Honoring America's Covid Victims

In America: How Could This Happen is an interactive map which displays virtual flags in honor of people who have died as a result of the coronavirus epidemic. This virtual memorial to the victims of Covid-19 is the online recognition of a real memorial erected on the Armory Parade Ground in the U.S. Capitol last year.

In the Fall of 2020 thousands of people traveled to Washington D.C. to plant flags for their loved ones who had died from Covid-19. The In America: How Could This Happen memorial was the idea of artist Suzanne Brennan Firstenberg. Her idea was to create a space of national mourning, where people could acknowledge family and friends lost to Covid-19.

As the death toll in the U.S. passed the quarter million mark during the Fall space in the Armory Parade Ground began to run out and new flags had to be planted in nearby green spaces. Permission to use the Armory Parade Ground ran out at the end of November. In response this interactive memorial map has been created instead. 

You can learn more about both the real and virtual memorial to America's Covid victims on the In America: How Could This Happen website. The website includes a short form which you can use to add a flag to the map in honor of someone you know who has fallen victim to Covid-19.