The heart of NYC’s Financial District is built on a huge 18th century African Burial Ground. Some 419 Africans were discovered in 1991, a large portion women and children.
The burial ground extends from Broadway Southward under City Hall, and almost to the site of the former World Trade Center. It is believed that there are as many as 20,000 slavery-era Africans in graves under the buildings in Lower Manhattan.
Abolish historical amnesia and ponder for a moment the fact that this financial epicenter of the world is built on slavery, oppression, and death.”
Literally, and daily.
But if your tour guide, doesn’t mention this, they suck! It’s a big and acknowledged part of NYC history.
You can visit the memorial to the African Burial Ground:
Or the museum dedicated to it. Located at 290 Broadway, it’s run by the National Park Service and therefore free to all visitors:
There’s also public artwork in the Ted Weiss building’s lobby (the building being constructed when bodies were first found):
I literally teach a class on the African Burial Ground. It’s not as well-known as it deserves to be, but it’s not hidden either.
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