Midday on Saturday, local residents gathered at the intersection of Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X avenues in Southeast D.C. as a part of a march for HIV/AIDS awareness organized by the Metropolitan Public Health Association and the local advocacy group DC Fights Back.

Bearing posters with red ribbons and chanting slogans such as “When people with AIDS are under attack, what do we do? Fight back!” the column marched through residential streets of Ward 8 to the Highlands Public Library.