Not that anyone is actually aware of that.
“I had no idea!” Miami-Dade County Democratic Rep. Ashley Gantt told the Phoenix when asked about the public unveiling of the memorial earlier this week.
Neither did Miami-Dade County Sen. Shevrin Jones.
“I had no idea the memorial had even been installed – and that says a lot,” Jones told the Phoenix. “A monument honoring the pain and resilience of enslaved Africans deserves more than a quiet placement. After seven years of work, there should have been a moment to honor that history publicly.”
Approved in 2018
The Legislature approved the memorial during the 2018 legislative session. Miami-Dade Democrat Kionne McGhee sponsored the measure in the House, and Tampa Bay-area Democratic Sen. Darryl Rouson carried it in the Senate. The bill charged the Department of Management Services with developing its design, placement, and cost. It is located at the Black Archives-Union Bank Museum on Apalachee Parkway and was installed on April 28.“The idea behind the memorial is to recognize the brutality of slavery and the cruelty of slavery towards a people and then to honor the nameless faces of individuals that suffer through slavery,” Rouson said this week
State lawmakers dedicated $400,000 to erect the memorial, as they did during the 2016 legislative session for a Holocaust Memorial that was installed at the Capital earlier this year. A public ceremony was held for that event in March, attended by Gov. DeSantis.
The monument was created by Carmel, California, sculptor Steven Whyte, selected by review committee members who called on artists to recognize “the fundamental injustice, cruelty, brutality and inhumanity of slavery in the United States and the American colonies and to honor the nameless and forgotten men, women, and children who have gone unrecognized for their undeniable and weighty contributions to the United States.”
As the House prepared to vote on the proposal in 2018, Rep. McGhee told lawmakers that slaves in 1845 helped construct the Old Capitol building in Tallahassee, according to WFSU-Radio. PolitiFact reported that although authorities were unable to find conclusive documentation about the construction, African American slaves were part of almost every facet of Florida life in the 19th Century, according to historians. PolitiFact labeled his comment “mostly true.” (McGhee, now a Miami-Dade County Commissioner, did not respond to a request for comment).
Plans for a Formal Ceremony
Rouson said he was informed by state officials that they wanted to install surveillance cameras on the property before making any formal announcement. “But now that surveillance is in place and there’s some protection in the event of vandalism, I intend to urge the Black Caucus to do more of a formal ceremony when we go back [this fall] for committee weeks,” he said.Democratic Senate Leader Lori Berman said she knew the memorial was being constructed but wasn’t aware it had been finished and is now open to the public.
“I wholeheartedly support Sen. Rouson’s efforts for a formal opening ceremony this fall — the enslaved men, women, and children who built this country deserve to have their experience remembered and their legacy honored,” she said.
Sen. Jones said he also supports Rouson’s call for a “proper ceremony when we return.”
“Our ancestors deserve to be seen and acknowledged,” he said.
Florida Phoenix is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Florida Phoenix maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Michael Moline for questions: info@floridaphoenix.com.
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This article appears in Jun 26 – Jul 2, 2025.