District residents want Congress to keep its hands off DC.
Hundreds of people showed up to the Atlas Center, on H Street Northeast, to learn more about how they can promote change on Capitol Hill.
Participants told WUSA9 they are tired of Congress meddling in DC affairs.
"As a resident we need to take initiative to handle our own business," said DC resident Dori B. Cook.
On Monday, the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee voted to throw out DC's Death with Dignity law. The law allow certain terminally ill patients to end their lives with the aid of a doctor.
Republican Rep. Jason Chaffetz, of Utah, pushed to get rid of the law. Many DC resident have criticized him in response.
"He's not a part of this community and this neighborhood and he chooses not to be," said DC Councilman Charles Allen.
More than a hundred people also showed up for a rally outside of Chaffetz's offices on Capitol Hill Monday, too. WUSA9 reached out to the Utah congressman for a statement, but his office did not respond.
For now, Allen is asking residents to do whatever they can to keep the "Hands Off DC" movement strong in the future. He and his fellow organizers say there are plans to hold phone bank events and organize direct lobbying efforts to promote the District's political independence from Congress.
