It’s January, which means it’s time for the annual March for Life, an anti-abortion march that will rally in D.C. for the 46th year. This Friday, thousands of people will march from Constitution Avenue to the Supreme Court and the Capitol Building to advocate for the overturning of Roe v. Wade.
Every year there are new speakers and forms of entertainment—last year, President Donald Trump spoke to the crowd via livestream, and the year before that, Vice President Mike Pence addressed the marchers. This year, the Ben Shapiro Show will be recording an episode live from the rally at 10 a.m., and then there will be a live musical performance from Sidewalk Prophets, a Christian band. The rally will take place at 12th Street NW on the National Mall, between Madison Drive and Jefferson Drive.
This isn’t the only march that will affect people’s ability to get around later this week: the Indigenous People’s March is also taking place on Friday, which its organizing page says is meant to “bring awareness to the injustices affecting indigenous men, women and children” across the world. Participants will gather at 9 a.m. and march east on C Street NW, south on 18th Street NW, and then onto Constitution Avenue NW. There will be a rally from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at Henry Bacon Park.
On Saturday, the Women’s March will be back in D.C., and organizers requested a permit for hundreds of thousands of protesters (although some believe it’s unlikely numbers will get that high).
What does all this mean for residents trying to traverse the city? You guessed it: parking restrictions and street closures.
From MPD, here is the traffic advisory for this Friday, when the March for Life and the Indigenous People’s March will be taking place.
The following streets will be posted as Emergency No Parking from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m:
- 600 block of F Street, NW
- 6th Street, NW from E Street, NW to G Street, NW
- 3rd Street from Independence Avenue, SW to Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
- 4th Street from Independence Avenue, SW to Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
- Constitution Avenue, NW from Pennsylvania Avenue to 14th Street, NW
- 7th Street from F Street, NW to Jefferson Drive, SW
The following streets will be closed for an event at the Capitol One Arena from 6 a.m. to approximately 12 p.m:
- F Street, NW from 6th Street, NW to 7th Street, NW
The following streets will be closed from 10 a.m. to approximately 12 p.m:
- 7th Street from F Street to Jefferson Drive, SW
The following streets will be closed from 10 a.m. to approximately 3 p.m:
- Constitution Avenue from 14th Street, NW to Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
- 4th Street from Independence Avenue, SW to Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
The following streets will be closed from 12 p.m. to approximately 3 p.m:
- 3rd Street from Independence Avenue, SW to Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
- Constitution Avenue, NW from 3rd Street, NW to 2nd Street, NE
Natalie Delgadillo