3WTKR: “A new monument dedicated to the African-Americans who fought for freedom in the U.S. was unveiled in Richmond, Virginia, on Wednesday, just weeks after the city removed one of the largest monuments dedicated to the Confederacy.
The Emancipation and Freedom Monument on Brown Island honors the contributions of African-Americans in Virginia who fought for freedom both before and after Emancipation.
The two 12 foot bronze statues depict a man, woman, and child newly freed from slavery.
The woman is cradling a child and holding a piece of paper with the date Jan. 1, 1863 — the date that President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation. The monument depicts the man, with whipping scars visible on his back, breaking free from a set of shackles.
Names, images, and biographies of ten Virginians whose lives represent the struggle for freedom, both before and after Emancipation, are displayed on the monument.”