Congressman Dan Goldman Announces Partnership Between African Burial Ground Memorial and Foundation and National Park Service

 

 

New York, NY – Congressman Dan Goldman (NY-10) yesterday joined the African Burial Ground Memorial Foundation (ABGMF), the U.S. National Park Service, and the Department of the Interior to announce their newly established Philanthropic Partnership Agreement, which enables the ABGMF to provide resources and support towards maintaining and operating the site. This announcement follows a letter written by Congressman Goldman’s office in support of the ABGMF’s application of 501(c)(3) nonprofit tax status, which was a prerequisite for entering the partnership.

 

The African Burial Ground currently holds the remains of an estimated 15,000 free and enslaved Africans and early-generation African Americans from the colonial era and is one of the most historically important monuments to Black History in New York.

 

“This new partnership between the African Burial Ground Memorial Foundation and the National Park Service – which has been years in the making – is critical to the continued funding, operation, and maintenance of the African Burial Ground site,” Congressman Dan Goldman said. “The African Burial Ground is one of the most historically important monuments to Black History in New York. I am proud to have helped the foundation receive the nonprofit status necessary to enter this partnership, and I will continue to work alongside the foundation – helmed by the monument's architect Rodney Leon – and the National Park Service in the effort to preserve the history of free and enslaved Africans in New York.”

 

Rodney Leon, President of the African Burial Ground Memorial Foundation said, “Congressman Dan Goldman and staff, we thank you for being a central part of our inaugural celebration and announcement on Thursday, December 12th, 2024 at the African Burial Ground National Monument. This event officially marked the establishment of a Philanthropic Partnership between the African Burial Ground Memorial Foundation and the US National Park Service. This historic moment was only made possible because of the support and advocacy that you and others have provided to our efforts to establish this foundation over the last 2 years. Thank you again, for continuing to work tirelessly and selflessly to protect and preserve this sacred national legacy.”

 

This announcement follows Congressman Goldman’s continued work to support the African Burial Ground Monument.

 

In February of last year, he announced the introduction of the ‘African Burial Ground International Memorial Museum and Educational Center Act’ alongside Congressman Jerry Nadler (NY-12) to establish a museum and education center at the African Burial Ground.

 

In May, Goldman called on the National Park Service to make essential repairs to the African Burial Ground National Monument. These repairs are needed to reopen the Ancestral Chamber, which is currently closed due to multiple hairline fractures in the foundation of the exhibit that make it unsafe.