires, targeted businesses, and posted graffiti. Some yelled, “no justice, no peace,” and some held signs with some of Floyd’s last words, “I can’t breathe.” One person climbed over a barrier near the White House.
D.C.’s and U.S.’s governments responded to the D.C. protests. Bowser ordered citywide curfews and helped initiate the activation of D.C.’s National Guard. Acting Defense Secretary Christopher Miller approved Bowser’s request. As of 2022, while governors of states and territories control their National Guards, the U.S. President has control over the D.C. National Guard, the only National Guard to report solely to the U.S. President.
In late May, law enforcement of D.C. and the federal government responded to D.C. protests. Police used pepper spray and sting bombs and arrested some protesters. On June 1st, they also fired rubber bullets and chemical gas at protesters close to the White House and cleared protests, including demonstrations near the White House. There has been dispute about the reason for that specific clearing. After Trump threatened to use U.S. military against demonstrators, Trump and others crossed Lafayette Square on their way to St. John’s Episcopal Church nearby. Trump was photographed posing with a Bible.
There was solidarity between police and protesters in D.C. Some police officers took a knee near the then-Trump International Hotel.
Then-U.S. President Donald Trump and Bowser had disagreements, including about who should control the responses to the protests. Trump tweeted that Bowser “wouldn’t let the D.C. Police get involved.” Bowser and D.C.’s police chief Peter Newsham disagreed with that claim, with Newsham saying that D.C.’s police and the federal government were in daily communications about D.C. protests. Newsham also noted that D.C. police gave riot gear to the Secret Service.
Trump’s controversial comments about protests caused friction between Trump and Bowser. Trump tweeted, “These THUGS are dishonoring the memory of George Floyd… when the looting starts, the shooting starts,” Trump also tweeted that he was prepared to use “the most vicious dogs, and the most ominous weapons, I have ever seen,” conjuring dogs being used during the Civil Rights movement. Bowser referred to Trump’s comments as “gross.” She also said, “I call upon our city and our nation to exercise restraint, great restraint, even as the president tries to divide us.” and “I feel like these comments are an attack on humanity, an attack on black America, and they make my city less safe.”
Bowser and Trump had a public argument. On June 4, 2020, Bowser wrote Trump requesting that he “withdraw all extraordinary federal law enforcement and presence from Washington, D.C.” She wrote, “I continue to be concerned that unidentified federal personnel patrolling the streets of Washington DC pose both safety and security risks.” Trump replied, attacking Bowser. He tweeted, “The incompetent Mayor of Washington, D.C., @MayorBowser, who’s budget is totally out of control and is constantly coming back to us for “handouts”, is now fighting with the National Guard, who saved her from great embarrassment…” and “...over the last number of nights. If she doesn’t treat these men and women well, then we’ll bring in a different group of men and women!” At a press conference about coronavirus, Bowser was asked about those tweets. She remarked, “You know what they say about the pot and the kettle.” Trump tweeted, “.@MayorBowser is grossly incompetent, and in no way qualified to be running an important city like Washington, D.C. If the great men and women of the National Guard didn’t step forward, she would have looked no better than her counterpart Mayor in Minneapolis!” Then, Bowser tweeted a video of BLM Plaza and “We turned on the night light for him so he dreams about #BlackLivesMatter Plaza.”
Reason for BLM Plaza
It seems that Bowser created BLM Plaza at least partly in response to the June 1st incident. Reporter Mark Segraves tweeted, “DC @MayorBowser is having BLACK LIVES MATTER in huge letters painted on 16th Street between K and H Streets leading up to White House. @nbcwashington #BLMprotest”” In response, Bowser’s Chief of Staff John Falcicchio tweeted, “There was a dispute this week about whose street this is. Mayor Bowser wanted to make it abundantly clear that this is DC’s street and to honor demonstrators who peacefully protesting [sic]on Monday evening.” As he seemed to refer to Trump’s photo op, BLM Plaza could be viewed as a symbol of D.C. autonomy.
Bowser reflected on her creation of BLM Plaza and the need for D.C. statehood in an opinion piece in The Washington Post on June 14, 2020. She began her piece, “The moment I decided to create Black Lives Matter Plaza was when I came face to face with a line of federal police blocking a street in my legal jurisdiction.” She also wrote
This blatant degradation of our home right before my own eyes offered another reminder — a particularly powerful one — of why we need statehood for the District. Another reminder that the fight for statehood cannot be separated from the fight for racial justice.
This reaction is similar to Congress’ interference in local D.C. affairs in 2023 leading to renewed calls for D.C. statehood.
Bowser also discussed some of the messages behind BLM Plaza. At a press conference on June 5, 2020, she said “There's a lot of anger. There's a lot of distrust of police in the government. There are people who are craving to be heard and to be seen and to have their humanity recognized” and “And we had the opportunity to send that message loud and clear on a very important street in our city. That message is to the American people that black lives matter, black humanity matters, and we as a city raise that up.”
Reaction to BLM Plaza
There was mixed reaction to BLM Plaza. Some individuals supported it. Civil rights leader and then-U.S. Congressman John Lewis (D-GA) visited it, “was moved” by it, and called it “a powerful work of art.” Founder of the Congress Heights Arts and Culture Center Keyonna Jones, who helped paint it, is happy that D.C. kept the BLM Plaza painting. She feels that the painting and name created “a place of hope” and “a place of healing.” Jessica Roberts, who walks to BLM Plaza everyday with her dog, said, “I think it's really important that we recognize black lives and we have a space that’s so prominent in front of the White House.”
Others opposed BLM Plaza. Black Lives Matter DC was not pleased with BLM Plaza, calling it “a performative distraction from real policy changes.” It also slammed Bowser, remarking “Bowser has consistently been on the wrong side of BLMDC history. This is to appease white liberals while ignoring our demands.” The group criticized Bowser, saying she should decrease the police budget and “invest in the community.” Bowser’s budget included increased policing funding and decreased money for community-based programs that reduce violence. A local artist who helped with painting BLM Plaza also wanted reduced funding for the police. She also said, “I’m conflicted about doing it. It’s about wanting to reclaim the streets, but I also know that it is a little bit of a photo op.” When asked about these remarks, Bowser stated
Black Lives Matter is a very critical of police; they're critical of me, but that doesn't mean that I don't see them and support the things that will make our community safe, and that we don't all have a larger responsibility in the nation's capital to send that very clear message to our nation.
Others worried that BLM Plaza would detract from the actual issues. As D.C. Black Disabled Lives Matter event organizer Justice Shorter said, “A lot of times there is this emphasis on these symbolic spaces, but I also think we cannot ignore or set aside the very real concerns as to why that space is even relevant.” In addition, Brandi Thompson Summers, assistant professor at the University of California, Berkeley, said
You can invite someone to paint a mural on the ground, paint a mural on the side of a building, that’s supposed to reflect the value of Black lives, that’s supposed to show that the city is interested in protecting Black lives, but you don’t actually have to make the city habitable for Black people. … It just means you have to put up a picture to show that you acknowledge them, not that you welcome them and create conditions that allow them to stay.
and “We have to question who the mural is for. We’re wondering, what does it actually mean for the people on the ground?” Controversy about BLM Plaza continued.
Months after the creation of BLM Plaza, some people continued to criticize BLM Plaza. Arianna Evans of Bowie Maryland, said, “All of this was to placate. We keep (getting) distracted by small things… and Black Lives Matter Plaza was small. We didn’t get any real reforms… We didn’t get any of the things we were begging her for.”
As of 2022, there was still mixed reaction to BLM Plaza. For example, tourist Carolyn Jones from Georgia visited BLM Plaza and said, “Absolutely it does matter.” Meanwhile, D.C. resident A. Daniels, who had never been impressed with BLM Plaza, felt that Bowser should have done more in wards seven and eight.
BLM Street Murals in Other U.S. Cities
BLM Plaza had a powerful nationwide effect, appearing to have inspired the creation of similar BLM displays in several U.S. cities. Signs appeared on blocks, near rivers, and on stores. By June 19th, BLM murals were in at least Charlotte, NC; Seattle, WA; Austin, TX; Topeka, KS; Dallas, TX; Pittsburgh, PA; San Francisco, CA; Brooklyn, NY; Boston, MA; Sacramento, CA; Los Angeles, CA; and Montgomery, AL.
BLM Plaza Throughout the Years
BLM Plaza continued to be a place for activists to come together. Local groups created “reclaim” events on and close to the BLM Plaza. At least one event, such as a yoga class, appears to have sparked negative reaction. Activist Nahom Demoz stated, “It feels like the gentrification of the whole movement.”
Throughout the years, some Juneteenth (which commemorates when the last slaves were informed that slavery had ended) events have occurred at BLM Plaza. For example, in 2020 and 2021, the Million MoeMarch for Equity and Justice began at BLM Plaza and ended (or at least scheduled to end) at 14th and U Streets, the heart of the post-Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. murder 1968 protests. In 2023, Bowser organized a concert at BLM Plaza.
In August 2020, Bowser spoke at the Democratic National Convention from a balcony above BLM Plaza. During her brief remarks, she mentioned the post-Floyd murder protests and Trump’s photo op. She also said, “I created Black Lives Matter Plaza as a place for people to come together to say enough.” She expressed support for Biden’s presidential bid.
In October 2020, Bowser and the D.C. Council announced that BLM Plaza would be permanent. The D.C. Council had voted unanimously to have that name be official and permanent. D.C. Law 23-240. Black Lives Matter Plaza Designation Act of 2020 “symbolically” designated “16th Street, N.W., between H Street, N.W., and K Street, N.W., as Black Lives Matter Plaza.”
In at least November 2020, people gathered on BLM Plaza for elections-related demonstrations. On election night, Trump and Biden supporters were mainly peaceful. Some were there on at least the next night as the U.S. waited to see who would win the 2020 Presidential election. After Biden was declared the winner on November 7th, Biden supporters celebrated Biden’s victory in BLM Plaza. Some said, “Bye, bye, Trump.” On November 14th, when Trump supporters protested election results, some confrontations occurred as some Trump supporters tried to enter the area near BLM Plaza. When they tried to come, they “were harassed, doused with water and saw their MAGA hats and pro-Trump flags snatched and burned, amid cheers.”
In April 2021, Bowser discussed the BLM Plaza’s future. She said,
In fact, right now we're undergoing a process to make the installation more permanent, and with lighting and landscaping and all the things that you expect an iconic art installation … to install this piece of art with a very affirming message that not only our residents needed to hear, but people around the world needed to hear. And they really appreciated that Donald Trump couldn’t avoid it.
In October 2021, the $4.8 million permanent installation of BLM Plaza. In the 48-foot monument, people can walk on a 14-foot-wide path in the middle between lanes of traffic. Another $3 million was set for benches, lighting, and signs.
At that time, Bowser remarked
When we created Black Lives Matter Plaza in June 2020, we sent a strong message that Black Lives Matter, and that power has always been and always will be with well-meaning people. Today, we have transformed the mural into a monument.
Judicial Watch announced on November 22, 2023, that soon before BLM groups defended Hamas’ recent attack of Israel, D.C. spent $271,231 on repainting BLM in D.C. That money included $53,551 for supplies and $271,680 for employees.
Call to Action
Let’s continue to be prepared for even more interference by Trump and Republicans in local D.C. issues. Attacks on D.C. make it more important that D.C. residents finally are full citizens. Statehood for D.C.
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