XPost: alt.politics.nationalism.black, talk.politics.guns, sac.politics   
   XPost: alt.fan.rush-limbaugh, or.politics   
   From: token-black-democrat@lamayor.com   
      
   A spokesperson for D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser confirmed to NBC Washington   
   that Bowser will remove Black Lives Matter Plaza and the "Black Lives   
   Matter" ground mural will be painted over. There's no timeline yet for   
   the changes, but the street art will be replaced with a design created   
   by D.C. schoolchildren.   
      
   Bowser said she made the decision several days ago. When pressed about   
   why, she said it was fair to say the White House didn’t like it.   
      
   In 2020, the two-block stretch of 16th Street NW north of the White   
   House was designated as Black Lives Matter Plaza after the murder of   
   George Floyd in Minneapolis, which sparked protests nationwide,   
   including in the District.   
      
   Bowser unveiled the ground mural on June 5 of that year. It was paved   
   over about a year later, but the mural was replaced, and Bowser   
   announced the new mural would be a permanent installation in October 2021.   
      
   It was not immediately unclear if traffic patterns would change.   
      
   On Monday, Republican Rep. Andrew Clyde of Georgia introduced   
   legislation that, if passed, would force Bowser to rename Black Lives   
   Matter Plaza or else lose federal funding for D.C.   
      
   The bill says the District would have to rename the two-block stretch of   
   16th Street NW to Liberty Plaza, update all government websites and   
   documents with the new name and cover up the huge yellow "Black Lives   
   Matter" mural that covers the street.   
      
   If left unchanged, "certain apportionment funds" would be withheld from   
   the District, according to the bill.   
      
   Bowser said she does not support renaming the area Liberty Plaza.   
      
   Clyde said in a statement Wednesday: “I’m very pleased that within one   
   day of introducing my bill to rename BLM Plaza, Mayor Bowser announced   
   plans to do just that. My focus remains on ensuring this woke, divisive   
   slogan is removed and no longer stains the streets of America’s capital   
   city, and I will continue pursuing my effort until BLM Plaza is   
   officially gone for good.”   
      
   Clyde, who represents Georgia’s 9th District, has a history of diving   
   into D.C. affairs. In 2022, the congressman advocated to repeal the Home   
   Rule Act, which is what allows the District to govern itself. Passed in   
   1973, it created the branches of the D.C. government and the D.C. Council.   
      
   This also isn’t the first time Clyde suggested scrapping Black Lives   
   Matter Plaza.   
      
   "The fact that the city spent almost $5 million on it is an incredible   
   waste of money. And then to maintain it, another waste of money," he   
   told The Daily Caller in a 2024 interview. "So, honestly, the street   
   needs to go back to the way it was, which is a public thoroughfare, and   
   the Black Lives Matter wording needs to be paved over."   
      
   In a statement released by Bowser on Tuesday, she said, in part, "The   
   mural inspired millions of people and helped our city through a very   
   painful period, but now we can’t afford to be distracted by meaningless   
   congressional interference. The devastating impacts of the federal job   
   cuts must be our number one concern. Our focus is on economic growth,   
   public safety, and supporting our residents affected by these cuts."   
      
   CORRECTION (March 5, 2025, 10:49 a.m.): An earlier version of this story   
   said Black Lives Matter Plaza will be renamed. While the GOP   
   congressman's bill would require that if passed, a spokesperson for   
   D.C.'s mayor said Tuesday the mural will be painted over but did not   
   comment on whether or not Bowser would rename it.   
      
   https://www.nbcwashington.com/news/local/black-lives-matter-plaz   
   -being-renamed-after-gop-rep-introduced-bill/3858417/   
      
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