Crying in public can feel embarrassing, but it doesn’t have to.
Sometimes, you have to have a sad sob right then and there, or sometimes, you see others doing it. It doesn’t have to be a thing, but it can be.
Kiara McGowan is sharing places in Washington, D.C. that she claims are “the best places in the District to let the tears flow.” Her @CryingInDC TikTok page creates space for vulnerability and gentle human connection online while sharing places where you might be comfortable feeling those things in real life.
McGowan fosters community. In a local news broadcast, she said she loved being called “cryinfluencer.”
The TikToker has cried on the rooftop of D.C’s MLK Library, at Rock Creek Park, on the P6 bus, over a bowl of tasty pho, and by the water in Navy Yard — to name a few spots. She’s suggested crying at specific metro stations, an Alamo movie theater in Northeast, and the Madison Café at the Library of Congress.
McGowan’s captions are candid, honest, and real. The start of one said, “Better is on the way but damn, I miss when I didn’t have to work so hard for the bare necessitates.” Another simply shared, “Like I cried so hard I almost threw up.”
In her comments, people write their opinions on the cry spots and share stories of their own public sob sessions in D.C. Often, fellow TikTok users express gratitude for the Crying In D.C. page.
“I love this account. We’re all crying, and it’s okay.”
“I wish more people knew about this iconic account.”
“Fully cried on the Silver Line today omw home from work and I thought of this account. I felt so much less ashamed, thank you.”
How Did Kiara McGowan’s “Crying In D.C.” Get Started?
The origins of the TikTok page are what you might first guess they’d be — a very bad day.
After moving from Richmond, Virginia, for a work position, McGowan was heartbroken when she lost her dream job as a creative director in a Senate office on Capitol Hill in October 2023.
In an interview, the TikToker vulnerably shared that she cried every day amid the sadness of her job loss and financial stress. After a friend’s suggestion that she create a TikTok, McGowan turned her sorrows into a public point of relatability. Thus, her “Crying In D.C.” online presence was born.
“I definitely feel like we should all do it more. It should be just as normal as someone sneezing,” McGowan said of crying in an interview with the Washington Post.
