First Congregational United Church of Christ in Washington, D.C., in partnership with two Howard University historians, announced today the commissioning of a permanent artwork installation in memory of the enslaved laborers who worked the land when it was a tobacco plantation before Congress deeded the site to the church in 1865.
DC artist Jessica Valoris will base her work on “Slavery on G Street,” by Howard University’s Antonio Austin, a research report conducted under the supervision of Dr. Renee K. Harrison, author of Black Hands, White House (2022). To shape the piece, Jessica Valoris will facilitate listening sessions with the congregation, with the memorial artwork expected to be installed in the fall of 2024.
“We now know the names of the souls who came before us,” said Rev. Amanda Hendler-Voss, Senior Minister, “and we will ensure that they are never again forgotten.” On All Saints Sunday, October 29 at the 10:30 a.m. worship service, the congregation will speak those names in the sanctuary for the first time and invite the public. Dr. Renee K. Harrison will serve as guest preacher and lead a ritual of lament and remembrance to honor these ancestors.