The protest is in regard to the HOC's plan with partner Regency Centers to build a parking garage on the historic cemetery, which holds many residents of the lost community established there on River Road after Maryland Emancipation. That community was wiped out by developers in the mid-1950s. Now, with the cemetery scandal - here we go again, another example of the institutional racism against black landowners in Montgomery County.
SURJ, Macedonia Baptist Church, descendants of those buried in the cemetery, and their supporters in the community are asking the HOC to allow the church to conduct a valid archaeological study of the burial site, and to publicly acknowledge that the sacred nature of it outweighs their development plans.
Participants in the protest should bring signs to hold. Suggested messages include:
DON'T PARK ON ME, HOC (my personal favorite)
BLACK LIVES MATTER IN LIFE AND IN DEATH
BLACK ANCESTORS MATTER
BLACK BURIAL PLACES MATTER
NO PARKING GARAGE OVER CEMETERY
AFFORDABLE HOUSING--YES! CEMETERY DESECRATION--NO!
Be forewarned that parking is very limited, as all of the parking lots are hogged by HOC, despite all we the taxpayers contribute to the HOC. There are some street parking spaces, and the surrounding residential neighborhood has permit parking restrictions. For that reason, carpool if you can.
31 comments:
"Be forewarned that parking is very limited, as all of the parking lots are hogged by HOC"
HOC employees parking in the parking lot of the HOC? Quelle scandale.
justice Wednesdays?
Whats the over/under on how many post? Considering the pic shows 11, that must be the line and I pick under.
6:14: You've obviously never been to HOC. They have massive parking lots, but they're all gated/or closed to the public.
"You've obviously never been to HOC. They have massive parking lots, but they're all gated/or closed to the public."
The HOC office is at the former Kensington Elementary School. The parking lot is not "massive" by any stretch of the imagination.
7:12/7:10: Your comments are not only off-topic, but show a lack of knowledge of Civil War history, and a desire on your part to cover-up Montgomery County's role in the Confederacy during it. Those were some of the same factors that led the County to try to whitewash its racist past by moving the statue. That same motivation is part of the effort to suppress the true history of the African-American community along River Road, and the direct link to slavery in "liberal" Bethesda, Maryland.
No wonder you oppose a museum that would showcase that history.
Choosing not to honor traitors and slaveowners is "whitewashing Montgomery County's racist past"?
Really, Dyer? How is it you manage to come up with these notions that are the complete opposite of reality?
How many of your friends in the MBC and the cemetery would agree with your position on the statue?
"County to try to whitewash its racist past by moving the statue"
Even if this statement was correct (which its not), you think its better for the county to "continue" its advocacy of racism by keeping the statue up???
7:55: Removing all physical trace of Montgomery County's racist past is indeed whitewashing.
8:08: Now you're claiming that a soldier in war can be termed a "terrorist?" The South didn't try to take over the North; they seceded. Let's try to stick to the facts, including Montgomery County's significant support for the Confederacy, including some names that appear on local roads and landmarks, and MoCo's legacy of slavery.
Those are the facts, Mr Dyer.
"The event that triggered war came at Fort Sumter in Charleston Bay on April 12, 1861. Claiming this United States fort as their own, the Confederate army on that day opened fire on the federal garrison and forced it to lower the American flag in surrender." - The Civil War Trust
You might want to read up on Rockville during the war:
http://www.peerlessrockville.org/historic-rockville/rockvilles-past/the-civil-war-in-rockville/
Facts:
Montgomery County did not absolutely "support the Confederacy". Allegiances in the county were divided, just like most of Maryland. Support was strongest on the Eastern Shore and in Southern Maryland (where the vast majority of slaves were located), but far weaker in Northern and Western Maryland.
Most of the original 13 states supported slavery at some point. By the time of the Civil War, Maryland, Delaware, Missouri, and (what is now) West Virginia were caught in the middle. Slavery was technically legal in these states, but Maryland and Delaware had very large populations of free blacks and ultimately decided not to secede with the South.
Yes, you are correct that slavery and racism is part of the county and state's history, but is that something to celebrate? It makes even less sense when you consider the long decline in slavery in the decades before the Civil War and the fact that Maryland remained within the Union, effectively making the Confederacy "the enemy"
I will go with the under most dyers pics show 6-7 people attending, a couple other slow adults like dyer and 3 people from the church
Dyer great review on nuggets douche
Why do people refer to you as a slow adult Robert? Are you partially mentally retarded?
Yes he is! Have you ever heard him speak? That is why he doesn't interview anyone
10:09: Maryland only didn't secede because it was occupied by Union forces to prevent it from doing so. Lincoln himself was forced to sneak like a coward in disguise through Baltimore just to make it to his train in one piece. The alternative history that Maryland was squarely on the "right side of history" is simply fiction.
This is so inaccurate. It's not certain the bones are even there and if they are, they should be moved as the place is not even a cemetery and has not been for over 50 years.
Good to know Hans Riemer supporters are still using the R-word. Enlightened Montgomery County voters will remember that when they go to the polls in 2018. Disgraceful!
Agreed with Robert on the Maryland history thing. They have whitewashed themselves. People should learn from their ancestors' mistakes.
Yup..
All the reason we need the museum at Westbard with the cemetery.
Saith Dyer @ 8:42: "How dare you call a representative of MoCo's racist past, a terrorist?"
10:22
You conveniently forgot the majority of the legislature (including the entirety of Western MD) and the Maryland governor were opposed to secession. Maryland was never going to secede, regardless of Lincoln's actions, which were certainly warranted.
Again I find it funny that you're labeling Lincoln as a "coward" at the same time you claim to be an advocate for the graves of slaves.
If you love the good ol' Confederacy so much, why you're certainly free to move there. Not much has changed in the past 150 years in most parts of it.
Really 11:30 AM? I think the South is a very fine place where it has changed very much so compared to most areas. Integration actually happened in the South. It never happened in the North. Why is it you can drive miles upon miles through the Northeast and Midwest yet never find a single African American? Once you get rid of parts of the deep south, its more inclusive than most of the Northeast.
3:24pm you are truly deranged.
I doubt Hans wants your support or be associated with you in any way.
I and thousands of other MoCo serfs will vote for Robert Dyer in 2018 because some anonymous commenter on his blog called him retarded.
Saaayy... isn't that Dan McHugh in the rear of that picture? The guy who likes every single article that Dyer posts on his Facebook page - and who is always the ONLY one who likes them?
5:39pm you're friends with Dyer on Facebook?
5:43 PM - Yes. I'm a mole. :)
Aspergers is more likely.
["You've obviously never been to HOC. They have massive parking lots, but they're [all gated/or closed to the public."
[The HOC office is at the former Kensington Elementary School. The parking lot is [not "massive" by any stretch of the imagination.
This is true. See for yourself:
https://goo.gl/maps/AHafR9hr5Uw
What you see in terms of parking is during off hours. HOC has hundreds of employees and not enough parking. If you arrive late enough, you are often forced to park in that strip to the north of the parking lot, as the front is reserved for visitors.
A minor detail, but one that highlights the biased nature of the author.
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