Conservative African American leaders rally Tuesday to save D.C.'s "Freedman's Memorial"

Washington, D.C. — UrbanCURE, a non-profit organization dedicated to fighting poverty and restoring dignity in urban communities, will host a peaceful “Emancipation Celebration” at the Freedman’s Memorial in Lincoln Park, 12th and Capitol St, SE, Washington, DC 20003,Tuesday, July 14th, at 11:00 AM EST to call on legislators and city government officials to preserve the statue that signifies the plight of slaves who became free under President Abraham Lincoln’s leadership.

Congressional Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton visited the statue in Lincoln Park this weekend and proclaimed that she would remove it as soon as possible, blatantly disregarding the outspoken voices of African American leaders across the country who want to leave the historic statue where it stands. 

“Claiming ‘racism’ about this statue shows the ignorance of this movement.  Black folk like D.C. Mayor Bowser and Congressional Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton need to learn black history,” said Star Parker, founder of UrbanCURE (https://urbancure.org/). “Archer Alexander is not kneeling; as a track star prepared to run a dash, the kinetic motion in this figure shows him just emancipated to stand and run his race as a free man.

“This Freedman’s Statue should not only remain standing in Lincoln Park, but this is the sacred location where President Trump should place the new Memorial Park he envisions to honor great American heroes who worked tirelessly to unify the races.” 

African American leaders joining Ms. Parker at the rally include longtime civil rights activist,Robert Woodson, Dr. Diana Schaub, Loyola University (MD), Ryan Bomberger, Founder, The Radiance Foundation, Clarence Weaver, Motivational Speaker, Pastor Jim Boothby, New Hope Family, Pastor Marc Little, and Dr. William B. Allen, C.O.O., UrbanCURE.  

The statue, created by Thomas Ball and paid for by former slaves, depicts Abraham Lincoln holding the Emancipation Proclamation while a former slave (Archer Alexander) stands to his feet after being freed. Leftist groups like Black Lives Matter have pressured D.C. government officials to remove the statue as they continue to deface and topple historical statues across the country, claiming that they are rooted in racism. 

Ms. Parker, founder of UrbanCURE, is host of “CURE America with Star Parker,” and is a syndicated columnist and author of Necessary Noise. UrbanCURE has more than 1,000 pastors and leaders from across the country in its network.