by Lori Lakin Hutcherson (@lakinhutcherson)
According to wjla.com, The Board of Public Works in Maryland voted 3-0 to approved a contract to put bronze statues of American heroes and freedom fighters Harriet Tubman and Frederick Douglass in the Maryland State House. The statues will stand in the Old House of Delegates Chamber.
Maryland-born abolitionists Tubman and Douglass both escaped enslavement in their home state and worked in the North to secure freedom for others via speeches, protests and journalism. Tubman, known by many as “Black Moses,” went back down South personally several times to rescue and guide enslaved people to freedom via the Underground Railroad.
House delegate R. Julian Ivey asked to delay the contract, citing a lack of minority business participation in the deal. “If the state of Maryland is going to honor Ms. Tubman and Mr. Douglass, we need to do it the right way,” Ivey wrote in a letter to the board.
The contract with The Christmas Company, of Sterling, Virginia, calls for completing the work within 390 days.
Source: https://wjla.com/news/local/maryland-board-contract-harriet-tubman-frederick-douglass-statues