Join Historic Sotterley for our Day of Unity and Healing – a Celebration and Remembrance of African American Spirit and Culture. On August 20, 2022, we will remember, honor, and celebrate African American history, culture, and heritage. This all-day event remembers those that perished on the transatlantic voyage aboard the Generous Jenny, honors our ancestral connections and celebrates the strength, resilience, and courage we find inside ourselves today. This will be a day of gospel music, spoken word performances, and living history experiences. As a UNESCO Site of Memory for Routes of Enslaved Peoples, Historic Sotterley will not only commemorate our shared past, allowing us to remember and memorialize our history, but bring us together to celebrate our vision for a future of racial unity and hope. All are welcome, and mark your calendars for a truly amazing event.

 

Day of Unity and Healing will occur rain or shine! We will have some tents to protect guests, but recommend a rain jacket or umbrella for moving between areas if the forecast is looking rainy on Saturday.

 

This event is made possible by the generous support of Richard and Julia Moe, Baldwin Briscoe & Steinmetz, PNC Bank, and the National Trust for Historic Preservation through the National Endowment for the Humanities’ American Rescue Plan Humanities Grantmaking for Organizations.

 

If you’re participating in this event, please use the hashtag #DayofUnity2022 to post pictures and thoughts from the day on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn!

 

Schedule

Remembrance Ceremony @ 10:00 am

Welcome Janice Briscoe, Historic Sotterley Board of Trustee President, Sotterley Descendent

Introduction of MC Janice Walthour, Interim President, NAACP – Nancy Easterling, Executive Director, Historic Sotterley

Piscataway Clan Tribe Land Acknowledgement, Francis Gray, Piscataway Conoy Tribal Chair

Native American Water Blessing and Thanksgiving Prayer – Janel Turner, Native American Women Warriors

Call to Prayer/Shofar – Josh Grossman

Blessing – Liz Mildenstein, Congregation Sha’are Shalom President

First Missionary Baptist Church Men’s Chorus

African American Ancestral Libation Ceremony – Janice Curtis Green, Commissioner on the Maryland Commission of African American History and Culture, American Griot as Harriet Tubman

Prayer for Descendants connected to Historic Sites – Reverend Dante Eubanks, New Covenant Christian Worship Center, Pastor, Sotterley Descendent

Middle Passage Poem (by Robert Hayden) Travis Mitchell, Senior Vice-President Chief Content Officer, Maryland Public Television

Middle Passage Project – Ann Cobb, Executive Director, Middle Passage Port Marker’s Project

Sotterley’s Journey to becoming a site of Remembrance – Jeanne Pirtle

First Missionary Baptist Church Men’s Chorus

Release of flowers by children at Creekside

Spoken Word by Zenobia Dyson, Founder, Spoken Colors Evangelism Ministry

Prayer for Racial Unity – Dr. Wilson Morales, Encounter Christian Center Lead Pastor

New Covenant House of Prayer Children’s Worship Ministry

Dedication @ the Slave Cabin @ 11:30 am

Welcome Janice Briscoe, Historic Sotterley Board of Trustee President, Sotterley Descendent

Introduction Nancy Easterling, Executive Director, Historic Sotterley

Prayer and Reflection -Dr. Francine Dove – Hawkins,

Harriet Tubman Narrative – Janice Curtis Green, Commissioner on the Maryland Commission of African American History and Culture, American Griot

St Peter Claver Gospel Choir Worship Ministry

Dedication of Benches -Gwendoline Bankins, Historic Secretary Board of Trustees, Sotterley Descendent

Comments and Remarks: Nancy Easterling, Janice Briscoe, Dr. Martina P. Callum, M.D., Sotterley Descendant

African Libation for those who were enslaved – Dr. Francine Dove- Hawkins

Community opportunity to pour libations for their ancestors

St Peter Claver Gospel Choir worship selection to move up Rolling Road to main level

Afternoon break 12:00 pm to 2:00 pm

Food Truck

Manor House – Open House Tours

Living History Experience (North Gatehouse/Schoolhouse)

Colonial Revival Garden Talks

Land, Lives and Labor Exhibit (Corn Crib)

Waterman and Tobacco Farming Exhibit (Pavilion)

African American Quilt Displays (Barn)

Community Partners (Barn)

Creative Expressions (Barn)

Stone Legacy Art Project – Painting Project for Children (Near Visitor Center)

Visitor Center/Museum Store Open

MedStar St. Mary’s Health Connections

St. Mary’s County Health Department Outreach

Celebration of the African American Spirit and Culture @ 2:30 pm

2:15 pm to 2:30 pm Southern Maryland Community Mass Choir

Welcome – Janice Briscoe, Historic Sotterley Board of Trustee President, Sotterley Descendent

Introduction of Afternoon MC, Maya Davis, Director of the Riversdale House Museum – Nancy Easterling, Executive Director, Historic Sotterley

Sotterley’s Story – Donald Barber, Historic Sotterley Board Trustee, Sotterley Descendant

Prayer – Gwendoline Bankins, Historic Secretary Board of Trustees, Sotterley Descendent

The African American Spirit – Janice Curtis Green, Commissioner on the Maryland Commission of African American History and Culture, American Griot as Harriet Tubman

The journey endured by our enslaved ancestors – Jerome Spears, Sotterley Descendant

Ringing of the Bell by pre-arranged Descendant Family Groups

Lift Every Voice – Southern Maryland Community Mass Choir

Keynote Speaker – Maryland State Senator Michael Jackson

Call to Action Education/History – Dr. Tuajuanda Jordan, President, St Mary’s College of Maryland

Ancestry Call to Action – Angela Wilson, Sotterley Descendant

Importance of accuracy and verification of facts with ancestry – Dante Eubanks, Sotterley Descendant

What it means to be involved as a Descendant at an Historic Site -Gwendoline Bankins

Introduction of “Sotterley: Talking and Walking Common Ground” – Merideth Taylor, Film Writer/Director, former member Historic Sotterley Board of Trustees

Film Premiere – “Sotterley: Talking and Walking Common Ground”

Invitation to give voice to our enslaved ancestors through Roll call (community)

Winners of Creative Expressions Contest announced

Southern Maryland Community Mass Choir worship selections

Closing Remarks – Nancy Easterling

Prayer – Pastor Wesley Mackall, Lead Pastors of Love Temple Church

 

Creative Expressions Contest

As a part of this event, we will be holding a Creative Expressions Contest to honor the themes of the day.

Winners of the contest will receive a cash prize, and all submitted work will be on loan for a year to be displayed at Historic Sotterley and any libraries or galleries we partner with. Artists will be notified of public exhibits of their work, and the art will be returned to them at the end of the year. There is no entry fee for submission. See below for requirements, themes, and categories.

For questions or details on submitting your work, please contact Gwen Bankins at msgwen623@gmail.com

Requirements:

• All artwork or creative expressions must be original
• A completed packet of required forms must be turned in with submission
• Artists under 18 years of age may enter, but a parent or legal guardian must sign a release form
• No offensive, derogatory, disparaging, or inappropriate references to any group or person
• No unlawful material or content in violation of state or local law
• No third-party advertisements, logos, slogans, trademarks, or characters

Themes:

• From Slavery to Freedom
• The link between slavery and racism
• Southern Maryland and the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade
• The Underground Railroad
• Tobacco Farming and Southern Maryland
• Racial Unity
• Overcoming Racial Injustice

Categories:

• Written Essay, Spoken Word, or Poetry
• Drawings, Paintings, Posters, Storyboards
• Photographs (Photo release required)
• Mixed Media (Digital) / Multi-media / performance art
• Woodwork, Sculptures (weight not to exceed 20 lbs)