By: Richard L. Smith
Today, the People’s Organization for Progress, in collaboration with Friends of Nat Turner Park, will host the 15th annual commemoration of the Nat Turner Uprising.
The event, marking the 193rd anniversary of the historic rebellion, is set to begin at 5 p.m. at Nat Turner Park, located at the intersection of Muhammad Ali Avenue and Jeliff Avenue in Newark.
The Nat Turner Rebellion, which took place on August 21, 1831, in Southampton County, Virginia, remains one of the most significant moments in the fight against slavery in the United States.
Though the uprising was ultimately suppressed, it ignited fierce debate about the institution of slavery and fueled the abolitionist movement, even as it led to harsher laws aimed at preserving slavery.
Speakers and participants at the event will include South Jersey activist Blair Silver, a descendant of Nat Turner, and Queen Mother Imakhu, an activist, artist, and priest from Newark’s chapter of the National Action Network. Imakhu's ancestor, Billy Artis, is said to have taken part in Turner’s rebellion.
Lawrence Hamm, the founding chairman of the People’s Organization for Progress, emphasized the importance of remembering the resistance of enslaved people, stating,
"We hold this observance of Nat Turner’s Rebellion every year because it is important to appreciate that our ancestors never accepted slavery and resisted it at every turn they could."
The City of Newark dedicated Nat Turner Park in 2009 as a tribute to Turner’s legacy.
For more information about the commemoration or the organization’s ongoing work, the public is encouraged to contact the People’s Organization for Progress at 973-801-0001.
