Abstract:
In 2002, historical research revealed that Philadelphia’s new Liberty Bell Pavilion was
to be built at the former location of President George Washington’s Philadelphia home—a site
where America’s first President held nine slaves in bondage through a legal loophole. A public
controversy soon erupted over the paradoxical coexistence of liberty and slavery during
America’s founding, the importance of recognizing slavery’s centrality in American history, and
the inclusion of Black Americans within the country’s commemorative landscape. The
controversy ultimately illustrates the contested nature of slavery’s legacy and the challenges
inherent in public memory construction.
