Goodbye Columbus, Hello Tubman: Statue Marks New Age In Newark

NEWARK, NJ — Farewell Christopher Columbus, hello Harriet Tubman.

On Thursday, Newark officials and community members gathered in Harriet Tubman Park at the intersection of Washington and Broad Streets – formerly known as Washington Park – for the unveiling of a massive new monument to the legendary abolitionist.

Brick City native Queen Latifah was among those in attendance at the unveiling, which drew enthusiastic praise for the monument’s designer, Nina Cooke John (watch the video below). Other luminaries present at the highly anticipated event included Michele Jones Galvin – Harriet Tubman’s great-great-great-grandniece.

The statue honors Tubman, who escaped slavery in Maryland, returned to bring her family to freedom, and became one of the most iconic conductors on the Underground Railroad. The monument also includes an audio experience narrated by Latifah and crafted by Audible, which has a headquarters in the city.

Want to see how it was made? Watch some videos here.

"In a country where the overwhelming majority of monuments are testaments to white males, Newark has chosen to erect a monument to a Black woman who was barely five feet tall, but had the visage and power of a giant,” Mayor Ras Baraka said.

Council President LaMonica McIver said the tribute is long overdue.

"This is something we all can and should be proud of," she said.

The new tribute to Tubman stands on the site of a statue of Christopher Columbus that was removed by the city in 2020. That statue was donated to the city as a gift from the Italian American community in 1927. Read More: Newark Removes Columbus Monument From Washington Park

“In keeping with the movement to remove symbols of oppression and white supremacy, we have decided to remove the statue,” Baraka said at the time. “We took it down with city work crews in a safe and orderly manner, to avoid the potential danger of people taking it upon themselves to topple it.”

“The removal of this statue should not be perceived as an insult to the Italian American community,” Baraka added. “It is a statement against the barbarism, enslavement and oppression that this explorer represents.”

The decision to remove the statue has inspired its own wave of artistic interpretations, including a massive public mural on Treat Place, which depicts a young, Black girl standing in front of its base. Read More: Public Art In Newark Tells Powerful Stories About Social Justice

Newark isn’t the only municipality in Essex County to bid farewell to a Columbus monument in the recent past.

In 2019, former West Orange Mayor Robert Parisi announced that the township was removing a monument to Christopher Columbus from a local intersection because it is "divisive" and a "symbol of hate and oppression." Parisi said the decision was made after speaking to local residents and the organization that installed it and maintained it over the years. A pair of petitions — one demanding its removal and another urging its preservation — each garnered hundreds of signatures. Read More: West Orange To Remove Columbus Monument Amid Fierce Debate

While many Essex County residents have enthusiastically supported removing Columbus monuments from their towns, others have been just as staunchly opposed.

Some members of the local Italian community have pushed back against the movement to replace his statues, insisting that Columbus is a hero deserving of respect. Read More: Tributes To Columbus In Essex County: 'A Great American Holiday'

But to many people, including the designer of Newark’s newest monument, seeing Tubman’s face in the park instead of Columbus will be a welcome change.

“As a woman, a Black woman, and mother of three girls, I am delighted to bring my memorial for Harriet Tubman to life in Newark,” Cooke John said in 2021 after city officials announced her design, “Shadow of a Face,” had been chosen.

“My design creates a welcoming space for people to connect with Tubman as well as interact and reflect on their own liberation from whatever weight they might be carrying,” she said. “This is a monument for the community and by the community.”

• See Related: Monuments To Floyd, Tubman Replace Columbus In Newark

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