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What We Do

The National Coalition to Save the Mall engages in the following activities:

Education

Our Web site, www.savethemall.org, online since Summer 2000, educates students, researchers, legislators and the public about the National Mall, the L'Enfant and McMillan Plans for the Nation's Capital, the Mall's history, cultural meaning and public uses. Our Web site informs the public about projects planned for the Mall -- new memorials, security measures -- that could alert or damage its symbolic meaning and public uses. The Web site includes:

• Illustrated history with bibliography of the L'Enfant and McMillan Plans for the Mall and the threat posed by the 7.4-acre WWII Memorial;
• Scholarly article Memories and Memorial Mishaps by Dr. Judy Scott Feldman about American war memorials in the 20th Century. The article has been assigned to college students studying art and public policy at universities around the country.
• Compilation of media reports and commentary on the WWII Memorial and related Mall projects;
• Our proposed solution to the WWII Memorial controversy;
• Newsletters Mall Watch (issues and commentary); emailed updates of our activities;
• During Spring 2002, the Web site is being revised and expanded to augment the research and education components by posting historical documents relating to Mall history, additional scholarly articles, providing capability for public input and links to related Web sites.

Coalition Building

Identify organizations, educate and work with them by coordinating information about issues and government actions, providing history and documentary resources on current issues, coordinating discussion groups and meetings. Since 2000, Save Our Mall has enlisted support from the WWII Veterans to Save the Mall, the Committee of 100 on the Federal City, DC Preservation League (which has placed the Mall on its list of "Most Endangered Places"), the College Art Association and other local and national groups.

Mall Watch, Updates

Emailed newsletters and updates inform friends, media and public about ongoing government actions. Also posted on the Web site.

Media Outreach

We educate and inform the public and media through on-site (i.e., on the Mall) public gatherings and news conferences, including:

• October 2, 2000 News conference at the Rainbow Pool site announcing lawsuit against government agencies that illegally approved the WWII Memorial site and design;
• November 10, 2000 (Veterans Day) With the WWII Veterans to Save the Mall, press conference at Constitution Gardens in support of the original approved site for WWII Memorial;
• September 2, 2001
Public gathering to urge relocating WWII Memorial from Lincoln Memorial grounds to the original Constitution Gardens site.

Major media have covered our events and major newspapers have editorialized in support of our position against the Memorial's site and design, including:

• The New York Times
• The Wall Street Journal
• USA Today
• Ft. Worth Star-Telegram
• The Atlanta Constitution
• The Los Angeles Times

Annual Conference

There will be an annual two-day conference featuring well-known scholars and open to the public. The first is planned for Fall 2002 and will commemorate the centenary of the McMillan Plan of 1901-1902. In addition, there will be occasional slide lectures provided to school children, colleges and the public.

Legal Action

Legal action is taken when necessary. On October 2, 2001, we joined with WWII Veterans to Save the Mall, the Committee of 100 and the DC Preservation League to file suit against the government agencies that illegally approved the WWII Memorial site and design. We have filed two appeals arguing that Congress' intervention in our lawsuit by passing P.L. 107-11 "to expedite the WWII Memorial" violates the Constitutional separation of powers.

Funding

All of our funding comes from individual contributions and foundation grants.

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