McEachin to host town hall with Congressional Black Caucus members June 22
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U.S. Rep. Donald McEachin (D-Henrico) will host members of the Congressional Black Caucus in Richmond June 22 for the 400th commemoration of the first captive Africans’ arrival in English North America, for the official dedication of Arthur Ashe Boulevard and for a State of Black America town hall.
In addition to McEachin, the caucus members attending will include Chair Karen Bass from California, Rep. John Lewis from Georgia, Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee from Texas, Rep. Robert “Bobby” Scott from Virginia and others.
The first captive Africans in North America arrived at Point Comfort, Virginia, in 1619, and the ceremony for the opening of Virginia’s 400th anniversary exhibition, Determined: The 400-Year Struggle for Black Equality, as well as the dedication of Arthur Ashe Boulevard, will take place at 11 a.m. Saturday at the Virginia Museum of History and Culture Robins Family Forum, located at 428 North Arthur Ashe Boulvard.
The Determined exhibition will highlight black Virginians who contributed to America’s founding and development, the evolution of civil rights and contemporary culture and will feature almost 100 artifacts, including slavery-era restraints, tennis shoes worn by Arthur Ashe, a lunch counter stool from Woolworth Department Store, a pamphlet signed by Dr. Martin Luther King Junior, a tear-gas canister from the events in Charlottesville in the summer of 2017 and rare copies of the Emancipation Proclamation of the 13th Amendment signed by Abraham Lincoln. The exhibition is part of AMERICAN EVOLUTION, the state commission formed to commemorate the 400th anniversary of key historical events that happened in Virginia in 1619.
The State of Black American town hall will take place at 2 p.m. at the same location and will be co-moderated by Samantha Willis, a journalist and writer, and Ravi K. Perry, who holds a doctorate in political science and is the chair of political science at Virginia Commonwealth University. Members of the caucus will discuss issues affecting black Americans ranging from healthcare to the environment to reproductive health and rights.
