{"id":17277,"date":"2020-06-22T18:54:45","date_gmt":"2020-06-22T22:54:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/?p=17277"},"modified":"2020-06-27T09:39:43","modified_gmt":"2020-06-27T13:39:43","slug":"emancipation-monument","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/2020\/06\/22\/emancipation-monument\/","title":{"rendered":"As 12K Sign Petition Saying Boston Emancipation Monument Should Go, City Schedules Hearing"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>In less than two weeks, more than 12,000 people have signed an online petition calling for the removal of \u201cFreedmen\u2019s Memorial Monument\u201d or \u201cEmancipation Group\u201d in Boston\u2019s Park Square. And the issue has attracted national press coverage. Now, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.boston.gov\/public-notices\/13656171\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Boston Art Commission has scheduled a virtual public meetings on June 30<\/a> to consider the future of the monument. <strong>Update, June 24:<\/strong> The commission has added a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.boston.gov\/public-notices\/13656321\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">second, earlier meeting on June 25<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe went from a video to a petition to calls to being in the room where it happens,\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/TorySBullock\/videos\/264665697956017\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Boston artist Tory Bullock, who launched the petition on June 11, said in a Facebook video this evening<\/a>. \u201c\u2026Thank you for all the love. Thank you for all the hate. Because you all are the people who gave this the momentum needed to get in front of the desks and eyeballs that it\u2019s currently in front of.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" style=\"border: none; overflow: hidden;\" src=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/plugins\/video.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FTorySBullock%2Fvideos%2F264665697956017%2F&amp;show_text=0&amp;width=560\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.boston.gov\/public-notices\/13656171\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Boston Art Commission\u2019s website says<\/a> the Zoom \u201cmeeting is designed to gather public testimony to shape the Commission&#8217;s future deliberations about the work. The BAC expects to vote at a follow-up public meeting after considering the written and verbal testimony received.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen I started this I had a very clear goal but I did not have a path,\u201d Bullock said in today\u2019s video. \u201cAnd the fact that so many people and so many mountains have kind of shifted in such a short amount of time in a town that historically takes a really long time to get things done, thank you guys for kind of expediting this to even get our public thoughts on this.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_17286\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-17286\" style=\"width: 900px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/picEmancipationFreedmensMemorialMonumentParkSquareBoston200618w_0100w.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-17286\" src=\"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/picEmancipationFreedmensMemorialMonumentParkSquareBoston200618w_0100w-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\u201cFreedmen\u2019s Memorial Monument\u201d or \u201cEmancipation Group\u201d in Boston\u2019s Park Square, June 18, 2020. (\u00a9 Greg Cook photo)\" width=\"900\" height=\"600\" srcset=\"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/picEmancipationFreedmensMemorialMonumentParkSquareBoston200618w_0100w-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/picEmancipationFreedmensMemorialMonumentParkSquareBoston200618w_0100w-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/picEmancipationFreedmensMemorialMonumentParkSquareBoston200618w_0100w-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/picEmancipationFreedmensMemorialMonumentParkSquareBoston200618w_0100w-370x247.jpg 370w, https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/picEmancipationFreedmensMemorialMonumentParkSquareBoston200618w_0100w.jpg 1170w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 900px) 100vw, 900px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-17286\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">\u201cFreedmen\u2019s Memorial Monument\u201d or \u201cEmancipation Group\u201d in Boston\u2019s Park Square, June 18, 2020. (\u00a9 Greg Cook photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The statue, which has been in Park Square since 1879, is a copy of an 1876 Washington, D.C., monument funded entirely by African Americans to honor the assassinated President Abraham Lincoln and celebrate Lincoln\u2019s Emancipation Proclamation during the Civil War, which freed Black Americans from slavery. (Read <a href=\"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/2020\/06\/13\/freedmens-memorial\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">much more about the history here.<\/a>) Objections to removing the statue have generally been that to remove the statue would dishonor the intentions of these Black ancestors.<\/p>\n<p>But there also has long been criticism of the monument&#8217;s symbolism, of the way Lincoln is portrayed standing in a suit waving a hand over a crouching Black man, clad only in a loincloth.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat image of a Black dude on his knees, does that make you feel powerful? Does that make you feel respected? Does that make you feel good?\u201d Bullock said in a video launching the petition. \u201cGiven my experience, it\u2019s how a lot of White people actually view Black people.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_17285\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-17285\" style=\"width: 683px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/picEmancipationFreedmensMemorialMonumentParkSquareBoston200618t_0110w.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-17285\" src=\"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/picEmancipationFreedmensMemorialMonumentParkSquareBoston200618t_0110w-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\u201cFreedmen\u2019s Memorial Monument\u201d or \u201cEmancipation Group\u201d in Boston\u2019s Park Square, June 18, 2020. (\u00a9 Greg Cook photo)\" width=\"683\" height=\"1024\" srcset=\"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/picEmancipationFreedmensMemorialMonumentParkSquareBoston200618t_0110w-683x1024.jpg 683w, https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/picEmancipationFreedmensMemorialMonumentParkSquareBoston200618t_0110w-200x300.jpg 200w, https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/picEmancipationFreedmensMemorialMonumentParkSquareBoston200618t_0110w-768x1152.jpg 768w, https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/picEmancipationFreedmensMemorialMonumentParkSquareBoston200618t_0110w-370x555.jpg 370w, https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/picEmancipationFreedmensMemorialMonumentParkSquareBoston200618t_0110w.jpg 1170w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 683px) 100vw, 683px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-17285\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">\u201cFreedmen\u2019s Memorial Monument\u201d or \u201cEmancipation Group\u201d in Boston\u2019s Park Square, June 18, 2020. (\u00a9 Greg Cook photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>As for calls to just pull the monument down, Bullock said in today\u2019s video, \u201cWe\u2019re trying to do this civicly.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBoston is the furthest along in any legitimate process to actually get these things removed,\u201d Bullock said. \u201c\u2026Let\u2019s be the people that shows the world how to get rid of these statues.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.boston.com\/news\/local-news-2\/2020\/06\/13\/abraham-lincoln-statue-marty-walsh\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Boston Mayor Marty Walsh has signaled that he\u2019s open to removing the statue<\/a> or perhaps recommissioning the statue so that it better recognizes equality. Bullock writes me that \u201cI&#8217;ve heard nothing directly from the mayor or the Arts Commission on this outside of a member tagging me in a status on facebook once. No word from Walsh other than what he has already said about being in favor, but no specifics of anything.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNow it&#8217;s time to make YOUR VOICE HEARD! They will be taking live and written testimonials about the piece,\u201d Bullock wrote on Facebook today. \u201cI&#8217;m going to need the full squad on this one. This memorial has been up for more than 100 years and now is the time we all stand up&#8230;this is our chance to finally respectfully put this image away while NEVER forgetting its history. If this image of a man about to get up is of one of our most powerful black history figures, why not give him a stance that reflects that power?\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>Previously:<\/strong><br \/>\nJune 13: <a href=\"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/2020\/06\/13\/freedmens-memorial\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">As Racist Monuments Come Down Across US, A Call To Remove Boston&#8217;s Emancipation Sculpture<\/a><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><em>If this is the kind of coverage of arts, cultures and activisms you appreciate, please support Wonderland by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.patreon.com\/wonderlandlandfanclub\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">contributing to Wonderland on Patreon<\/a>. And <a href=\"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/subscribe\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">sign up for our free, weekly newsletter<\/a> so that you don&#8217;t miss any of our reporting.<\/em><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><em>All content \u00a9 copyright by Greg Cook or its original creators.<\/em><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In less than two weeks, more than 12,000 people have signed an online petition calling for the removal of \u201cFreedmen\u2019s Memorial Monument\u201d or \u201cEmancipation Group\u201d in Boston\u2019s Park Square. And the issue has attracted national press coverage. Now, the Boston Art Commission has scheduled a virtual public meetings on June 30 to consider the future [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":17288,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[106,100,105],"tags":[37,784,778,777,87,413,779],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17277"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17277"}],"version-history":[{"count":13,"href":"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17277\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":17368,"href":"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17277\/revisions\/17368"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/17288"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17277"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17277"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17277"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}