World Day of Remembrance 2021

World Day of Remembrance 2021
Posted on by DC Families for Safe Streets Posted in Events, World Day of Remembrance

This post was updated on Nov 10 with details on how we will be commemorating World Day of Remembrance in DC.

Please join Families for Safe Streets in commemorating World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims (#WDOR2021). Together, as those who have been personally impacted by crashes, we will join with the Vision Zero Network and other street safety organizations, community members, faith leaders, elected officials, and dignitaries from across the country and globe to REMEMBER, SUPPORT, and ACT.

Each year, 1.35 million people are killed around the world in traffic crashes. Over 100 Americans are killed every single day and millions more are injured each year. In our region, 314 individuals died from preventable traffic crashes in 2020.

This year’s World Day of Remembrance takes on extra urgency as the number of people dying and severely injured in preventable traffic crashes in the U.S. is rising at an alarming rate. Preliminary data from the federal government revealed that more than 20,160 people died on U.S. roads in the first half of 2021—the largest number of estimated fatalities in that time period since 2006.

Learn more about:

Zero Traffic Deaths Resolution

This World Day of Remembrance we demand that local, state, and federal government join the national call for Zero Traffic Deaths. These tragedies are not unavoidable “accidents.” In fact, roadway crashes are largely predictable and preventable by leveraging the proven policies and practices to prioritize safety. We need our leaders to:

  • Double down on what works through proven, evidence-based strategies that support equity
  • Advance life-saving technology in vehicles and infrastructure
  • Prioritize safety by adopting a Safe Systems Approach — safe roads, safe vehicles, and safe speeds —and tie funding to saving lives
  • Support crash victims, like victims of other crimes, even when drivers are not criminally charged

We thank Representative Eleanor Holmes Norton for being an original co-sponsor on the bicameral Zero Traffic Deaths resolution (H. Res. 565, S. Res. 321)! Please ask your friends and family to contact their Representatives and Senators to co-sponsor the bill if they haven’t already.

Together we can amplify the heartbreaking cost of traffic crashes and the urgent need for change.

#WDOR2021 in DC

Starting November 15, DC Families for Safe Streets is hosting an interactive Remembrance Wall at Union Station, leading up to World Day of Remembrance on November 21. We invite you to join us to honor those whose lives have been impacted by traffic violence. One life lost to traffic violence is one too many.

The Remembrance Wall is a chalk art installation hosted in partnership with the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (MWCOG) Street Smart Program. It features artist Chelsea Ritter-Soronen of Chalk Riot and we invite you to contribute with chalk, photos, or mementos.

Chalk will be available for you to celebrate loved ones, commemorate a crash you survived, thank a first responder who helped in the immediate aftermath of a crash, or share your thoughts, reflections, and hopes for our collective future.

More details on how honor and remember your experience with traffic violence:

  • Location: Union Station; 50 Massachusetts Ave NE, Washington, DC; towards the east side inside the Main Hall 
  • Begins Monday, November 15 with Chalk Riot at 10am. Visitors are welcome to add thereafter. The station is open from 6am to 10pm daily.
  • Ends at 5pm on Sunday, November 21.

If you wish to pick up your photos or mementos you add to the wall after the installation is finished, please contact us after November 21 to coordinate pick up.

For families and individuals who have been personally impacted by traffic violence, we also welcome you to attend a virtual candle lighting with Families for Safe Streets chapters across the country on Sunday, November 21 at 8pm eastern. See below for details on how to RSVP for the Zoom link.

Additional #WDOR2021 events in the Greater Washington region

  • Montgomery County, MD: Join Action Committee for Transit, Montgomery County FSS, and WABA on November 21 at 4:30 pm in the Marian Fryer Town Plaza in Wheaton. RSVP here.
  • Virginia: Join all FSS chapters in Virginia on November 21 at 5pm for a virtual gathering. RSVP here.

Virtual #WDOR2021 events with all FSS Chapters

Families for Safe Streets is hosting for the following events leading up to World Day of Remembrance. Additional information on these events are also available at www.WorldDayOfRemembranceFSS.org.

Twitter Town Hall

Monday, November 15 at 1pm eastern

Join FSS chapters on Twitter as we push for #ZeroTrafficDeaths at the local, state and federal levels.

Faith Leader Forum

Tuesday, November 16 at 12pm eastern

Religious leaders of every faith from across the country are invited to this virtual forum to learn how you can address the public health crisis of traffic violence, offering an opportunity to join the United Nations and cities around the world in memorializing those who’ve been killed or seriously injured – and in calling for safe streets. Imagine if all peoples and all religions come together to pray for a day when there are no more senseless deaths and injuries due to reckless driving. All faith leaders can use their pulpits, prayers and programming to remind their communities to slow down, pay attention and support solutions that save lives.

Click here to RSVP for the Zoom link

FSS Member Virtual Candle Lighting

Sunday, November 21 at 8pm eastern

If you have lost a loved one or been injured in a traffic crash (or care for someone who was), we hope you will join us for this special World Day of Remembrance virtual candle lighting ceremony together with Families for Safe Streets members across the country.

Click here to RSVP for the Zoom link.