Washington

Tate Kaufman | 8.26.2025 12:00 PM

The first time I went to a concert in Washington, D.C., I jogged from the bus barefoot. I'd worn flip-flops and was running late, so I kicked them off to move faster. I often walk barefoot here—whether to a record store in Adams Morgan, along the Wharf after a show at the Anthem, or through the quiet streets of Takoma Park—sometimes by choice, sometimes to let my girlfriend rest her feet after a long day in heels. It's nice knowing I can do this without worrying about stepping on blood, human waste, or a heroin needle. This wasn't the case back home in Vancouver, Canada, especially in the Downtown Eastside. There, it wasn't uncommon to see a dead body on the way to or from a concert. 

Since moving to D.C. in 2023 to study law, I've felt safe and at home. Sure, I've had strange subway encounters (a hooligan dipped his finger into my strawberry Dr. Pepper), and I've had my bike stolen once (compared to three thefts in Vancouver, all while locked), but I've never been seriously afraid or concerned for my safety. However, the numbers don't lie. Though there is considerable dispute over D.C.'s crime statistics recently, the district had the fourth-highest murder rate in the country in 2024. There were nearly 1,000 carjackings in 2023, a 650 percent increase since 2017. Further, persistent, often masked shoplifting is a blight on business owners city-wide.

On August 11, President Donald Trump declared a crime emergency in D.C. following the assault of a Department of Government Efficiency staffer earlier that........

© Reason.com