Despite controversy, slavery museum moves closer to fruition

New Crisis, The, Nov/Dec 2001 by Peoples, Betsy

In 1993 while visiting Goree Island in Senegal former Virginia Gov. L. Douglas Wilder came up with an idea to build a national museum dedicated to slavery.

Now that idea is blossoming into reality. In the years since his Goree Island visit, Wilder has been considering various sites in Virginia for the permanent location, and in October, he announced that Fredricksburg has been selected over Richmond, Hampton University and Petersburg.

A meeting at James Monroe High School was necessary for Wilder to win a $1 million pledge from the Fredericksburg City Council. They offered the money in the summer contingent upon him presenting his plans to the public.

Nearly 200 citizens showed up for the presentation. "We're in the center of a lot of history," says Fredericksburg resident Shirley Johnson. "My grandfather was a slave on the Reynolds Farm not far from here. This is where the museum should be."

Wilder says he was convinced Fredericksburg was the place for the museum when he visited the 25 acres of land the Silver Cos generously pledged for his project. The site is located just off of Interstate 95 South, across the street from the Celebrate Virginia development, which includes stores and entertainment.

Meanwhile, 50 miles down 1-95 South, the Richmond Slave Trail Commission hopes to stop the permanent placement of the museum in Fredericksburg. They claim that the owner of the Celebrate Virginia site and the owner of land that will be donated have ties to what they call "modern day slave labor."

Richmond City Councilman Sa'ad El-Amin says the group is not opposed to the museum, "just the site." The Commission charges that two major discount department stores located at Celebrate Virginia sell clothing made by Nicaraguan workers who are paid extremely low wages. They have plans to lobby the Congressional Black Caucus and civil rights groups to block the museum from being built there.

Fundraising for the venture, which will cost an estimated $100 million to $200 million, hasn't started yet - but not because of the controversy. Wilder is awaiting legal rights to the property. In the interim, the excitement for the project continues to grow. Wilder says he's getting calls from people who want to help in the effort, including Bill Cosby, and universities that want to make sure their students are part of the process.

Michael Neiditch, a former executive with the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, has volunteered his expertise to the project. He's been an advisor to Wilder throughout the process and helped give the public presentation.

He says the museum will be a teaching venue, similar to the Holocaust museum, which will chronicle the history of slavery relying largely on the written and oral testimony.

"We want our visitors to hear the voices of slaves. We think that through these oral testimonies they will hear the fear and disbelief, courage, and faith of the slave," Neiditch says. "These voices will give the museum power."

There are plans for a replication of a slave ship, a Web site and a study center within the museum to examine the history of slavery and forms of the practice that exist today. Soon, there will be a national membership campaign and a call for artifacts. They anticipate 2 million visitors a year.

The museum, says Wilder, " is not about guilt or fixing blame. It will deal with what was and what is." And, he added, it will be an opportunity to show the world how African Americans were able to overcome.

- Betsy Peoples