by Dan Perkins
Source: PRWeb
When
people think of the American Revolution, they
often think of heroes like George Washington
and Paul Revere. Very few, however,
think of African Americans. Even within the
African American community, there is limited
knowledge of Crispus Attucks, an African
American seaman and laborer who was the first
American to die in the struggle for
independence. However, during the 1770s, Attucks
became a
symbol for Americans longing to be free from
British tyranny.
Creating greater
awareness of the 5,000 African American men and
women who participated in our nation’s fight for
independence is what one group hopes to
accomplish with a new memorial that will be
placed near three of the most
prominent landmarks in our nation's capital. The Black Revolutionary
War Patriots Foundation plans to erect the
Black Revolutionary War Patriots Memorial on a
prized site located
between the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington
Monument, just a few steps from the World War II
Memorial.
The Patriot’s
Memorial is the brainchild of Maurice Barboza,
a man of diverse backgrounds who can trace
his ancestry to Africa and to England. He is
not only the founder of the memorial
project, but an embodiment of America’s diverse
past.
"This memorial
will not only raise awareness of national
history, it offers the District of Columbia a
forum to promote tourism, the city's history,
and the contributions of its citizens to
democratic principles and the preservation of
our democracy," declared Barboza.
Although support
for the project is growing, the memorial has
been in the works for more than a
decade. The idea for a memorial came to Barboza
after his family engaged in a war against
another form of tyranny. Barboza's aunt, Lena Santos Ferguson,
waged a four year battle, between 1980 and 1984,
to become the first black District resident, and
only the second black woman in the nation, to
join the
National Society
of the Daughters of the
American Revolution (DAR).
Barboza persuaded
his aunt to join the society after he was warmly
accepted into the National Society of the
Sons of the American Revolution.
Membership
into the two exclusive organizations is granted
to
individuals who
can prove they are lineal descents of a patriot
of the American Revolution. Barboza and his aunt are descendants of an Englishman who came to America
a decade after the arrival of the Mayflower, and
an American who fought for independence.
The
DAR's reticence
to accept Ferguson's membership prompted Barboza
to obtain legal representation from Hogan &
Hartson, one of the nation's leading law
firms. A settlement was ultimately
reached, but Barboza and his aunt refused to
accept money from the DAR. "We didn't want
their money, or feel it was appropriate to take
it," said Barboza.
The DAR's initial
refusal to recognize African American
descendants of early patriots led Barboza to
formalize plans for a permanent memorial
commemorating the contributions of African
Americans in America's struggle against British
rule. In
1985, Barboza signed
the memorial project’s certificate of
incorporation along with his aunt and his great
uncle, Henry Ferguson, a black veteran of
World War I.
In the early
1990s, the Patriots Foundation commissioned
internationally renowned sculptor Ed Dwight
to design the memorial. Dwight, a Denver
based artist who is highly
regarded for his depictions of African Americans,
welcomed the opportunity to work on the project
along side two local architectural firms
Devoraux & Purnell of Washington, D.C. and
EDAW of Alexandria, Virginia.
An illustration
of the memorial shows two inwardly curving
90-foot-long walls that enclose a plaza. As one
walks along the bronze walls of the memorial,
relief and freestanding sculpture figures
emerge, as if from beneath the earth. As one
progresses through the memorial, the figures
grow to life-size and break free of the wall.
The freestanding figures face west toward the
Lincoln Memorial.
When complete, the
Black Patriots Memorial will mark another
amazing chapter in Ed Dwight’s exceptional
life. By all accounts, Dwight is a modern
renaissance man. He is a former Air Force
test pilot and America's first African American
astronaut trainee. He is also a
computer systems
engineer, aviation consultant, restaurateur,
real estate developer, construction entrepreneur
and a highly respected artist with over 90
monuments located around the world.
Many of Dwight’s
works incorporate
civil rights and
national defense themes. Dwight also creates
sculptures depicting Africans before the slave
trade and their forced migration to America.
Museums, business leaders, politicians, and art
connoisseurs the world over proudly display
Dwight's metal castings -- many featuring musicians, dancers,
artists, politicians, athletes as well as civil
rights legends.
Dwight is excited
to be involved with
the Patriots
Memorial. “Anyone who
visits the hallowed ground between the Capitol
and the Lincoln Memorial knows there are no
memorials there to (commemorate) the
contributions of African Americans to the
nation's founding and its democratic
principles," said Dwight. "My goal is to use my
talents as an artist to bring a multi-racial
vibrancy to this nation and its history; and
make it a beacon, and an example, to oppressed
people throughout the world.”
Last
month, a model of the
memorial was put on display at the
PEPCO Edison Place Gallery, which is located
at 701 Ninth
Street, NW, Washington, D.C. 20068, at the Eighth
Street entrance. PEPCO, a leading
utility servicing Washington, D.C. metropolitan
area, is supporting the exhibition
along with the high-profile management firm,
The Dutko Group Companies. The exhibition
features a model of the memorial and more than 60 works by
Dwight.
At the
exhibition's opening
reception, Barboza and Dwight
joined other dignitaries, including Beverly
Perry, senior vice president for
government affairs and Public Policy for
PEPCO Holdings, Inc., and Mark Irion,
president of The Dutko Group Companies, in
greeting guests and answering questions.
Dwight has agreed to contribute the profits from the
sale of his artwork now appearing at the PEPCO
Gallery to the memorial’s
construction. "We
have this
incredible land and a design that everyone
loves, including a half dozen government
agencies. Now I'm ready to stake my career and
body of work on Americans coming forward to give
over the next ten months to get this landmark
built," Dwight explained.
All donations will be
deposited in a trust account at Bank of
America, and the funds will not be available
until all of the casting and construction costs are
met.
The Patriots
Foundation faces a short timeline. The cost of
the memorial totals $15
million, and funds must be raised from private sources by
October 27, 2005, or the site will be
forfeited.
The exhibition at the PEPCO building, which marks the
first of a series of promotions to raise
construction funds,
will be
open to the public through March 18, 2005.
To help catapult
the fundraising drive, the Patriots
Foundation has contracted EFA Fundraising
of Washington, D.C. Ladda Chang,
who founded Executive Fine Art, Inc.,
will spearhead the drive. Chang's company
represents artists nationwide, including Dwight.
She is eager to help the Patriots Foundation
raise $15 million for the memorial, despite the
narrow timeline. "Her enthusiasm is just what
the project needs," said Barboza.
One of the ways
Chang intends to build momentum for the project
is through a series of concerts at the PEPCO
gallery. The concerts will expose a wide
range of people to the memorial project and to
Dwight's artwork. Musical performances by
Vanessa Williams, Friday, February 18;
Marcus Johnson, Friday, February 25; Kim
Jordan, Friday, March 4, and Nolan
Williams, Jr., Friday, March 11 are expected
to give a significant boost to the fundraising
effort.
When complete, the
Black Revolutionary War Patriots Memorial
will inform millions of people of the enduring
contributions of African Americans in our
nation's struggle for independence.
For more
information, and to contribute, visit
http://www.efafundraising.com.
The End
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