2021 Unveiling
On September 22, 2021, at 10:00 a.m., the Virginia Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Commission unveiled the Emancipation and Freedom Monument on Brown’s Island. The ceremony included remarks from Governor Ralph Northam, Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney, and the Commission’s chair, Senator Jennifer L. McClellan, and vice-chair, Delegate Delores L. McQuinn. Dr. Lauranett L. Lee delivered the keynote address, and the Elegba Folklore Society performed a libation ceremony.
The full order of ceremony is included in the program booklet.
The monument, designed by Thomas Jay Warren of Oregon, will feature a 12-foot bronze statue representing newly freed slaves. Dedicated to the contributions of African American Virginians in the centuries-long fight for emancipation and freedom, the monument also will highlight notable African American Virginians who have made significant contributions to the emancipation and freedom of formerly enslaved persons or descendants. The base of the monument will feature the names, images, and brief biographical information about eight African American Virginians whose lives were dedicated to Emancipation and freedom — five individuals from the period before Emancipation through 1865, and five who continued to work for freedom from 1866 to 1970.