Taxpayers in Washington are covering the costs of a $270,000 paint job to refurbish “Black Lives Matter Plaza” amid a 40% surge in violent crime in the district compared to the previous year.
The decision to repaint the anti-police street art, featuring 50-foot yellow letters along two blocks of 16th Street near the White House, coincides with substantial budget cuts to the Metropolitan Police Department over recent years and a significant rise in crime rates.
Newly released data on Monday indicates a 40% overall increase in violent crime, with a notable 34% uptick in homicides and a 68% rise in robbery in Washington compared to the same period last year.