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At Thursday’s hearing, D.C. Council member Christina Henderson (I-At Large), who chairs the council’s oversight committee, said it was “frankly embarrassing” that the District has enough funded vouchers to functionally end chronic homelessness but “can’t seem to get out of our own way.”

DC Councilmember At-Large Christina Henderson is chair of the Health Committee which oversees the Deputy Mayor of Health and Human Services. CM Henderson sent WUSA9 this statement: “I have been engaged with Deputy Mayor Turnage and DHS Director Zeilinger regarding all of the encampment cleanups and closures that were scheduled for early February to understand the reasons for the actions, the number of residents impacted, and more importantly, how we are connecting individuals to services and housing options.

The FRESH STARTS Act also directs the D.C. Correctional Facilities Task Force to develop a plan for promoting nutrition and aims to improve Council oversight of facilities with increased information sharing. The legislation was co-introduced by Councilmembers Charles Allen (D-Ward 6), Christina Henderson (I-At-Large), Robert White (D-At-Large), Vincent Gray (D-Ward 7), Matthew Frumin (D-Ward 3), Janeese Lewis George (D-Ward 4), and Brianne Nadeau (D-Ward 1).

Henderson says she was inspired by hearing from many women in the District who needed IVF to start a family and ended up taking second jobs at employers like Starbucks and Amazon, which offer insurance for fertility treatments. “For as progressive a city as it is, and in the nation’s capital where we have a lot of workers here who choose to start their families later in life, it was surprising to me that we didn’t require any type of coverage, and I want to right that wrong,” Henderson tells Washingtonian.

The killing led safety advocates and D.C. Councilmembers to question why deadly force was used. "Property is not greater than life. Karon should be alive today," D.C. Council member Christina Henderson tweeted.

As the federal government cuts pandemic-era benefits, advocates warn that millions face a looming “hunger cliff.”

“Large public school systems have struggled with how to serve students with special needs without litigation, receivership and decrees,” Henderson said. “For any parent in D.C., finding a slot for out-of-school time programming is a challenge if you have a child with special needs. This is not a niche issue.”

During the pandemic, the federal government expanded the Free and Reduced-price Meals program to be more flexible, allowing all kids the opportunity to eat meals at school, but that expansion and its funding were canceled abruptly in September of last year. Henderson said it left a lot of students who were on the margin of qualifying for the program hungry. "They don't qualify for free and reduced lunch, but their families are still being stretched too much to pay," Henderson explained. If approved by the council, the plan would go into effect in time for the 2023-2024 school year. Henderson says then she’ll look at tackling other school-meal-related issues like quality of food.

“Where does [the violence] stop?” asks my granddaughter. I don’t have the answer for her question. Listening to her, however, I know the accuracy and danger in the assessment at-large Council member Christina Henderson made Tuesday: “We are robbing our young people of their innocence.”

“The idea that we’re going to stop a young person from eating when it is relatively inexpensive for us to cover this is crazy to me,” Henderson said in an interview. “It’s a relatively small investment that will go a long way.”

While speaking with The Informer days later, D.C. Council member Christina Henderson (I-At large) implored Bowser and others who want more police in schools to keep in mind that incidents of gun violence rarely happen on school grounds. Henderson reflected on council hearings where young people compared their school hallways to police substations, adding that execution of school disciplinary procedures, not detainment, should suffice in situations where young people break rules.

D.C. Council member Christina Henderson tweeted that she would be checking in with D.C. Public Schools and the Department of Behavioral Health to ensure that Brookland Middle School has proper support. "Property is not greater than life. Karon should be alive today," Henderson tweeted.