Juneteenth Commemoration and Cultural Recognition Resolutions
Committee on Cultural Affairs, Libraries and International Relations · May 13, 2026 · 2hrs 3m
Source: https://hearinghearings.nyc/hearings/committee-on-cultural-affairs-libraries-and-international-relations-juneteenth-commemoration-and-cultural-recognition-resolutions/

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(00:00:09)

Thank you. Good afternoon. Welcome to the New York City Council hearing for the Committee on Cultural Affairs, Libraries and International Relations. Please silence all electronic devices and a friendly reminder: do not approach the dais. We are ready to begin. Thank you so much.

(00:08:13)

For your patience — we were just waiting for some people to come in. Good afternoon again. I am Deputy Speaker Nantasha M. Williams, Chair of the Committee on Cultural Affairs, Libraries and International Relations. Welcome to our oversight hearing on commemorating and honoring burial sites of formerly enslaved African Americans.

In addition to our oversight topic today, we will be hearing the following legislation. Int 0220-2026, sponsored by CM Hanks and CM Rita Joseph, in relation to the identification of formerly enslaved African American burial sites. Res 0082-2026, sponsored by Council Member Ossé, celebrating the Feast of San Gennaro and the Ferragosto Festival annually in September to honor the contributions of Italian immigrants and Italian Americans to the cultural, political and economic fabric of the City of New York. Res 0424-2026, sponsored by CM Kevin Riley, declaring June 5 as Kappa Alpha Psi Day in the City of New York to recognize the fraternity's longstanding tradition of fostering brotherhood, academic achievement, leadership development and community service. Res 0440-2026, also sponsored by CM Willie Colón, declaring April 20 as Willie Colón Day in the City of New York, recognizing him as a New York City pioneer of Latin music and a beloved salsa legend.

As well as the following legislation that I have sponsored: Res 0450-2026, declaring May 10 as Maria Antonia Cay Day in the City of New York to honor her enduring role of supporting and celebrating the Puerto Rican community and in preserving and uplifting its rich cultural heritage and traditions. First, let me invite CM Hanks and CM Joseph to speak about their Bill.

(00:10:05)

Thank you, Deputy Speaker Dr. Williams, and thank you to everyone else for joining us today. For today's hearing, Int 0220-2026 — this legislation is deeply personal, historically necessary and long overdue. Across New York City, African burial grounds connected to formerly enslaved Black New Yorkers have too often been erased, neglected or forgotten. These are not simply burial sites. They are sacred places tied to families. And let me be clear: this is not Black history. This is American history. The formerly enslaved men, women and children buried in these grounds helped build this country under unimaginable conditions. They deserve dignity and recognition.

As the representative of Staten Island's North Shore, this issue is especially meaningful to me. From Sandy Ground, the oldest Black settlement on the East Coast, to the former Cherry Lane Cemetery — burial place of Benjamin Prime, recognized as the last person born into slavery on Staten Island, now paved over as a strip mall — this City carries an important African American history that must be preserved. The painful reality that burial grounds connected to African Americans were simply paved over and forgotten makes it very clear why this legislation matters.

I want to thank the scholars, the historians, the archaeologists and preservation advocates doing the important work of ensuring these stories and the people connected to them are never forgotten. I want to recognize Dr. Elizabeth Mead of the Professional Archaeologists of New York City, Heather Quinlan, who is here today to testify, President of the Northeast Corridor Freedom Network, and the many individuals committed to preserving this history.

Int 0220-2026 is about recognition, education, accountability and the preservation of those sacred spaces for future generations. Our history cannot be paved over. I want to thank my co-sponsor CM Rita Joseph for joining me in this important work. Thank you very much to this Committee. Thank you very much, Chair Dr. Williams, and thank you to everyone who is helping sign on to this important legislation.

(00:12:31)

Thank you. And before CM Joseph goes, I also just wanted to add that this hearing came about because of her advocacy to make sure that we were talking about African American burial sites. I just want to thank her for her advocacy. Thank you, Chair.

(00:12:49)

Good afternoon. Thank you, Deputy Speaker Williams, for your leadership in holding this important hearing today. Burial grounds represent an important part of acknowledgement and remembrance of the City's history. In 2021, the City produced a report that included historical and archaeological research. The land that the Flatbush African Burial Ground and the Bedford Avenue Church site occupied was inhabited by the Canarsie, a band of Munsee-speaking Lenape, who are ancestors of today's Delaware Nation, Delaware Tribe of Indians, Stockbridge Munsee Community, Band of Mohicans and the Shinnecock Nation.

In 1800, between 70 and 80 percent of all Flatbush families enslaved at least one person. When enslaved people in Flatbush died, most were permitted to be buried in the cemetery of Flatbush Reformed Church, which was founded in 1654 and was the only church in Flatbush for a long, long period. At an unknown time, as early as the seventeenth century after the Dutch arrived, a separate burial ground for people of African ancestry was established on the land of Flatbush Reformed Church, located at what is now the intersection of Church Avenue and Bedford Avenue. Historical documents established that it was used for new burials to at least 1810 and possibly through 1840.

Now, more than ever, we have the responsibility to preserve every burial ground in this City, focusing on three important pillars: the importance of burial grounds, the importance of preservation and ensuring the Council continues oversight. Thank you.

(00:14:26)

Thank you, CM Joseph and CM Hanks. Let me just say a few words about my resolution, which celebrates the work of Maria Antonia Cay, affectionately known to everyone as Tonita. Born in Puerto Rico, she came to New York City as a teenager and began working as a factory worker while designing, making and selling clothes through her own home-based business. Eventually she was able to buy the building where she lived and still lives on the south side of Williamsburg. In 1973 she incorporated a Caribbean baseball team and her now famous Caribbean Social Club, popularly known as Tonita's. Her club has long served as the social and cultural center for the Latino residents of her neighborhood and for those from outside the neighborhood. Like Bad Bunny — you might have seen her featured in her friend's 2026 Super Bowl halftime show, when she brought a bit of Brooklyn to Bad Bunny's tribute to their beloved mutual Puerto Rican culture and heritage.

Tonita is truly one of a kind. Now let me say a few words about my colleague CM Riley's resolution declaring January 5 as Kappa Alpha Psi Day in New York City. Over the past several years, the Council has passed resolutions celebrating the work of the National Pan-Hellenic Council, which is a coordinating body of Black Greek-letter organizations of college-educated women and men committed to community awareness and action through educational, economic and cultural service activities. The four sororities and the five fraternities that make up the National Pan-Hellenic Council are affectionately known as the Divine Nine. So far the Council has recognized the work of three of the sororities, all of which have City Council members as members: Delta Sigma Theta, which is my sorority and which I am very proud to be a member of; Sigma Gamma Rho, which is CM Joseph's sorority, and which she is equally proud, I am sure, to be a member of; and Alpha Kappa Alpha, which, as many know, a

(00:16:22)

former Speaker was a member of, as well as countless other trailblazers. However, Kappa Alpha Psi is the first fraternity we have recognized. Not surprisingly, CM Riley is a proud member. So four down, five to go.

In addition to the African Burial Ground National Monument — the federally operated visitors center with exhibitions and outdoor memorial located near City Hall — burial sites of formerly enslaved African Americans have been found throughout New York City. They include the Old Town of Flushing Burial Ground, the Flatbush African Burial Ground, the Flatlands African Burial Ground, the Inwood African Burial Ground, the Hunts Point Slave Burial Ground, Cherry Lane Cemetery in Staten Island and the site of the Brooklyn Public Library's New Lots Library.

Each of these sites has long histories, sometimes dating to before the Civil War and sometimes dating to before the Revolutionary War. Each of these histories is worth telling, remembering and preserving. Without thoughtful and intentional preservation, these important sites risk being neglected, forgotten or even destroyed as the City continues to change, grow and develop. We look forward to learning more about some of these histories in this hearing. We also look forward to discussing how to preserve them. The Bill that CM Hanks and CM Joseph introduced will support new efforts to find, document and educate the public about these and other burial sites of formerly enslaved African Americans still waiting to be rediscovered.

I will now pause because I know CM Banks has one of these sites in his district and wanted to share a few

(00:18:03)

words. Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker. Good afternoon. I speak today in support of Int 0220-2026, legislation which, when enacted, will require the Department of Cultural Affairs to maintain a list of all known burial sites of formerly enslaved African Americans citywide, in addition to developing and implementing a plan to locate any currently unmarked burial sites of formerly enslaved African Americans citywide. This Bill will also require it to notify elected officials when a burial site has been located in their district, in addition to developing an educational campaign to inform City residents about these sites, while additionally creating and maintaining an interactive map of the burial sites on the City's website.

For my district, this is not only practical but it is personal. The New Lots Branch of the Brooklyn Public Library in East New York — in the 42nd Council District, which I represent — is currently undergoing a multimillion dollar renovation. But this project is not simply the rebuilding of a library building. It is a building that will continue to serve as a transformational representation of education and culture of East New York and the surrounding community. As one of the largest libraries in the Brooklyn Public Library system, the New Lots Library has for decades been a central resource for seniors, students, parents, immigrants, job seekers and lifelong learners in the 42nd Council District. For many residents, this library serves as a safe space, a classroom, a gathering place and a gateway for unending possibilities.

What many may not know is that this library sits on what is considered by many to be hallowed ground — a former burial ground for enslaved African Americans and their ancestors. Preservation and ensuring care and dignity for the handling of these sites, such as the burial grounds under and around the New Lots Library branch, must be of the utmost importance for this and every other such site across the City. In East New York, a community that is made up of majority Black and Brown residents, telling the stories of our ancestors is not only important — it is essential. The streets of East New York pay homage to many former slave owners, and that is not our story. That is not the story I want to see for this district — a district which has often been underserved, and where the media is often quick to focus on negative stories — when we must educate the community on where they come from and the importance of the contributions of their ancestors.

We must also recognize a deeper truth: that below this sacred ground lie the remains of free and enslaved African people from the Revolutionary era, individuals whose lives, struggles and contributions were too often overlooked and left untold. Their presence calls us to act with care, respect and purpose. Preserving this burial ground is not optional. It is a responsibility. It is an act of acknowledgment. It is an act of justice. It is an act of reverence for those who came before us and whose resilience helped shape the very community we serve today.

This renovation project represents a powerful opportunity to do just that. By incorporating dedicated space within the library to honor this history, we ensure that future generations will not only learn within these walls but also remember. We transform this library into a place where education and remembrance walk hand in hand. Just as important, this project reflects the voices of the community. The truly extensive outreach — from residents, from seniors to young people and from families to those often unheard — has made it clear this must remain a library first, but one that also serves as an intergenerational hub rooted in cultural recognition and shared history.

And beyond this site, we must take broader action. The proposed measures to identify, document and educate the public about burial grounds of formerly enslaved people across this City are critical. We cannot protect what we do not have knowledge of. We cannot teach what we do not preserve. I am proud to support this legislation and this project and look forward to seeing them both brought to a successful completion. Thank you, Madam.

(00:23:30)

Thank you so much, CM Banks. And finally, rounding out our hearing today, we will also get a glimpse of how some of our brilliant arts organizations are providing programming open to all New Yorkers. Starting in the early days of the COVID pandemic as daily Zoom calls and continuing now as several-times-a-week Zoom calls, Culture at Three is a space for the leaders of New York City's nonprofit cultural institutions to connect and share resources and support. Three years ago, in February 2023, the Anti-Racism Working Group of Culture at Three made a request for all arts and cultural organizations on the Zoom call to put on events. Ever since, and thanks to Executive Director Regina Bain, the Louis Armstrong House Museum has continued to provide information about arts and cultural community events commemorating Juneteenth, including upcoming events for 2026.

The Louis Armstrong House Museum website says this: on June 19, 1865, enslaved African Americans in Texas learned that they were free — two and a half years after the issuing of the Emancipation Proclamation. Juneteenth, also known as Freedom Day, has been celebrated in the African American community for more than 150 years. It is a day to reflect on the past and look to the future with action.

Today, one such commemoration — now in its sixth year — is a joint venture of the Van Cortlandt Park Alliance and the Bronx Arts Ensemble, led by violinist and Executive Director Insell. The annual event is located close to the enslaved African burial ground, which was consecrated on Juneteenth 2021 by the Van Cortlandt Park Alliance and New York City Parks. This year, the festival event is expecting a thousand attendees.

And we have been joined by another one of our lovely guests who would also like to provide some remarks.

(00:25:24)

Public Advocate Jumaane Williams. Thank you, Madam Chair, for mentioning my name. I am Jumaane Williams and I am the Public Advocate for the City of New York. Thank you.

(00:25:36)

Thank you, Williams and the members of the Committee on Cultural Affairs for holding this important hearing. New York City's and our entire country's vast wealth was built on the backs of human beings kidnapped and forced to labor against their will. Although New York emancipated enslaved African Americans earlier than the country as a whole, the reverberations of that heinous crime unfortunately persist today. Black New Yorkers still hold less wealth, are more heavily policed, have less access to high quality services and are leaving the City at higher than average rates. We are all living in a pretty concerning and dark moment in our country's history. We are seeing in real time state and national efforts to prevent the teaching of Black history, including the history of enslavement, and simultaneously the disenfranchisement of Black Americans by redistricting power away. These are uncertain times and it is more important than ever that New York City's government leads in educating ourselves and our neighbors on the history of enslavement, which is the history of America.

For that reason, I strongly encourage the Committee and the Council to pass CM Hill's Bill Int 0220-2026 to identify and publicize the locations of burial sites holding formerly enslaved African Americans. Teaching real history means highlighting and uncovering brutal truths that have been lost, which often means deliberately hidden. The burial ground at 290 Broadway, which holds the bodies of up to 15,000 enslaved Africans, was recovered just 35 years ago and it took over a decade to open an official monument commemorating that spot. Int 0220-2026 will ensure that the City works quickly and proactively to fully account for such burial sites across our City, and to ensure that the recorders of our history can no longer choose to specifically forget.

I also want to commend CM Hanks' important legislation on our City's past in this area, including the passage of Local Law 4 of 2024, which I championed in order to place an informational sign marking the site of New York's first slave market. Int 0220-2026 is a vital step towards ensuring New Yorkers are equipped to understand how slavery shaped our City. To learn the past, we have to first acknowledge it. I also want to highlight the fact that there was a chain at the bottom of the foot of the Statue of Liberty. They put it there as it was supposed to be a gift to celebrate the freedom that was given, but they did not want it. And so they hid it on the foot. It is still there for anyone who wants to see it.

It is also important to highlight the bright spots in our past as well as our present. To that end, I would also like to express support for bills from CM Riley and Williams' Res 0082-2026, celebrating the immense contributions of Italian New Yorkers by recognizing the Feast of San Gennaro and the Ferragosto Festival, and for declaring April 28th as Willie Colón Day. Res 0440-2026 highlights the musician and community leader's outsized cultural impact here and across the globe. Res 0440-2026 designates January 5th as Kappa Alpha Psi Day. CM Riley's Res 0424-2026 does more to rightfully spotlight one of the nation's oldest Black Greek letter organizations and its many contributions to our City. Last but certainly not least, I am proud to support Res 0450-2026, creating Maria Antonia Cay Day on June 20th to honor her 50-plus years of effort to uplift the Puerto Rican community in Williamsburg and beyond.

I just want to end with saying anti-Blackness is insidious. What is happening now in removing history and even representatives in the South is not a byproduct of MAGA. It is the purpose of MAGA. It is the intention. It is what people want to see happen. And anti-Blackness is so insidious that even if you overcome and get into a position of power, people are now using the word as if you were not capable of being in those positions. So I want to talk about it as a specific thing because unfortunately it exists in every space and in other communities. When you are talking about women or Asian or Latino brothers and sisters or immigrants, anti-Blackness is always there.

So when I take my oldest daughter to pick up some flowers for Mother's Day and we have to hear in Spanish, "Two colors just walked in"... and my three-year-old comes home and says that someone could not play with her because of who she was... it is anti-Blackness that still exists. It is painful. People, we are not making this up. And I want to say Black and mean Black, and I have people look at me as if we are making things up. So I am very excited about what this Council is doing now in general, but in particular right now, where people are trying to reverse the gains and pretend like that is not happening. I think this is more important than ever.

I also want to leave with saying no one is responsible for the system we are in now, whatever your color, race or creed. But I think everyone is responsible for ensuring that my daughters can get a different system than the one we have now. Thank you.

(00:30:21)

I want to echo what the Public Advocate said. In an era where some localities and states are moving to wipe education about Black history from public school curriculums, from university courses and from public discourse, it is important that here in New York City, celebrations of Black history and culture remain accessible. I want to just acknowledge some of my colleagues on the Committee who are present: CM Maloney, who is here, CM Louis, who is on Zoom, CM Stevens and CM Joseph. Thanks. I also want to thank my office and committee staff, Alejandra, Regina and Carolina.

With that, I will just remind people from the public who are testifying in person today that they must fill out an appearance card, which is located on the desk of the Sergeant at Arms at the back. Please fill out the slip even if you have already registered to testify in advance. When you are called, please limit your testimony to two minutes, whether you are testifying in person or on Zoom. I am also going to ask my colleagues to limit their questions and comments to five minutes.

It is my pleasure to call our first special panel of experts regarding African American burial sites in New York City: Matthew Reilly, Herbert Gannett — you will have to tell me if I said that right — and Elizabeth Seeger. I will let Dr. Reilly and Dr. Meade do their work. Yeah, you can just restate your name for the record and whoever wants to start first.

(00:32:24)

Good afternoon, everybody. My name is Dr. Matthew Reilly and it is an honor to be here today to speak in support of Int 0220-2026, as a professor of anthropology at the City College of New York and the CUNY Graduate Center, a board member of the Professional Archaeologists of New York City and, of course, as a New Yorker, and as an archaeologist of the African Diaspora with over 15 years of experience working in the United States, the Caribbean and West Africa.

I am in no uncertain terms fully in support of the spirit of this Bill. You will soon hear from my colleague Dr. Meade, who will describe the incredibly rich history of sacred Black burial sites across our City and the ongoing threats they currently face. But in my very short time, I implore you to consider the unparalleled opportunity that this Bill offers in the midst of a crisis unfolding beyond the borders of our City. I encourage you to lean on the expertise of City archaeologists and community stakeholders. Black burial grounds continue to be neglected and threatened across the country and

(00:33:22)

throughout the African Diaspora. Development and climate change, paired with a lack of proper and enforceable legislation, often renders communities powerless when sacred sites are rediscovered, disturbed or destroyed. In Barbados, where I have conducted archaeological research for over 15 years, a plantation burial ground was uncovered through academic research over a decade prior to the rediscovery of the African Burial Ground right here in lower Manhattan. Currently a massive monument is under construction at this Caribbean site that promises to be a global beacon for honoring such sacred spaces. The heritage park is in part inspired by our nearby national monument at the African Burial Ground.

I bring this up because sites of the African Diaspora, especially burial grounds, are receiving heightened attention on a global scale and yet they remain some of the poorest documented and least protected, including in the United States and our City. Knowledge, awareness and transparency are of course paramount to the proposed Bill, as it can play an outsized role in how sacred sites in the African Diaspora are documented.

We should remember that federal legislation, specifically the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, led to the rediscovery of the African Burial Ground just a stone's throw away from where we sit today. My international colleagues regularly point to this legislation as a source of inspiration, lamenting that no such law exists in other African Diaspora contexts. While the legislation required that archaeologists assess the site, it could not prevent the initial treatment of human remains as archaeologists raced through the work under pressure from developers. It was the concerted effort of stakeholders and descendant community members who then demanded respect and justice for those interred at the site and thus reoriented the research process.

This new Int 0220-2026 will bring community members, specialists like archaeologists and City officials together to ensure that similar tragedies can be avoided in the future. This Bill has the potential to be a model for legislation around the country and the world. With that said, I implore you to harness the expertise of specialists who know these sites and their histories, who work closely with communities and who can offer guidance on not only how to properly acknowledge these sites but protect them for future generations and honor those interred in the soils beneath our feet.

With that in mind, I close with a short statement from PANIC member and New York City archaeologist Dr. Jessica McClane, speaking on how collaborations can and should function under this Bill. She says, and I quote: "The Bill proposes that the Department of Cultural Affairs be responsible for maintaining the proposed list of all known burial sites of formerly enslaved Africans citywide. The Landmarks Preservation Commission and its Department of Archaeology already maintain lists and maps of archaeological sites in the City, including burial grounds, and are charged by the City with the regulation and safekeeping of these sites and resources. PANIC strongly recommends that the Landmarks Preservation Commission be the City agency responsible for these lists of all known burial sites in the proposed Bill, as we have the requisite structure and expertise already in place, calling for more formal collaboration between these offices." End quote. With that, I thank you for all your time and I turn things over to my colleague Herbert.

(00:36:40)

Thank you. Good afternoon and thank you for giving me the opportunity to speak before the Committee. My name is Herbert and I am the Director of Advising at the Colin Powell School at the City College of New York. I am also the Associate Director of the Institute for the Exploration of Seneca Village History and it is in this capacity where I lend my support to Int 0220-2026. I have over 25 years of experience working on archaeological sites in both New York City and New York State and the Caribbean. I am also a member of the Society for Historical Archaeology and the Society of Black Archaeologists.

My interest in archaeology as a profession began with the rediscovery of the African Burial Ground not far from here, during the construction of the Foley Square Federal Building at 290 Broadway. It was then that I truly understood the power of material culture in giving a voice to communities. The African Burial Ground highlighted the importance that enslavement played in the North and in New York in particular, but also demonstrated the significance of a site to the descendant community, whose role in saving it from destruction cannot be ignored.

I will leave further discussion of New York City sites to Dr. Meade and focus instead briefly on Seneca Village. Seneca Village was established in the 1820s as a free Black settlement. Documentary sources indicate that by the mid-1850s it was a vibrant community with a population of over 260 people, approximately two-thirds of the residents of African descent, while the remaining residents were primarily European immigrants, largely Irish. The community included a school and free churches. This thriving community was eventually destroyed to make way for the creation of Central Park in one of the earliest uses of eminent domain to acquire private land in New York City.

On August 11, 1871, an article in the New York Herald mentioned the discovery of two burials in the newly created Central Park near 85th Street and 8th Avenue. This article described one individual presumed to be white in detail, including their name, age and gender, while identifying the other individual only as "Negro, beyond recognition." There is no mention that a thriving community had existed here only 15 years earlier. The silencing of these communities' history is evident in this omission.

Prior to the creation of the Institute for the Exploration of Seneca Village History, Cynthia Copeland and Greta Turner created an exhibit at the New-York Historical Society. Much of their work was based on the book "The Park and the People," which included a chapter on Seneca Village. Central to the exhibit was the role of the village's free churches — the African Union Church and the All Angels' Church — and their burial grounds, which have since been lost. The Institute for the Exploration of Seneca Village History conducted archaeological excavations in Seneca Village during the summer of 2011. Preliminary research on the site had begun more than a decade earlier through documentary research, a study of tax records, court records, census data and historical maps, which identified the locations of settlement features such as houses, churches, barns and cemeteries.

Before excavation began, the Institute employed non-invasive archaeological methods, including ground-penetrating radar, which was used to identify anomalous features below the ground surface. The survey indicated that there were still remains of the settlement. As already stated, there were three churches associated with Seneca Village and each had an associated cemetery. However, not all the burials were of people who lived in Seneca Village. The Institute, out of concern and respect for the descendant community, decided not to excavate in the areas where the cemeteries were located.

This Bill will help advance several of the goals of the Institute for the Exploration of Seneca Village History, including commemoration and memorialization, public education and awareness and community engagement. The Institute works with community members, scholars and local boards to ensure that descendants and the broader public are involved in the story and that a voice is restored.

(00:41:32)

To a community that was silenced. Good afternoon, and I share my colleagues' thanks to the Committee for allowing us to speak to you today. I am Dr. Elizabeth Need, an urban historical archaeologist who has been documenting the cemeteries of New York City for more than two decades. As an archaeologist with consulting firm AKARF, I have in recent years served as the lead archaeologist for the archaeological investigation of the Inwood Sacred Site, a burial place for enslaved Africans and an Indigenous ceremonial site. I currently serve as the Deputy Principal Investigator for the archaeological investigation of the Harlem African Burial Ground. My doctoral dissertation, completed through the CUNY Graduate Center's Anthropology Program, involved the documentation of more than 500 current and former cemeteries across the five boroughs, more than half of which were redeveloped with or without the removal of the human remains buried within.

New York City's archaeologists have been documenting cemeteries associated with enslavement and the African diaspora for decades. It is a common misconception that the African Burial Ground in Lower Manhattan was inadvertently discovered by construction crews, when in fact it was discovered by archaeologists who were on site looking for traces of the cemetery. A new generation of urban archaeologists is currently working with City agencies, community groups and descended communities to reclaim the burial places of New York's enslaved people across New York City, including at the Inwood Sacred Site and the Harlem African Burial Ground in Manhattan, the Flatbush African Burial Ground and Weeksville... burial ground in Brooklyn, the Hunts Point Enslaved Persons Burial Ground and Van Cortlandt Park Enslaved Persons Burial Ground in the Bronx, among others.

The professional archaeologists in New York City, or PANIC, therefore support this proposed legislation, which will help to increase the public's awareness of the locations of sacred sites and help communities reclaim sacred spaces associated with the remains of their ancestors. Passing legislation that brings these sacred places back into dialogue with present-day New Yorkers is an important first step in righting the wrongs of the past and ending the cycle of violence perpetuated by allowing burial places that were historically disrespected to continue to remain unacknowledged.

To paraphrase from my own dissertation: one of the most potent reminders of the horrors of the enslavement of Africans and individuals of African descent in New York City's history is the lack of documentation of their burial places. The burial site that is now known as the New York African Burial Ground is one of the most well-known cemeteries for enslaved people in the modern United States. Its designation as the African Burial Ground gives some the false impression that it was the only site in use for the interment of New York City's enslaved population. However, it was one of many such burial sites. An untold number of burial places for free and enslaved people of African descent were never recorded, and for many others only limited documentary information is available.

New Yorkers of African descent represented between one tenth and one third of the City's population over time and experienced higher mortality rates in general, and yet the number of documented cemeteries used exclusively by individuals of African descent before statewide emancipation in 1827 is... Documented burial places known to have existed as segregated cemeteries used exclusively for the interment of free and enslaved people of African descent were one of the only cemetery categories identified in my own research for which all sites were redeveloped and none were preserved. As such, the city that never sleeps was quite literally constructed on top of the bones of those whose stolen labor built it.

Bills offering legal protection to cemeteries are critical in any city where the combination of increased population density and the fast pace of development frequently results in the discovery of seemingly forgotten or abandoned human remains on construction sites. However, legal protection is even more critical for burial places associated with enslavement, as those sites were often intentionally treated without regard for basic human decency. Colonizing forces in what is now New York City mandated the segregation of cemeteries in 1697 and passed numerous laws in the eighteenth century that placed restrictions on Black funerals, designed to prevent resistance against enslavers. These laws restricted funerals for enslaved people to certain times of day, placed limits on the number of mourners allowed to be in attendance and banned certain funerary customs. These laws also resulted in enslaved people lacking the legal or financial means to protect their ancestors' burial places. Many narratives surrounding enslaved burial places suggest that they were redeveloped after being forgotten. However, I argue that it is more important to say that they were ignored.

Outside of the landmarking process, New York City presently has no laws that protect former cemetery sites from as-of-right development on privately owned land until after human remains are disturbed. Similarly, the New York State Unmarked Burial Site Protection Act, which went into effect in 2023, applies only after remains have been encountered during subsurface activity. New York City environmental review legislation allows for properties to be assigned so-called E-designations pertaining to air quality, hazardous materials and noise as the result of zoning actions, providing a mechanism for developers to complete additional pre-construction testing and analysis once a rezoning has gone into effect. However, no such mechanism exists to protect sites with documented archaeological significance, including burial places. The laws in place to protect human remains after they are disturbed rely almost entirely on construction crews to promptly and honestly report that they have encountered human remains or suspected human remains.

Therefore, while PANIC is in full support of the proposed legislation, we would also encourage the City Council to explore ways to pass legislation that will at long last provide protection to known burial places before they are disturbed. Thank you for giving us this opportunity to speak to you today, and we welcome your questions later. Dr. Lanz.

(00:47:39)

I will be brief. Thank you for having us here. My name is Dr. Asia Lanz and I am an assistant professor of Anthropology and Africana Studies, currently at Johns Hopkins, but home is New York, and that is where all of my research is based. I currently consult with AKARF on bio-archaeological projects, so I work specifically with human skeletal remains and focus on ancestors who are members of the African diaspora. I guess the point I want to make is to reinforce that we should be protecting these sites so that people like me are irrelevant. I have spent the past couple of years going through the remains of ancestors who were recovered from the Harlem African Burial Ground, and I would prefer that these ancestors never have needed to come out of the ground in the first place.

I would also recommend that we think more broadly about which cemeteries we are protecting. I think, rather than focusing only on cemeteries associated with enslaved people, it should be broader. It should be Black, African and African diaspora along these lines, because as we know, slavery has ended. Because of the history of segregation of Black burial places, it is very likely that there are cemeteries that perhaps post-date slavery but are Black cemeteries, or there are existing cemeteries...

(00:49:10)

...where Black folks were buried in a different part that often ends up being ignored. So yes, I would just like to make the pitch to think about this more broadly and to also again think of legislation that stops developers from disturbing these burial grounds, even if we know that they existed there. Thank you.

(00:49:33)

Just a few things. I wanted to share that in the Council we did a Juneteenth package that called on the Commission on Racial Equity to do reparations and truth and reconciliation work, and I was texting her as you were speaking because they actually have a current application open now. They are recruiting researchers to come and work with them. It is a grant and the deadline is coming up pretty quickly, but I am just encouraging you all because you clearly have the expertise. Part of why we passed the truth and reconciliation and reparations legislation is to uncover the many things that you all are researching so that the City can acknowledge harm, because there was harm done in Seneca Village. I just want to put that out there and I will make the connection. I will work with committee staff to make the connection with Linda Danny so you can be connected to the work that we have instructed her commission to do.

I also just wanted to acknowledge someone who we have in the room in her official capacity as General Counsel of the New York State Community Commission on Reparations. India... Williams, so people are very interested in this topic and I am hoping folks can connect. She can raise her hand so you can see who she is. Hopefully you all can connect with her as well.

So my colleagues who had to leave... one of the questions she had... actually, you know what, let me take a step back because this is probably for the panel. What types of burial places existed for free and enslaved people of African descent...

(00:51:18)

...in New York City? There were generally three very loose categories. The first is kind of communal, community-based burial places that were not tied to kinship and not tied to specific locations. So a site like the African Burial Ground here in Lower Manhattan or the Flatbush African Burial Ground — a kind of place where anybody was allowed to be interred, where there was some freedom to express their own burial customs and traditions, bringing cultural traditions over from Africa, that sort of thing.

The second type is less well documented. We know less about it, but it is burial places that would have occurred on private property, on farms, by the enslavers. So they would have interred the people whose stolen labor worked the land on the property. Many of them often maintained family cemeteries as well, and the enslaved people were buried either around the family cemetery, adjacent to the family cemetery or somewhere else on the property.

Then the third kind of category, as Dr. Lanz alluded to, really continues past the period of enslavement. It is where formerly enslaved people were interred later in the nineteenth century. Churches took over the role of a lot of burial practices. There are quite a few churches throughout New York that maintained burial places. It is worth mentioning Seneca Village, but it really continues well beyond that. Even the patterns of segregation in New York City burials continue into the twentieth century. There are predominantly Black cemeteries that were established to provide burial places to the people who were shut out of the City's other cemeteries. So as Dr. Lanz mentioned, it is kind of hard to capture all of the burial places where formerly enslaved people have been buried because there were so many that were really just more African diaspora-related cemeteries rather than being linked specifically to enslavement.

(00:53:30)

And how were free and enslaved people of African descent prevented from protecting their burial places?

(00:53:43)

Legally, there were laws that prevented protection. If there were active stakeholders, family members, people to speak up about protecting a cemetery — people who owned the land had rights to the private land who could prevent a cemetery from being demolished — in the case of the Harlem African Burial Ground, we have a case from the 1920s when the site was going to be redeveloped as a movie studio. The movie studio attempted to get title insurance to the property and initially was told they could not because there had been a cemetery there. Ultimately the legal decision was that because enslaved people cannot own land, they did not have any legal rights to the property that the cemetery was built on, and it was allowed to be redeveloped. So that kind of shows that that carried well into the twentieth century. There was knowledge that the cemetery was there and it did not matter. It ended up being a legal court case.

Another example — I always get the name wrong, hold on, I wrote it down — the... it has many names. I have kind of consolidated them: the Little Neck, Icac, Hicks-Waters Family Cemetery out in Queens. There was a decades-long battle by a family member. This was a cemetery used for both Black and Indigenous people. It gets sometimes categorized as a family cemetery, sometimes categorized as a community cemetery. The history is a little blurry, but essentially the family elder spent decades trying to fight the City from widening Northern Boulevard to eliminate the cemetery. That legal case was essentially lost when that man died and no one was left to fight. Part of the reason why the City was expanding the road to the north was because there were very wealthy people who resided to the south who did not want to lose part of their property, including a notable state politician. So it was a decades-long battle to essentially protect people's front yards, and private property took precedent.

So there are lots of stories similar to that where people tried and were just prevented, either because they lacked the money or the resources or the legal standing to protect cemeteries.

(00:56:02)

I could add to that. I mean, a major issue across the country when it comes to Black cemeteries is gentrification, and simply Black people being prevented from owning land and owning homes. Once everyone with memory of that space is out of a neighborhood, then the claim can be made, "Oh, it has been forgotten," and then there can be development and then they might find some human remains and who knows what is going to...

(00:56:32)

...happen next. Thank you. Which cemeteries associated with enslavement have been documented, and what more can be done to identify and document additional sites?

(00:56:43)

So I think we have named quite a few that are currently undergoing archaeological analysis, you know, for the last ten years or more. There are a number that I think are less well known and do not yet have community groups standing up for them. In my dissertation — I have a map at cemeteriesofnewyorkcity.com that anyone who is interested can look at for some other examples — there are a number in addition to Seneca Village. There are a number of church cemeteries throughout New York City. There are several late nineteenth and early twentieth century cemeteries, again kind of larger rural cemeteries that were established for a primarily Black population who were excluded from other cemetery sites. So there are quite a few that are being documented but there is just not a lot of public knowledge of them yet. This is where a bill like this could really help promote that knowledge and...

(00:57:45)

...encourage people to start to protect these sites. As I mentioned before, the least well-documented types of burial places associated with enslavement are the ones that occurred on private land. Enslavers typically did not record or protect the graves of the enslaved people that they interred, even when their own family cemeteries were well protected, sometimes for centuries.

So one of the things I am encouraging people to do more research on is to examine records — property records, census records and any kind of documentary records that we can — of people who owned well-documented family cemeteries in New York City who were also enslavers, and to try and figure out if they could have interred enslaved people on their properties and where those properties were. I do not remember who said it, but the comment that perhaps the lack of documentation and...

(00:58:51)

I think New York City in general lacks documentation on enslaved Black people in New York City. I do not know. I guess we would think that New York City did not have slaves. I do not really understand, but we just... I do not know what kind of glossed over slavery in New York City. I think there is a narrative that I have heard the Public Advocate say a ton of times, that somehow slavery was just the product of the South. We know that not only did bondage occur in New York City, but that New York City was the financial arm in many ways of... and as the City, I do not think that we have done a good job at documenting that, and then documenting the aftermath of slavery, which many say still kind of kept this in an invisible bondage because of the many laws that not only were passed nationally, but local laws that also allowed for continued segregation and marginalization of Black people in New York City.

I think of City of Yes, which we just passed, where we repealed the Cabaret Law, and that was specifically a racist law that was prohibiting a lot of Black establishments from having certain types of activities because of the fear of white people and Black people partying in Harlem. So up until just a few years ago we are still working to undo a ton of harm. I really do believe, and I am hopeful, that through our reparations work, our truth and reconciliation work, the fact that the Charter mandates required the Mayor's Office to have a Mayor's Office of Equity and Racial Justice to produce racial equity plans, that we can start the process of at least telling the truth. Because I do not think we tell the truth in New York City. CM Joseph, I do not know if you have any more questions.

(01:00:54)

I do. Thank you so much, Williams. So I am part of that story you talk about. The Flatbush African Burial Ground lives in my district on Bedford Avenue and Church, and it was built on it... the remains were taken. There was first a public school, then it became a... and then in 2019, as we were running — I was running for Council — we discovered it, a rediscovery of our ancestors, but so many had already been taken away. It pains me every time I talk about that, the manipulation of the land, turning up the soil, the digging of the soil of the ancestors. I think we are still working with, I believe, Howard University to get that back. We are in the process of memorializing that space, but a lot of harm was done to that space.

That is why we celebrate — we came together to do it because we wanted to see if there were any remains there. We brought social workers and therapists in case we found anything, to make sure that community members were okay. So my question is: when a burial ground is discovered, will it be demarcated or otherwise preserved? How do we continue to preserve that space for generations to come? Because they were going to build another housing site — it was set up for housing — and we were like, not on my ancestors' bones. We cannot do that. The community was up in arms at the time. I was a candidate and I was also an educator who walked by that site for 22 years to go and teach in New York City public schools and never knew or had a clue that this was one of the African burial grounds in the City.

So now I have been gifted by the ancestors to memorialize and do right by them. We want to make sure that, how do we maintain them when we find others? How do we also have funding? Everything takes place with money. I do not care what we say, everything has to move with money. So how do we continue to memorialize them as we rediscover them, because they were here and everybody just glossed over it like it never happened? How do we continue to memorialize them as we find them? How do we put funding in place to make sure the Council is also funding this? This goes hand in hand with money.

I did go visit Sankofa in East New York and that is what inspired the work to do with Parks. I think it should be an interagency conversation. It is not just one agency that should come in. Even New York City public schools — these things should be in New York City public schools history books. It should not be erased, as much erasure as is happening. How do you, as the experts, help someone like me lead this work? It has been a lot. It weighs a lot on my heart. So how do I lead this work and do right? I think it is long term, and the power of the community in mobilizing and resisting what was attempted to be done is important, as is the importance of that history and the contribution that has been made. Education through public organization and recognition can come into play, but the public has to be empowered and recognized that they have power in mobilizing support for that sort of endeavor. I know that I have community support — thank God for that — but we want to make sure that as the Council we are doing so much more.

(01:04:44)

Yeah, I mean, what you are doing so far I feel like is how most of these projects start. I do think there are some good frameworks — we do not have to reinvent the wheel. There are a lot of places that we can look, with people using different methods and how they are going about it. So, for example, there is the Black Cemetery Network that offers a lot of resources online. There is also... so, for example, I live part of the year in Maryland now. Maryland State has been doing some really interesting things around protecting Black cemeteries. I do not know what happened with this, but a few years ago the federal government had set aside $3 million — which is not much — through the National Park Service, that was supposed to go to states to give out grants to people who are trying to preserve Black cemeteries. But I do not know that it ever materialized, because that is the other thing: thinking more broadly with federal legislation.

But yeah, it does take money, and I feel like you need folks to buy in who are working with cities or states that we are and have resources. Because it is like you are asking a question that I think a lot of us are still struggling with constantly. These places are so expensive, and you are somewhere like New York City where we have to balance the needs of living people with how we treat our ancestors, and that is never straightforward. I think even your example was really great because some other cemeteries, the descendant communities have chosen to treat differently. So I think it is really a case by case sort of thing. But long term, I mean, I think for most of us it is like legislation or something...

(01:06:36)

...some sort of public trust, perhaps. I do not know. In terms of kind of getting it started, I think...

(01:06:44)

Every site is different. There is no cookie cutter approach, so it really has to be hyper local, born out of the community and out of community conversation and what they want. Not every cemetery has had the same history. Not every site is going to be treated the same moving forward, according to the community's wishes. So it really just starts with listening.

(01:07:12)

And I would say, as for the funding part, I do not think it is a coincidence that all of the sites we have talked about that have been documented by archaeologists are all on City-owned property. I think the struggle with private landowners — private property rights are very strong and it is hard to find ways to... it is very rare where a private landowner is willing to engage in this sort of...

(01:07:39)

...work. One thing I would just quickly add: in terms of legislation, there is federal legislation to protect Indigenous burial grounds around the country that was passed in 1990, but no such comparable act exists for the protection of Black burial grounds. There is nothing prohibiting a City Council from passing such a law, but it would entail a lot of community engagement. Based on what Dr. Meade was saying, there is a lot of diversity in terms of how these burial grounds were constructed and what community needs might be. Legislation is lacking that has the teeth to protect these sites, and many of our colleagues in the field have called for such legislation over...

(01:08:18)

...the years. That is why we are here today, and that is why I am so grateful to Williams for entertaining it when I said we need to do this, because this is what is happening across the City — in Harlem, the Bronx, Staten Island — they are showing up. How do we show up for them as well, and preserve them and maintain them? Do you have a reasonable time frame for the development and implementation of a planned survey? How do we do a survey to identify unmarked enslaved African burial sites? I know there is no timeline — it is as they come along. In recent years they have been showing up, but we are showing up for them as well. By surveyed, you mean the map that the Bill proposes? How do we add more to it and how do we continue to build on it? We have the foundation, so we just need to continue to build on it. Yeah...

(01:09:11)

I would say just continued research. I often say, or said when I was doing my dissertation, that the number of cemeteries I discovered by accident was not small. You just stumble through records and you find an offhand reference. So it is really just historians and archaeologists and scholars paying more attention and looking for those kinds of offhand references in diaries and property records, things that just make casual references to a cemetery that can then be the jumping off point for more research.

(01:09:49)

So that, I think, is the starting point because...

(01:09:51)

...otherwise, you know, the same resources for preserved cemeteries do not exist for the ones that were redeveloped.

(01:10:00)

So we are building this from scratch, and I kind of like that idea. We should have archaeologists and archivists and genealogists as part of that team. Are we training the next generation of scholars for that type of work and making sure that there is enough representation in that field as well?

(01:10:23)

Excellent question. I try desperately, but archaeology in the United States, which falls under anthropology, is a very anti-Black discipline. In fact, the position I took was so that I could go into Black Studies rather than stay in anthropology. There are more of us now, with groups like the Society for Black Archaeologists, but it is a struggle that has been going on for well before me, for decades, trying to get more Black students into these fields. Part of the struggle too is that I am often arguing against science with a capital S, where many of my colleagues, if they were given the choice, would still excavate a cemetery for knowledge. So that is a much bigger question. I do not know, Matt, you are a professor too...

(01:11:26)

...so, sorry. I think locally there are, of course, success stories, and I do agree with Dr. Lands in terms of the climate and inheritance of our discipline. Thankfully in New York we do have a successful pipeline of students of African descent who are eager and passionate about this work. Several come to us not knowing about any of this history and leave our halls of CUNY institutions wanting to pursue a master's degree or PhD to become the next generation that can lead this charge. So there are folks out there. We just need to give them a task.

(01:11:56)

I need to meet them, and most of the higher education chain in New York City connects to the Council, so I need to create that pipeline to make sure that representation matters as we discover these...

(01:12:06)

How many members do you have in your society? I just counted them the other day. Oh gosh, it is like 200 and...

(01:12:15)

The last I... I did not mean to put you on the spot. It has grown significantly. When we first started there was a handful. Right now, when we have our meetings, rooms are packed. The Society was only founded in 2011 or 2012. Wow. So we have a lot of work to do. We are in the middle of our roots, but there is still a long way to go. Yeah, we do.

(01:12:39)

When I teach Seneca Village, I try to make it engaging so students become archaeologists. So rather than tell them about history, we give them primary documents and let them tell the actual story through the documents that they are looking at. Every time they analyze it I always see something different because their perspectives are always different. More students come with an intention to pursue a certain career, but showing them the possibility gives them a chance, a sipping of alternative career paths.

(01:13:22)

My one example: I had a student who studied architecture for a couple of years and then, with the risk of a career change, broke ground from architecture into archaeology.

(01:13:32)

Amazing. We need that. We need that shift. In your testimony you talked about Central Park as one of the first towns. Is there any marking...

(01:13:40)

...or celebration of the community that lived there, that was driven out? Are there plaques in place? The Institute for the Exploration of Seneca Village and the Central Park Conservancy worked together to install plaques commemorating and recognizing the site. So there are plaques indicating where the city of your lives... where the cemeteries are located. But they are temporary, and they have done work to extend the time that they will be there. More work is being done looking at how technology can be used so that when somebody passes by this area, by using a QR code, they can get more information that is beyond what is on a plaque.

(01:14:32)

It was a thriving community and they were driven out through eminent domain to build a park. I am sure a lot of folks do not know that.

(01:14:43)

So Chair, I am going to pass it over to you, and then we will... thank you. Just one final question, and it really does sort of come out of what CM Joseph said. Just as a Council, any thoughts on what our roles should continue to be in supporting the work in this area, or in supporting the work that has already been...

(01:15:12)

...done. You know, just from this hearing, what I am hearing is that the Bill is relegated to enslaved folks, but that we might want to expand it. So just thinking about future work or current work, how can we as a Council support that? What do you think our roles can be?

I also say that oftentimes more work happens after the hearing, so I do look forward to hopefully connecting with you all after the hearing as well. I guess helping, if they do not already exist, in areas where we do have some documentation of these types of burial sites, helping community groups form that can help build the education and engagement component. A lot of the best work that has been happening in recent years has been the product of community involvement and community engagement, and communities pushing City government, pushing politicians to get sites investigated and to fund this type of work. So I think it is really just supporting it at the community level, finding the people in those areas who want to do this work, who may not know that there is a cemetery in their backyard, and helping nurture and grow those community groups. Because that does seem to be the primary driver of the successful documentation...

(01:16:52)

...and awareness campaigns with a lot of the sites around the City. Well, thank you so much for coming and for traveling from afar, even though New York City is home. We appreciate you very much, and again I know this will not be the last time we engage with you. Thank you so much for your personal interest in these topics, for doing the work that obviously needs to be done and is often overlooked. Thank you. The pleasure is ours.

Okay, our wonderful friends from LPC, thank you so much for coming and being here and listening to the expert panel. However, having read ahead in your testimony, and even the expert panel mentioned that another agency might be better equipped, we are still very excited to see you. I will now turn it over to Committee Counsel to swear you in. Good afternoon. Could you please raise your right hand to affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth before this Committee and to respond honestly to Council Member questions. Thank you. You may begin your testimony.

(01:18:31)

I feel totally at a disadvantage. I just traveled from across the street. So...

(01:18:36)

Good afternoon. It is good to be here and it is good to see familiar faces. I am going to read my testimony in person and then take some questions.

Good afternoon, Deputy Chair Williams and members of the committee. I am Alto Murray, Deputy Commissioner of the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs. I am here to testify in regards to today's topic commemorating Juneteenth and honoring African burial sites.

Juneteenth, formerly and formally recognized as an African American holiday, was made an official holiday in 2021. It was celebrated for the past 156 years after the last enslaved people learned of their emancipation after the Civil War. It took a generation of advocacy for this historic milestone to be more broadly recognized, but five years on, New Yorkers have embraced the opportunity to celebrate, reflect and come together to continue the ongoing work of imagining a more inclusive and just society.

The Department of Cultural Affairs is proud to support a wide range of organizations whose programming includes workshops, exhibitions and other community-driven programming for New Yorkers to engage with. I will give you a few examples.

The Jamaica Center for Arts and Learning, also known as JCAL, will commemorate Juneteenth with art and film programming that examines the continuing journey towards liberation. JCAL's Juneteenth programming will unfold across its campus and is free and open to the public. Black Spectrum Television will present theatrical programming examining the history and long significance of Juneteenth through dramatic performances and community dialogue. The Studio Museum in Harlem will mark Juneteenth with a full day of workshops, gallery conversations, performances and healing-centered programming rooted in Black artistic experience, expressions and community care. Snug Harbor Cultural Center and Botanical Gardens and the Staten Island Community Alliance will present the sixth annual Juneteenth Freedom Festival. This day celebration of food, music and culture is a meaningful way to commemorate and honor the end of slavery in the United States while bringing the community together. Weeksville Heritage Center will commemorate it with liberation center talks, archival storytelling, performances, food vendors and community gathering, located on the site of the nation's first free Black community. Weeksville's celebration foregrounds Black history and cultural memory. The New York Botanical Garden will present programs exploring Black ecology, foodways, healing gardens and storytelling. This celebration connects environmental education with the stories and cultural practices of the African diaspora.

There are many, many more listed in our written testimony. I encourage you to continue to read it, but in the interest of time, I would like to start talking about our partners. Our partners in New York City Parks and New York City Tourism also have a robust list of programming happening across the City. We are proud to support, in partnership with the New York City Council, this broad range of cultural activities and programming honoring this year's Juneteenth holiday.

I would also like to note that many organizations, especially Black-led organizations, have been celebrating in our City for many years before it became a federal holiday. This is another example of the groups we support leading the way when it comes to programming that is rooted in and accountable to our communities.

Regarding the proposed legislation, we thank you for highlighting the urgent need to think deeply about how we honor burial sites formerly insensitive to African Americans in our City. Our offices are just around the corner from the African Burial Ground National Monument in Lower Manhattan. This marks the site where upwards of 15,000 intact remains of enslaved and free Africans who lived and worked in New York were found during the construction of a federal building. Through our Percent for Art program, artist Lorenzo Pace's "Triumph of the Human Spirit" stands just a few steps away in Foley Square, to honor and draw attention to this important site.

In Harlem, we are supporting the efforts of the New York City Economic Development Corporation to commission a permanent monument and cultural space honoring an African burial ground, funded on the site of a long-time bus depot in Brooklyn. The Flatbush African Burial Ground was in use from the seventeenth to the nineteenth century. After community members advocated for the site to be preserved as open space, it was transferred from Parks in 2022, with funding supported from the Council and in close consultation with the local community. Parks is undertaking a capital project to design and build a park space that commemorates and honors the site's history.

There is testimony submitted from the Landmarks Preservation Commission that includes information on a number of other burial grounds that are preserved and honored across the City. Collectively, these sites tell the stories of the members of the African diaspora who came to our shores, often in bondage, who laid the foundation for a flourishing Black culture that defines so many parts of our City today.

As noted in our written testimony, our colleagues at the Landmarks Preservation Commission note the tragic national pattern of disregard for African

(01:25:02)

American burial grounds, which left most uncounted, unprotected and rarely documented on maps. They raise another valid concern, such as the risk of looting and vandalism that can result from public disclosure of unmarked archaeological sites. This work should only be undertaken in consultation with descendant communities, who in some cases find disclosure appropriate and in other cases prefer to keep the location of the site private to protect it.

While we share your commitment to honoring the legacy of African ancestors who lived and died here, we are most likely not the best agency to lead this work. We are primarily a funding agency and we do not have the expertise or resources to oversee this kind of historical landmark assessment with the care and precision it deserves and demands. But as we have with other African burial sites, we would be honored to work on commissioning a commemorative monument and artwork when the sites are identified and a capital project is initiated, and more broadly to support these efforts with our grant expertise.

We look forward to continuing the conversation about the best and most effective way to accomplish our shared goals of more fully honoring and recognizing these sites. The weeks leading up to Juneteenth are an ideal opportunity to have this important conversation. Thank you for the opportunity to testify today and I am happy to take any questions you have.

(01:26:44)

Thank you. Actually, Dr. Meade, can you come back up because I have a question for you. Thank you. We will continue to look at the Landmarks Preservation Commission's testimony. It came in today, but I know they have a whole section on looting and site disturbance. Do you think that is a valid concern? I am sorry, can you say it again? So the Landmarks Preservation Commission submitted written testimony, and I know Marie just mentioned that as well, that they believe that if we publicize where some of these unmarked sites are it could result in looting and vandalism. So I just want to know from your expertise if you think that is a valid concern.

(01:27:30)

In some cases, absolutely, and that is always a concern in archaeology. For a lot of our environmental review work we do conceal the locations of archaeological sensitivity anywhere where people can actually access them. You know, someone could go into Central Park and dig, for example, and in other places it is not likely. The sites that are under pavement or under buildings, there is no real risk of that. Someone would have to go out there and that would be a very different story. So in some cases, absolutely, yes, that is a concern, but not in all cases.

(01:28:12)

Thank you so much. Let me ask the Commissioner a question that the Bill's sponsor had. She wanted to know if her Bill should explicitly authorize contracts and grants. I know you mentioned you are primarily a funding agency, so she was interested in knowing if the Bill should be amended to include contracts and grants.

(01:28:38)

That is not something we have discussed internally and I cannot see why it would not be. We do have a peer review process, so grants are not evaluated internally. We have over 250 community members who are experts in arts and culture, though not so much in heritage, who evaluate the proposals and make the determination of how the grants are funded.

(01:29:03)

Another question about funding: should New York City create a permanent cemetery maintenance fund modeled after Virginia's African American Cemeteries Fund?

(01:29:11)

We have not given it much thought yet and we are open to continuing this discussion. You have raised some important questions because we are going to need to address this. Once we memorialize, for example, the Flatbush African Burial Ground, we will need some type of maintenance plan. How do we maintain and upkeep them so they are not dilapidated and run down after a while? For the sites where we have installed public art, we do build in maintenance since every specific site will have different challenges. So to have a conversation that is so hypothetical that we cannot really address it... a site may not require a public art monument and may need to go in another direction. So it depends on each project, which will have specific challenges that we would have to look at individually.

(01:30:12)

And you mentioned in your testimony that the African burial grounds should not be assigned to one particular agency. One of the experts mentioned that as well. We are not identifying any one agency. This is such a big conversation. What we would really love to do is sit down and have a more thoughtful approach to this. We are not fully endorsing any one particular agency. It should be a collaborative process, but we do not think that the way we are structured and our expertise equips us to manage and orchestrate this project and initiative.

(01:31:00)

I have a question. It is probably pretty broad and then I will go more specific, like in preparation for hearings. What is the process? Because when I hear you say that you have not put any thought into it, it makes me concerned that there was no due diligence in prep for the hearing. I know sometimes we do not send the questions in advance, which is something that I will continue to remind our collective staff to do, because I do believe that it should be a fair exchange. I expect you to have answers, but I know sometimes in order for you to have answers, we in turn probably need to share the questions. I do not know if that was the case here, but that is fine if it was not.

(01:31:41)

We did not receive the questions in advance. Okay, well, I will have a conversation about that. But moving along...

(01:31:49)

I would just like to address that it is not that this is such a big subject and it is important to me as an African American that it is done right. But we cannot come prepared for a big discussion about something so significant that we do not have the expertise to discuss in preparation for a hearing. We need archaeologists and geologists and all of these people to be in the conversation. That is why I said we are not prepared to have that big discussion.

(01:32:24)

Okay, thank you. Have you spoken to other agencies about this Bill? You said you are not endorsing one particular agency. Have you had any discussions in preparation for the hearing?

(01:32:35)

Yes, we have.

(01:32:36)

Which agencies? We talked to the Landmarks Preservation Commission. We talked to Parks. Okay. What has the agency done to encourage commemorations, either by cultural organizations that it funds or by community groups?

(01:32:54)

We continue to be an engaged partner in Juneteenth initiatives. Referring back to the testimony I just read, a few of the organizations we support are doing the work. The list is robust and I encourage you to read it again. We are a passionate supporter of the Juneteenth initiative and we continue to look for opportunities to fund more grantees. With the new addition of $10 million added to the budget, we will be out there promoting opportunities for organizations who are very well versed in doing this work to submit proposals for funding. We encourage you to be a partner in talking to your community organizations who are doing this work to apply for funding. We leave the work up to the experts who are doing it and we support them with funding.

(01:33:53)

How are Juneteenth programming and burial site recognition connected as part of a coherent commemorative framework rather than treated as separate efforts?

(01:34:09)

You see, I also questioned that this work should not just live in one agency, that it should be inter-agency. It should involve Parks, it should involve everyone. We will carry the

(01:34:22)

cultural part, so each of these agencies will play a

(01:34:25)

role. Absolutely.

(01:34:34)

To repeat the question, Chair Williams: I think we need to have a roundtable. How are Juneteenth programming and burial site recognition connected as part of a coherent commemorative framework rather than treated as separate efforts?

(01:34:44)

So in this case, there is no current effort to make it a coherent commemorative experience. We do promote and support cultural organizations. We encourage our commissioners, who in the past have attended and highlighted these programs, to continue to do so. We continue to be a very passionate funder. We encourage organizations to let us know when they have events so we can uplift them, because all of these are independent organizations doing independent work. It would be a worthwhile discussion to have: how do we encourage all of these organizations to collaborate, to exchange information and work together?

(01:35:26)

Currently it is not a focus of the agency. What we try to encourage is more funding and more support to the community. Related but unrelated: the Freedom Trail Task Force. When we passed our Juneteenth package of bills, that was one of the bills. The Bill did not compel a particular agency to provide oversight, and so I am just inquiring if you are aware of this task force and if you can share any updates.

(01:35:59)

On its status, I am not in a position to share any updates right now.

(01:36:04)

But are you aware of it? I am aware of it, but I

(01:36:05)

do not have any update. Second question:

(01:36:07)

is your agency involved in it? Because I know the Bill involved your agency in a conversation.

(01:36:10)

Yes. Do you know what

(01:36:12)

other agencies are involved? Not right now. I am not personally involved, but I can get back to you. Who is managing that?

(01:36:20)

I do not know right now, but I can get back to you and let you know.

(01:36:37)

Okay, thank you so much. I will work on my end. I do not know why we have this policy where we do not send you questions in advance, but I will say that I do not like that, because I want you to come to the hearings with answers. But again, I recognize that if you do not have the questions, it is hard to produce answers. I appreciate you being here and I am committed to figuring out internally how, at the very least in my committee, we can share some questions in advance. Because I think this is probably the second time I have had a hearing with the Department of Cultural Affairs and it does not seem like they have answers or have put any real thought into preparing for my hearing. But I appreciate you very much and hopefully we can have a real conversation offline with the respective agencies. That would also address your earlier point about having had some conversations. It might be good to connect around this topic.

(01:37:36)

I do appreciate your perspective, but I would also like to reiterate that we are a funding agency. We fund nonprofits and organizations. We want to be a contributing partner to this conversation and, as a person of color and an African American man, I think this should not be decided in such a small amount of time. There should be more collaboration and more engagement. We are really passionate about this issue. We want to be a thought partner in this. We want our expertise to be valued when we come to the table and we present ideas — ideas that we have lived with and thought through. We are really great at funding, managing capital projects and giving our nonprofit partners the knowledge they need. But this particular heritage topic needs to be well thought out and addressed in a more deliberate way. Thank you for your time.

(01:38:47)

I agree with you, and I do not think that I am expecting the agency to come to a hearing with all of the answers. But I do expect that the agency come to the hearing with a pathway as to how they could potentially implement something of this nature, or provide more robust reasons as to why it might be challenging. Perhaps we should have... did we invite... okay, so perhaps we should have invited other agencies, because I do acknowledge that the Landmarks Preservation Commission's testimony is a little bit more robust on the issue of the Bill. But we did not call them, so maybe we should have called them.

(01:39:33)

Happy to take responsibility for that.

(01:39:35)

And we champion funding. We champion heritage work. So maybe there is a path forward where some funding is needed and heritage work, and perhaps Parks and Education, we all can get together and have a real, meaningful, robust conversation so that all these sites can be identified and properly commemorated, hopefully with some really, really amazing public art installations. Thank you for that. Thank you. Can we have the panel from Libraries? We will now call on the panel from Libraries. Edwin, Elizabeth and Chris, thank you.

(01:40:30)

My name is Etan Maxwell and I am Chief Librarian of the Brooklyn Public Library. Thank you, Speaker Menin and Deputy Speaker, and especially CM Chris Banks for his partnership and leadership on the New Lots Library project. I have submitted my comments this morning for your review. There are a couple of things I just wanted to touch on.

Like many others have said, this project is deeply personal to me. Early in my career I served as the Branch Manager of New Lots. That community would deserve this, and they are excited about this. As CM Banks said earlier, we have to remember that this is a sacred space. The East New York African Burial Ground is the resting place of free and enslaved Africans buried in and beneath the site that will be the new library. For years their history lay mostly in fragments, a community of memory, until advocates helped bring it to light through advocacy and persistence over the last three years.

Brooklyn Public Library has engaged deeply with the community and the message that we heard was clear: you have to honor the past while also celebrating the vibrant present and future of East New York. We also worked closely with community members to develop procedures for the respectful treatment of any remains that could potentially be discovered during construction.

The design team, Master Design Group and Marble Fairbanks, with Elizabeth Kennedy Landscape Architects, brought tremendous care and thoughtfulness, with many meaningful elements throughout the design. One of my favorites is the veil bodies, which bow toward the entrance, symbolizing the way the community needed to lift and develop on the faith that history is important to the public.

(01:42:38)

We are going to honor and continue this work, and I look forward to having you all at the ribbon cutting.

(01:42:43)

Hired in just a few years, so you can experience the beauty and meaningfulness of this space firsthand. Thank you, CM Chris Banks.

(01:43:06)

Elizabeth Aaron. My name is... thank you for the opportunity to speak today in support of this Bill.

(01:43:09)

My name is Chris Hardy and I am Design Director, which stands for model architecture serving society across a wide range of contexts, geographies and building types, but often focuses on reckoning with systemic erasure by creating spaces that center memory in the public realm and therefore raising public consciousness. We can contribute to healing on community and national scales. I had the privilege and pleasure to work toward that goal with our many project partners on the New Lots Branch.

(01:43:38)

American Public Library.

(01:43:39)

Collaboration of so many community voices has led with commitment to this project's acknowledgment of the history of the East New York African Burial Ground. The bridge, located further west, respects the burial ground, and the remembrance plaza will unify the library and the surrounding site, establishing a space for reverence. All the contributions that have been instrumental in...

(01:44:01)

...getting a project to this stage. There is an example of the hard work and dedication that is required to do projects like this. It is our hope that this project can serve as an opportunity for collective learning, reinforcing the mission of the library as a place to reconcile and a place to celebrate. I hope that honoring this burial ground is one step on a journey that is much bigger than any one project — an opportunity for us to curate our collective future. Thank you for your time today.

(01:44:31)

Thank you.

(01:44:43)

Good afternoon. I hope I am in Room One and I will be brief. My name is Elizabeth Kennedy. The landscape architecture firm that bears my name has been involved in the design and commemoration of the enslaved African burial ground at New Lots, the enslaved African burial ground in Inwood, and the enslaved African burial ground on the banks of the Collect Pond, which is also known as the African Burial Ground National Monument. We were also considered for the work to commemorate the African burial ground within Van Cortlandt Park, but we did not get that job.

I want to assure you that we do not specialize solely in enslavement narratives. As other experts have testified, recognized sites of enslaved and free African burials are everywhere. The writer Shane White and painter Francis Guy attest to the ubiquity of enslavement in the eighteenth century Hudson Valley and throughout Long Island, and the banality of its cruelty — a banality that Hannah Arendt described as the ordinariness of evil when referring to the Holocaust. This banality lies at the heart of this cultural erasure.

Burial grounds of enslaved and free Africans are so frequently found within the footprint of public land — parks, schoolyards, bus depots, municipal parking lots — that their situation interrogates the City's history of land use. While these grounds share common threads in purpose, each has a backstory that renders it unique.

So how can the commitment of organizations like the Brooklyn Public Library support this resolution? Community institutions like libraries are also everywhere. Their approach to public engagement can confront general ignorance of and indifference to complex narratives of place and identity through design. Also, libraries inherently convey joy, a central aspect of African survival in enslavement and freedom. Like the Smithsonian Institution, libraries disseminate knowledge into the world. The design of the New Lots Branch architecture and landscape does exactly that, demonstrating through its melding of shelter and ecology into a sanctuary of an urban hush — how local civic spaces intertwine mission with highly local spatial and sociocultural histories to situate library arts firmly within a greater context of sacred space. Thank you.