I want to thank the Richmond Free Press for allowing your personnel to attend our Oct. 10 March for Accountability and thereby placing a photo of some of the marchers in your newspaper. However, the title given to the photo “Rallying for rights” — is totally off base.

This was a March for Accountability. Two dozen organizations joined together to send a message to our elected officials that we intend to hold them accountable to the needs of our community and to the promises they made when they asked for our vote.

Yes, part of the story is that we want the Confederate statutes to come down, but we also want the Shockoe Bottom Memorial Park to be built.

We want more accountability and stability with the money being allocated toward our schools.

We want accountability for the money being spent to expand public transportation for a choice few, but not being extended to the neighborhoods that need the transportation the most, all the while increasing service in areas presently using public transportation.

We want accountability and transparency in the RRHA, all while they are destabilizing public housing.

We want accountability from our elected officials who sat in town hall meetings when they were running for office and aligned their platform with the demands we are now speaking out for.

These two dozen organizations are speaking as a coalition and we intend to keep coming to meetings held by City Council, the mayor, governor and General Assembly and demand accountability as “We the People.”

The photo and caption played down the exertion of our 2.3-mile march — which took place in spite of predicted thunderstorms — and did very little to send a message to any elected official showing our frustration and disappointment.

I believe the Free Press should tell the story accurately. This march was not about “rallying for rights.” It was a March for Accountability from the community to our elected officials.  We will hold them accountable.

LYNETTA THOMPSON

The writer is one of the organizers for the Coalition for Accountability.