Some sidewalks in Arlington will soon have “obstacles” to identify places where other people were once enslaved.
The next markers on the county’s and surrounding rights-of-way, unanimously approved through the Arlington County Council on Saturday, are from the “Slave Memorial in Arlington,” an assignment through the Arlington Historical Society to uncover and tell the story of Arlington’s enslaved population. .
“The goals of the task include: (a) identifying and locating the men, women, and youth who were enslaved in Arlington, and (b) commemorating their lives with markers installed at locations throughout the county where slavery occurred,” a county report said. saying.
Although data is available on more than 1,400 enslaved Americans in the county between 1669 and 1865, the initial phase of the task will include about 30 markers, “with more to be maintained over time depending on the research, scope, and nature of this assignment. “
On the sidewalks, the beacons will take the form of non-slip bronze plates. Beacons that are not directly on the right-of-way, on the other hand, will be plaques on square blocks in the likeness of the memorials installed outdoors by the Ball Sellers. House Museum in October.
The Ball-Sellers House scoreboards were “designed and manufactured by the school’s top scholars in partnership with Arlington Tech. “A woman named Nancy and two anonymous men enslaved by the Carlin family, who lived in space from 1772 to 1887.
The new markers are encouraged through “Stolpersteine,” or “stumbling stones,” which are plaques embedded in sidewalks across Europe that indicate where those who suffered the Holocaust lived.
The initiative builds on the county’s goals of deepening the debate on race and equity, building network partnerships to achieve equity, acknowledging history and repairing beyond harms, and supporting and strengthening diverse network values, according to the county staff report.
The FY 2025 budget allocates a $15,000 allocation to “Commemorate the Arlington Slaves. “
The county report does not list express locations for the following markers. A map of all known places where slaves resided in Arlington can be found on the Arlington Historical Society website.