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Washington DC mayor praised for renaming street to White House as ‘Black Lives Matter Plaza’

The mural ends near St. John's Episcopal Church, where Donald Trump staged a photo op after officers in riot gear fired tear gas and charged demonstrators to make way for the President and his entourage.

By: Trends Desk | New Delhi |
Updated: June 6, 2020 10:44:32 pm
black lives matter, black lives matter plaza, black lives matter protest, washinhgton dc mayor blm plaza, street white house renamed black lives matter plaza, george floyd death, george floyd protest, viral news, People dubbed the gesture as a powerful symbol fighting racism arguing that representation matters. (Source: DMV/Twitter)

People in Washington DC woke up to a loud and clear message—‘BLACK LIVES MATTER’—on the street leading to the southward of the White House. The mural, painted in giant yellow letters ahead of a planned protest in the capital this weekend, was intended to send a message of solidarity to Americans outraged over the death of African-American George Floyd in police custody.

Days after openly criticising President Donald Trump about handling the BLM protests in the city and calling for the removal of out-of-state National Guard troops, Washington DC mayor Muriel Bowser unveiled the mural for all. Videos and photos of the slogan sign on the street are now going viral.

Sharing the clip on Twitter, the mayor made another important point that Friday was the 27th birth of Breonna Taylor, the Louisville EMT, who was shot and killed by the police in her own home last month. “Breonna Taylor, on your birthday, let us stand with determination. Determination to make America the land it ought to be,” the Mayor wrote.

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Bowser also dedicated the section of 16th Street bearing the mural “Black Lives Matter” to the movement and officially named the street leading up to the White House ‘Black Lives Matter Plaza’. The clip of the sign being put up is going viral and has garnered over 4 million views at the time of writing.

The new sign has been installed at the intersection of H and 16th Streets, the site of St John’s Episcopal Church. It is the same church where President Trump made a visit amid the protests earlier this week and did a photo op holding a Bible after officers in riot gear fired tear gas and charged demonstrators to make way for him.

“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,” she said during a news conference on Friday. “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,” the mayor said.

Using rollers and buckets of bright yellow paint, a group of people — men and women, of different races and ages— were filmed finishing the street art. The painters were contacted by Bowser and began work early Friday morning, the mayor’s office told CNN.

And for the evening, the city officials also lite up the streets and installed new ‘Black Lives Matter’ light projections near the White House on two buildings on either side of the newly named plaza.

As the gesture of the mayor went viral, the DC chapter of the Black Lives Matter Global Network was not quite pleased. Criticising the move, the group tweeted, “This is a performative distraction from real policy changes. Bowser has consistently been on the wrong side of BLMDC history. This is to appease white liberals while ignoring our demands. Black Lives Matter means defund the police.”

However, it got a positive feedback from most of the people online, including celebrities and senators. Most showered their love and support for the mayor and thanked her for sending out a clear message to the President.

Protests erupted across the country following the death of Floyd in police custody on May 25. The officer responsible for his death has been fired and charged with second-degree murder.

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