A few paces from where the statue of Old Joe once honored Civil War confederate soldiers, a different group of people were honored Saturday 12 Gainesville men who were lynched after the war.
The ceremony was part of Alachua County’s truth and reconciliation project to acknowledge the extra-judicial killings often by mobs.
“In 1865, after two-and-a-half centuries of brutal enslavement, Black Americans had great hope that emancipation would finally mean real freedom and opportunity,” said the Rev. Carl Smart, an assistant county manager. “Unfortunately it quickly became clear that emancipation did not mean equality for Black people .The hope of reconstruction quickly became a nightmare of unparalleled violence and oppression.”
MIZ-ZOOM: Growth On and Off the Court
Cuonzo Martin and his players talk about everything that happened Tuesday from their disappointing loss to their trip to Montgomery
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There was a lot to learn for the Tigers from their loss Tuesday night against Auburn, but the team might have been more impacted by what they did earlier that day.
On Tuesday morning, a story broke about the Missouri Tigers basketball team making a trip to The National Memorial for Peace and Justice and Legacy Museum in Montgomery Alabama, and during their media availability this morning, Cuonzo Martin, Jeremiah Tilmon, and Javon Pickett spoke about the profound impact it had on each member of the team.