RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Richmond city officials are debating whether a memorial to the city’s slave trade should include a notoriously brutal slave trader’s name in the project.
The Richmond Times-Dispatch reports that city council members are weighing a potential name change for memorializing a jail that housed slaves near the city’s downtown.
Historical records say Robert Lumpkin’s slave jail was known for brutal conditions, and city council members are considering dropping his name for the planned memorial at the site where his jail used to sit.
City Councilman Parker Agelasto suggested the site be referred to by what black residents called Lumpkin’s jail: “The Devil’s Half Acre.”
A consulting firm hired by the city is currently asking residents for feedback on what the memorial should eventually be called.
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Information from: Richmond Times-Dispatch, http://www.timesdispatch.com
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