Thousands gathered on the National Mall Saturday for the Millions More Movement, which featured Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan.
The 12-hour event, which included poetry, music and speeches from prominent members of the African American community, took place on the 10th anniversary of the Million Man March. The Million Man March invited only black men and called upon them to improve themselves and their communities. This year's event welcomed all genders and discussed a large variety of topics.
Hurricane Katrina was a prominent theme, and several of the speakers pledged support and aid for the victims of the disaster.
"For five days, the government did not act. Lives were lost. We charge America with criminal neglect," Farrakhan told the crowd during his 75-minute speech.
Farrakhan also discussed the Iraq War, terrorism, unity towards Africa, reparations for slavery, illegal immigrants and the treatment of Native Americans. Other speakers included Russell Simmons, Al Sharpton, Erykah Badu and Rep. Mel Watts.
Photos of the event show it to be much smaller than the previous march, which attracted somewhere between 600,000 and 1,000,000 people. Both the Movement's organizers and the Metropolitan Police Department refused to give an estimate of the crowd due to the organizations' policies.
