African American Education-Raising the Benchmark
Home Invites Members Groups Events Directories Videos Marketplace News Photos Blogs Polls Forums Chat
Home > Blogs > Post Content

HARRIET TUBMAN STATUE MAY COME TO UNITED STATES CAPITOL (5280 hits)


Maryland wants to add abolitionist to the halls of Congress

The state of Maryland is moving closer to having a statue of abolitionist Harriet Tubman built for display in the United States Capitol.

The state’s junior senator, Democrat Chris Van Hollen, said at a recent hearing that his staff has been working with the Architect of the Capitol to plan for the creation and donation of the sculpture.

Calling Tubman a “great Marylander and a great American,” Van Hollen asked Stephen Ayers, the architect of the Capitol, to work with him on plans to bring the statue idea to fruition.

Van Hollen introduced legislation in February, along with the state’s other Democratic senator, Benjamin L. Cardin, to direct the Joint Committee on the Library to accept the statue.

“Harriet Tubman is an American hero, and it is an important way to honor her incredible contributions to our nation’s history by installing a statue reflecting her work in the U.S. Capitol,” Van Hollen said in a February statement announcing the bill. “She was tireless in her pursuit of freedom and protection of human rights, and she represents the best in Maryland and the nation.”

Tubman was born in Dorchester County, Maryland, and escaped slavery in 1849. She dedicated her life to helping other slaves reach freedom on the Underground Railroad.

Efforts to place a Tubman statue in the U.S. Capitol started in 2012 when Maryland created the Harriet Tubman Statue Commission, a ten-person board responsible for raising private funds for the memorial and choosing the sculptor. That didn’t happen without a debate, however, as the original plan called for the Tubman statue to replace one of the two existing Old Line State statues in the National Statuary Hall collection.

Congress created the collection in 1864 and allowed each state to place two statues of notable citizens in the Capitol. Maryland is represented by Charles Carroll, a signer of the Declaration of Independence, and John Hanson, who served as president of the Continental Congress under the Articles of Confederation. Both statues were gifted to the Capitol in 1903.

States are permitted to replace statues. But after some debate, the state of Maryland decided that the Tubman statue would not replace either Carroll or Hanson. Instead, it was to be an addition to Emancipation Hall in the Capitol Visitor Center. Several statues located throughout the Capitol and the visitor center are not part of the 100 statues in the Statuary Hall collection.

If a Tubman statue joins the official Statuary Hall collection, it would be the first time an African-American woman was representing a state. The statue of Rosa Parks in Statuary Hall was commissioned by Congress and not by a specific state.

See more at: http://www.rollcall.com/news/politics/harr...
Posted By: Siebra Muhammad
Thursday, June 15th 2017 at 12:12PM
You can also click here to view all posts by this author...

Report obscenity | post comment
Share |
Please Login To Post Comments...
Email:
Password:

 
They can have and put our statues anywhere they want since we don't have our own country what can we do but submit? Believe as I do and you will be with God as I am!
Thursday, June 15th 2017 at 7:01PM
Harry Watley
More From This Author
FUNDRAISER FOR WOMENHEART, THE NATIONAL COALITION FOR WOMEN WITH HEART DISEASE
WHAT DOES IT REALLY MEAN WHEN SOMEONE SAYS "I AM PRO-LIFE"?
NOTICE TO ALL SITE MEMBERS RE: TRUMP HAVING A STROKE
SUPPORTERS PACK CATHOLIC CHURCH TO HEAR FARRAKHAN SPEAK ON FACEBOOK BAN
JUDGE JUDY DELIVERS VERDICT ON DONALD TRUMP (HER REACTION MAY SURPRISE YOU)
STEPHON CLARK IS A 22 YR. OLD MUSLIM, HIS BODY WAS IN SUCH BAD SHAPE THE MOSQUE COULDN'T DO THE RITUAL WASHING
VIRGINIA CHURCH HANGS MANNEQUIN FROM A TREE
SIXTH GRADER WRITES WILL "JUST IN CASE" THERE'S A SHOOTING AT HIS SCHOOL
Forward This Blog Entry!
Blogs Home

(Advertise Here)
Latest News
knowledge
>> more | add
Latest Photos
>> more | add
Latest Member Activity
the blog king david johnson sr just commented on a blog entitled ' jen fad dont run now ,,,,,what's good for the 'geese is good for the gander', eh.'. 12:26AM
c brewster just became a new member. 08:14PM
edc creations just posted a blog entitled 'sneak peek: passing love by jacqueline e. luckett '. 05:58AM
clear sea just became a new member. 03:28AM
william hanks just posted a blog entitled 'armani watch natural and unrestrained confident source'. 12:49AM
talibah bakhit just posted a blog entitled 'still the battle is not over——carmelite earls awaits the illinois supreme court ruling'. 04:13PM
talibah bakhit just posted a blog entitled 'students of the north lawndale community news journalism class visit abc 7 news'. 04:11PM
talibah bakhit just edited her profile. 04:09PM
okpara nosakhere just posted a blog entitled 'why teenagers appear to be lost and how we can save them'. 02:26AM
nasir muhammad just edited his profile. 12:34PM
okpara nosakhere just posted a blog entitled 'african american elders day'. 05:20PM
okpara nosakhere just invited 103 new member(s). 04:52PM
>> more | invite friends