African Burial Ground Reopens After Unexplained Month-Long Closure

Nearly four weeks after it was closed without explanation, the African National Monument Burial Ground memorial at Duane and Elk streets reopened on Wednesday, July 10.

This is great and important news for pedestrians, public art, and history lovers—even when that history is a fraught one—and for National Park Service in New York City fans in general.

While questions remain about why public access to the Burial Ground was abruptly suspended on June 12, it was almost certainly security-related, and its relatively prompt restoration is a reassuring sign that the various stakeholders understand the monument’s importance.

In February, this was reflected in a moving Black History Month event, co-hosted by Council Member Christopher Marte and Assembly Member Charles F. Fall, one of numerous public programs held here throughout the year.

Fortunately, the monument’s Visitor Center, whose entrance is at 290 Broadway, remained open during the actual burial grounds’ closure, maintaining its usual hours of Tuesday through Saturday, 10am to 4pm.

According to the only news outlet that reported the closure, Pix 11, which didn’t break the story until Wednesday, June 18, Juneteenth Eve, there was social media post that read:

“The African Burial Ground National Monument Outdoor Memorial will be closed until further notice to ensure the protection of the monument resources and the safety of our visitors.”

An alert on the official NPS website, ironically posted on June 19, Juneteenth itself: “The outdoor grounds at African Burial Ground National Monument are closed until further notice. The Visitor Center remains open.”

Subsequent conversations with NYPD cops, FPS police, National Park Service employees, and various downtown political aides all proved unenlightening.

While this wasn’t surprising, and implicitly confirmed the closure was security-related, it was frustrating. As much as the nearby 9/11 and NYPD memorials, the Burial Ground is a sacred spot with immense public and private significance, and access should be as unrestricted as possible.

The dedicatory inscription on the memorial wall suggests why: “For all those who were lost. For all those who were stolen. For all those who were left behind. For all those who were not forgotten.”

The Closure of Duane and Elk Streets

Wait, the informed reader might ask, how can an outdoor monument be closed? Isn’t at least its exterior—which in this case includes a black marble sculptural wall set within an open lot—visible from the street? You might not be able to enter it, but you can still see it, yes?

The answer is yes, one could still see it, except that both Duane and Elk streets were also closed off with barrier fences guarded by both NYPD and armed private security guards contracted by the Federal Protective Service (FPS), whose job it is protect federal government facilities.

Lest anyone see anything sinister, or “Trumpian,” in this, the use of private security guards by the FPS is nothing new. The department has been authorized by Congress to employ special police officers since 1961—when the president was John F. Kennedy; both houses of Congress were controlled by Democrats; and the FPS was part of the General Services Administration (GSA).

Following the events of 9/11, FPS was transferred from the GSA to the Department of Homeland Security in 2002.

The African National Burial Ground owes its present-day existence to the property it adjoins: namely 290 Broadway.

Opened in 1994, the 34-story edifice was officially renamed the Ted Weiss Federal Building to honor its namesake, a liberal, Jewish, Upper West Side City Council Member who afterward served as a US Congressman from 1977 until his death in 1992. Weiss was succeeded in his seat by Jerrold Nadler.

It was at this site, during excavation of the then-unnamed building in 1991, that human remains were found, eventually totaling 419 bodies, leading to the rediscovery of what had been the Negros Burial Ground. The discovery—bolstered by protests—led to a partial redesign of the federal building plans and the creation of the monument.

It’s unknown how many people were buried in the cemetery before it was built over, but it was likely many thousands.

The memorial, designed by Brooklyn natives Rodney Leon and Nicole Hollant-Denis of AARIS architects, opened in 2007, with the visitor center inside 290 Broadway following in 2010.

Where the policies of President Trump and access to the African National Burial Ground overlap is in the adminstration’s highly controversial, especially in New York City, immigration policies.

Because both federal Immigration Court and the New York City field office of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) are located in 26 Federal Plaza, the Javits Building has been the site of numerous protests and observation missions by various pro-migrant groups and individuals. Some of these events turned violent, with various activists grappling with NYPD cops outside the Javits Building and NYC Comptroller Brad Lander being arrested inside of it.

However one feels about the enforcement of federal immigration laws, it’s unfortunate that the outdoor memorial of the African National Burial Ground was collateral damage. .

On July 10, an exclamatory Facebook post announced, “We are pleased to share that the African Burial Ground Outdoor Memorial is now open to the public! Visit us Tuesday through Saturday from 10am to 4pm to explore this historic site and honor the legacy of the Ancestors at the monument. We can’t wait to welcome you!”