Thousands march on National Mall for crime survivors

WASHINGTON, ( DC News Now ) — Thousands of crime survivors are marching from Union Square to the National Mall to honor crime victims and advocate for safety.

Roughly 3,000 protesters are holding the first-ever “Crime Survivors Speak March on Washington” on Tuesday. During the event, protestors will hold a march, rally, candlelight vigil and healing festival.

Participants said they are fed up with crime.

This event comes after the FBI released new crime data on Monday showing that violent crime nationwide decreased by an estimated 3% in 2023 compared to 2022.

However, many of those marching locally and nationwide said that more must be done to prevent crime. The event’s participants are demanding a new era of public safety and justice.

“I live in a community where crime happens every day, all day. Somebody’s getting killed, somebody’s getting shot. It’s bad,” shared protester Sabrina Smith.

Locally, just last year, violent crimes in the District jumped by 39%. The District also saw the most homicides in decades back in 2023, according to data from the Criminal Justice Coordinating Council for the District of Columbia.

By contrast, the FBI reported a 3% decrease in national violent crime that same year, as noted in the new report .

So far this year, MPD has reported a 34% drop in violent crime compared to 2023.

The drop comes after the District issued a curfew over the summer and passed a major crime bill in March.

But protester Sabrina Smith said that’s not enough.

“Guns shouldn’t be in the hands of everybody,” said Smith. “I’m very fed up because I think that there should be laws that guns are not easily put in the hands of our community like they are.”

Organizers plan to meet with Congressional leaders to push for legislative change to help survivors of crime.

The rally will last until 4 p.m.

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