WATCH LIVE: Thousands gather for March on Washington commemoration

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A turbulent summer in the nation’s capital will be capped off this week when the District once again takes center stage amid the twin crises gripping America – racial injustice and the coronavirus pandemic.

Rev. Al Sharpton announced at George Floyd’s funeral that he would lead the March on Washington this summer.

DC’s preparations for the March on Washington

Dr. Christopher Rodriguez, director of the Homeland Security and Emergency Management Agency, discusses the city’s plans for the March on Washington.

The commemoration, taking place on the 57th anniversary of the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “I Have A Dream" speech, will begin with a rally at the Lincoln Memorial.

Following the commemorative rally, participants in Washington will march to the Martin Luther King, Jr. memorial in West Potomac Park, next to the National Mall, and then disperse.

Black American civil rights leader Martin Luther King (1929 - 1968) addresses crowds during the March On Washington at the Lincoln Memorial, Washington DC, where he gave his 'I Have A Dream' speech.

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Martin Luther King III, a son of the late civil rights icon, attorney Benjamin Crump and the families of George Floyd, Trayvon Martin, Eric Garner, Ahmaud Arbery, and Breonna Taylor, are expected to participate in Washington.

All participants will be required to wear masks, Sharpton said. Organizers also will provide hand sanitizing stations and conduct temperature checks throughout the event.

March on Washington confronts coronavirus pandemic

In a matter of days, thousands are expected to participate in the March on Washington. But how will the demonstration deal with the restrictions DC has put in place to combat the novel coronavirus.

“The objective is to put on one platform, in the shadow of Abe Lincoln, the families of people that ... have lost loved ones in unchecked racial bias,” Sharpton said. “On these steps, Dr. King talked about his dream, and the dream is unfulfilled. This is the Exhibit A of that not being fulfilled.”

The revised plan appears to avoid a potentially awkward faceoff with Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser's government over COVID-19 restrictions in the nation's capital. In late July, with local infection numbers rising, Bowser ordered that anyone traveling or returning to Washington from a virus hot spot must self-quarantine for 14 days. The list is revised every two weeks.

The application for the Aug. 28 event has already been approved by the National Park Service. Operating under a permit application submitted by activist and radio host Rev. Mark Thompson, the original application estimates 100,000 participants. NPS spokesman Mike Litterst said his agency was discussing COVID-19 mitigation plans with the organizers, but that compliance with local virus restrictions was “not a requirement or condition of the permit.”

UNITED STATES - AUGUST 28: Participants in the August 28 March on Washington all around the Lincoln Memorial. This march, organized by Reverend Martin Luther KING, demanded equal rights for American blacks. (Photo by Keystone-France/Gamma-Keystone vi

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Sharpton's civil rights group, the National Action Network, is working with its local chapters to hold commemorations in Kentucky, South Carolina and Texas, where outdoor jumbo screens will display a live simulcast of the rally in Washington. All of those states are currently on Washington's hot spot list.

The NAACP, one of several partners in this year's commemoration, last week launched a website for a virtual March on Washington. The site will livestream the Washington march, in addition to other programming leading up to and after the event

The Movement for Black Lives, a coalition of more than 150 Black-led organizations that make up the broader Black Lives Matter movement, will hold its virtual Black National Convention later in the evening. Organizers said their convention will coincide with the unveiling of a new political agenda intended to build on the success of this summer's BLM-themed protests, which called for the defunding of police departments in favor of investments to healthcare, education, housing and other social services in Black communities.

Sharpton first announced plans for the commemoration during a June memorial service in Minneapolis for Floyd, a Black man whose death at the hands of police galvanized nationwide protests against police brutality and systemic racism. The march's theme — “Get Your Knee Off Our Necks” — is inspired by a refrain from Sharpton's eulogy for Floyd, who died May 25 after a white police officer held his knee to Floyd's neck.

STREET CLOSURES

The Metropolitan Police Department says to expect extensive traffic and street closures for the Commitment March: "Get Your Knee Off Our Necks," along with other events in the area.

The following streets will be posted as Emergency No Parking from approximately 12:00 a.m. to 11:59 p.m.

Constitution Avenue from Pennsylvania Avenue, NW to 18th Street, NW
Pennsylvania Avenue from 3rd Street, NW to 18th Street, NW
Independence Avenue from 3rd Street, NW to 23rd Street, SW
Connecticut Avenue from H Street, NW to L Street, NW
Vermont Avenue from H Street, NW to L Street, NW
I Street from 12th Street, NW to 18th Street, NW
H Street from 12th Street, NW to 18th Street, NW
K Street from 12th Street, NW to 18th Street, NW
New York Avenue from 12th Street, NW to 15th Street, NW
17th Street from Constitution Avenue, NW to L Street, NW
16th Street From H Street, NW to O Street, NW
15th Street from Constitution Avenue, NW to L Street, NW
14th Street from Independence Avenue, SW to K Street, NW
13th Street from Pennsylvania Avenue, NW to E Street, NW
12th Street from Constitution Avenue, NW to E Street, NW
11th Street from Constitution Avenue, NW to E Street, NW
10th Street from Constitution Avenue, NW to E Street, NW
9th Street from Constitution Avenue, NW to Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
7th Street from Independence Avenue, SW to E Street, NW
6th Street from Constitution Avenue, NW to Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
4th Street from Independence Avenue, SW to Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
3rd Street from Independence Avenue, SW to Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
23rd Street from E Street, NW to Constitution Avenue, NW
Virginia Avenue from 23rd Street, NW to Constitution Avenue, NW
E Street from 23rd Street, NW to 18th Street, NW
New York Avenue from 18th Street, NW to 17th Street, NW
20th Street from E Street, NW to Constitution Avenue, NW
21st Street from E Street, NW to Constitution Avenue, NW
19th Street from E Street, NW to Constitution Avenue, NW
C Street from 18th Street, NW to Virginia Avenue, NW
C Street from Virginia Avenue, NW to 21st Street, NW
D Street from 18th Street, NW to 17th Street, NW
Madison Street from 3rd Street, NW to 15th Street, NW
Jefferson Street from 3rd Street, NW to 15th Street, NW

The following streets will be restricted to vehicular traffic from approximately 6:00 am to 11:59 pm: (If safe to do so, vehicles will be allowed to enter the restricted area if they are on essential business or traveling to-and-from their residence).

Independence Avenue, SW from 14th Street to Ohio Drive, SW
23rd Street, NW from Constitution Avenue, NW to Memorial Bridge
Henry Bacon Drive, NW from Constitution Avenue to Lincoln Memorial Circle, NW
Constitution Avenue from 12th Street to 18th Street, NW
Southbound Rock Creek Parkway will be closed at Virginia Avenue, NW
Maine Avenue, SW will be closed at I-395 to all westbound traffic
Access to East Potomac Park from I-395 will be by National Park Service permit only
18th Street, NW from E Street to Constitution Avenue, NW
17th Street, NW from L Street to Independence Avenue, SW
16th Street, NW from L Street to I Street, NW
15th Street, NW from L Street to Independence Avenue, SW
14th Street, NW from L Street to Independence Avenue, SW
13th Street, NW from L Street to Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
New York Avenue from 11th Street, NW to 15th Street, NW
Vermont Avenue from L Street, NW to H Street, NW
Connecticut Avenue from L Street, NW to H Street, NW
I Street, NW from 12th Street to 18th Street, NW
H Street, NW from 12th Street to 18th Street, NW
G Street from 12th Street, NW to 15th Street, NW and 17th Street to 18th Street
F Street, NW from 12th Street, NW to 15th Street, NW and 17th Street to 18th Street
E Street, NW from 12th Street, NW to 15th Street, NW and 17th Street to 18th Street
D Street, NW from 17th Street to 18th Street
Pennsylvania Avenue, NW from 12th Street, NW to 15th Street, NW and 17th Street to 18th Street, NW