National Park Service unveils new Underground Railroad sites
24 April 2021
The National Park Service on Friday unveiled 16 new additions to its National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom Program.
Why it matters: The program preserves sites connected to the network of havens across the U.S. that offered shelter and aid primarily to enslaved African Americans on their journey to free states and Canada and promotes educational or research programs pertaining to the Underground Railroad.
- Each of the now 682 listings in the extensive network located in 39 states, Washington, D.C. and the U.S. Virgin Islands provides insights into the experiences of freedom seekers who escaped slavery and the allies who assisted them.
What they're saying: “Today’s announcement reminds us of the dark pages in our history books, but also highlights the incredible strength and resilience of Black communities,” Department of the Interior Secretary Deb Haaland said.
- “We need to look no further than the news of this week to know that our work is not done and commit ourselves to real progress. To do that, we must start by recognizing the history that brought us here," she added.
The big picture: Some of the new listings include:
- Florida: Fort Barrancas, where freedom seekers and others joined the U.S. Army during the Civil War.
- Georgia: The Dungeness Plantation on Cumberland Island, where British troops established headquarters during the War of 1812 and promised freedom to the enslaved.
- Massachusetts: The Lewis and Harriet Hayden House in Boston, where the Hayden family established themselves after they escaped from slavery in Kentucky and contributed to the abolitionist movement and provided food, shelter and clothing to other freedom seekers.
Go deeper: Mellon Foundation grants $1.4 million to MSU for historic slavery database
Transcripts show George Floyd told police "I can't breathe" over 20 times
Section2Newly released transcripts of bodycam footage from the Minneapolis Police Department show that George Floyd told officers he could not breathe more than 20 times in the moments leading up to his death.
Why it matters: Floyd's killing sparked a national wave of Black Lives Matter protests and an ongoing reckoning over systemic racism in the United States. The transcripts "offer one the most thorough and dramatic accounts" before Floyd's death, The New York Times writes.
The state of play: The transcripts were released as former officer Thomas Lane seeks to have the charges that he aided in Floyd's death thrown out in court, per the Times. He is one of four officers who have been charged.
- The filings also include a 60-page transcript of an interview with Lane. He said he "felt maybe that something was going on" when asked if he believed that Floyd was having a medical emergency at the time.
What the transcripts say:
- Floyd told the officers he was claustrophobic as they tried to get him into the squad car.
- The transcripts also show Floyd saying, "Momma, I love you. Tell my kids I love them. I'm dead."
- Former officer Derek Chauvin, who had his knee on Floyd's neck for over eight minutes, told Floyd, "Then stop talking, stop yelling, it takes a heck of a lot of oxygen to talk."
Read the transcripts via DocumentCloud.