The Sacred Ground Project held an event at Richmond’s African Burial Ground on Wednesday night, observing the anniversary of the rebellion led by Brother General Gabriel Prosser. Prosser who was executed on these grounds, organized and led the slave rebellion in September 1800 which aimed to capture the city of Richmond, as well as then Governor James Monroe.
Born enslaved on a tobacco plantation in 1776 to the Prosser family in Henrico, his thwarted efforts sought to bring an end to slavery in Virginia, but were ultimately exposed in advance. Captured a month later, Gabriel was hanged at the city gallows along with 25 of his followers at the Burial Ground for Negroes at what is now 16th and Broad Street, in Richmond.
Richmond has a sordid history that is still being debated today, given it was one of the largest slave trading centers in the US. Many African Americans can still trace their ancestral lineage to the city. Many Africans, both free and enslaved, were interred at Richmond’s African Burial Ground between about 1750 and 1814.
The Sacred Ground project has worked hard to make sure Richmond never forgets its dark past. Honoring Brother General Gabriel at the event was one such example.
Around 8pm, people from all over Richmond started gathering at the burial grounds, some bearing torches to help light the way. At 8:30pm, with a sizable crowd in attendance, Anna Edwards, chair of the Sacred Ground Project, read aloud the story of Brother General Gabriel. Following the reading, time was given for people to lay flowers on the memorial and reflect on what the history of what Gabriel’s rebellion meant.
Edwards urged everyone to take pictures and selfies by the memorial and “send them to Mayor Stoney.” Just as the city needs to put confederate statues in their proper place (museum) monuments are sorely needed at long neglected historical sites like the burial ground.
Sending these pictures to Mayor Stoney was one way to make that point. After thanking everyone for coming out, she reiterated the mission of Sacred Ground. “Richmond has an opportunity to learn of its black history from its earliest years,” said Edwards. “We’re tying together Richmond’s black history with the national story.” She reiterated that after Dylann Roof’s killing of black parishioners in Charleston, and especially after the events in Charlottesville, “Sacred Ground’s” fight has never been more vital. “We’re struggling really hard to get the city and state to recognize that these sites need to be preserved.”
More than preservation, a major goal of “Sacred Ground” is to create a monument park at the burial grounds, recognizing the lives of those the city had long forgotten; and creating an “alternate Monument Avenue,” as Edwards put it.
Since Charlottesville, some Richmond citizens have been surprised at the sudden controversy surrounding Confederate statues on Monument Avenue. It was pointed out by Edwards and others that this controversy did not come out of nowhere.
“After the election, certainly after Charlottesville, more [white] people started to understand the anger felt towards the statues,” said Erin Smith of Richmond’s “Showing Up For Racial Justice” chapter. Edwards echoed this sentiment by saying that Monument Avenue has become a focal point in their fight for righting Richmond’s many past wrongs. The same city ready to reduce “black history for a ballpark” has been reticent to relocate monuments honoring confederate soldiers. “It’s not about history,” Edwards lamented, “It’s about something else.”
“Sacred Ground” is holding their next event October 10th, at the burial grounds, recognizing the anniversary of Prosser’s execution.
