WASHINGTON — It's been just over a week now since the area in front of the White House on 16th Street got a new name to mark the movement for racial justice.
The man who designed the sign that hangs high over Black Lives Matter Plaza is still beaming with pride.
"I believe every generation gets that moment where it's like, 'Boom, this is the defining moment where the world changed after that,' and I do believe we're in that moment now," Wayne Pettus said.
Pettus can tell his grandchildren he played a pivotal part in the movement for racial justice and equality. Pettus is a sign fabricator for DDOT and he designed the sign that hangs right across from the president's driveway.
"In particular, it gives me so much pride and joy because of what it means. There's a direct message, and the message is very clear," Pettus said. "I've seen a lot of pride in the sign and what it means, so that's the happiest thing I can take away, is that the sign is making people proud."
Pettus is an aspiring rapper who goes by Benxett. Surprisingly, his own personal pleas for racial justice and harmony have vaulted into the spotlight through his job with the city.
"I never really thought the two worlds would collide, to be honest with you," said Pettus.
Recalling the moment he was asked to design the Black Lives Matter Plaza sign, Pettus recalls being both honored and grateful that D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser has stepped beyond words and took a firm stand at the moment.
"I think, if we continue at the rate we're going, in years to come, we will definitely look at this as a moment in history when things certainly changed," Pettus said.
Not everyone was satisfied with the sign.
Black Lives Matter DC accused Mayor Bowser of providing "lip service" with the making of the mural, and has said her policies have not matched up with those words.
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