Longest Walk 2 arrives in Washington, D.C.

Longest Walk 2 arrives in Washington, D.C., July 11. Photo: Crystal Kim

Participants in the Longest Walk 2 held ceremonies in Washington, D.C., as they reached the end of a cross-country walk that covered thousands of miles. On the morning of Friday, July 11, about 1,500 people rallied in Malcolm X Park in the heart of Washington, D.C. Members of several Native American nations from across the United States, as well as many progressive organizations and individuals, joined in the events lasting through the weekend.

The walk started on the West Coast in February at San Francisco’s Alcatraz Island and included two groups. One took a southern route and the other a northern route, both headed for Washington, D.C.

Opening ceremonies at Malcolm X Park included several speakers and a traditional Native American ceremony. Marchers then walked to the White House for a short rally and another ceremony.

Rally speakers addressed oppression facing the Native American community and commemorated the 1978 Longest Walk and the impact it had on the Native struggle. The group continued on to the U.S. Capitol building, where Harry Belafonte and Rep. John Conyers spoke. The group gave a Manifesto for Change to Conyers, which included testimonies on issues Native Americans deal with that had been collected along the route of the march.