A South Carolina Republican Congresswoman wants to rename a well-known stretch of 16th Street NW in D.C. after slain conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
Rep. Nancy Mace Wednesday to designate the area once known as “Black Lives Matter Plaza” as the 鈥淐harlie Kirk Freedom of Speech Plaza.鈥� The proposal comes three months after Kirk was killed while speaking at a free-speech event at a Utah college.
Mace said the change would honor Kirk鈥檚 commitment to the First Amendment, calling him 鈥渁 champion of free speech and a voice for millions of young Americans.鈥� Her bill would require official signs to be placed in the plaza and updates made to federal maps and records.
In a statement, Mace contrasted the unrest that followed George Floyd鈥檚 killing in 2020, when the plaza was created, with the response to Kirk鈥檚 death, saying the earlier period was marked by 鈥渃haos and destruction,鈥� while Kirk鈥檚 killing brought 鈥減rayer, peace and unity.鈥�
She argued that after Floyd鈥檚 death, 鈥淎merica watched criminals burn cities while police officers were ordered to stand down,鈥� adding that officers were 鈥渧ilified and abandoned by leaders who should have supported them.鈥�
But D.C. Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton pushed back, saying Congress should not override local control.
鈥淒.C. deserves to decide what its own streets are named since over 700,000 people live in the city,鈥� Norton “D.C. is not a blank slate for Congress to fill in as it pleases.鈥�
The stretch of 16th Street was originally dedicated as Black Lives Matter Plaza in 2020 following nationwide protests over Floyd鈥檚 death. Earlier this year, the city removed the mural.
D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser鈥檚 office declined to comment on the bill, as did several members of the D.C. Council.
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