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       On a folded, white poster board, Kenithia Alston had glued childhood photos of her son, Marqueese, along with the program from his funeral in 2018.

       Alston had created the poster display for the DC Justice Lab’s Community Safety Fair on Saturday afternoon. Since her 22-year-old son was shot and killed by police five years ago, she has worked to find justice and help others in similar situations.

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       It wasn’t until the District passed a law in 2020 that requires police to release body-camera footage within five days of an incident that Alston was able to see the footage of Marqueese’s death. Even so, she said she still feels she is partially in the dark about what happened because parts of the footage were not made available.

       At the center of her board, next to the names of two other Black men who were also killed by D.C. police, she printed in bold font: “WHY NOT FULL BODY CAMERA FOOTAGE?” All of it should be released, she said.

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       It was the final day in the DC Justice Lab’s week-long advocacy training, in which activists, nonprofit groups and grass-roots organizations collaborated on possible solutions to public safety challenges across the District. The final task for the nearly dozen community leaders was to present their ideas to visitors to the fifth floor of the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library.

       Na？ké Savain, director of policy at DC Justice Lab, said the fair is a way to see how public safety can be addressed in the District, from a lens that isn’t purely based on violence prevention.

       Participants presented ideas on providing culturally competent mental health and rehabilitation support, helping formerly incarcerated people adjust to life after prison, and improving family visitation policies at prisons.

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       Savain said it’s important to request solutions directly from people who have been personally impacted by these issues, prioritizing Black residents.

       “It’s really important in bringing humanity and personal experiences to our events, and for people who joined today to hear personal experiences of those impacted by these issues is really powerful,” Savain said.

       Shortly after the fair began, Ronald E. Hampton stopped by Alston’s station, awed by the mother’s work over the last few years.

       Hampton, a retired police officer and former executive director of the National Black Police Association, was part of the DC Police Reform Commission when the 20-member body issued a list of recommendations two years ago addressing public safety beyond policing and enforcement.

       Hampton, who frequents grass-roots events now as a criminal justice and safety consultant, said he still hasn’t seen much progress yet. The Community Safety Fair is a way of meeting individuals directly affected by local challenges, Hampton stressed.

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       “This is an important conversation to be having among people in D.C. who have witnessed these issues firsthand,” he said. “It’s planting the seeds for change.”

       Patrice Sulton, who founded the DC Justice Lab, said the lab had been thinking of doing a project of this nature since the organization began in 2020. Over the past week, the lab helped participants build the research, resources and skills needed to evolve their ideas. Attendees learned best practices for public safety campaigns, how to use social media and how to work with the media.

       Sulton said D.C. is a national laboratory for progressive ideas that can influence activists elsewhere.

       “It’s an important reason for us to try to innovate here,” she said.

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