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African American
Related: About this forumCrosspost from GD: Retired Lawyer Opens First US Slave Museum
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10027725389WALLACE, LA.
Unlike other antebellum plantations on the winding River Road along the Mississippi known for their manicured gardens and as exotic locations for weddings, Whitney Plantation has a much different purpose: It wants to tell thousands of visitors each year the tragic story of slavery in the United States.
The force behind the first slavery museum in the US, which opened in December 2014, is John Cummings, a real estate magnate and retired New Orleans trial lawyer who has spent $8.6 million of his own money redeveloping the 250-acre site dotted with swampland and banana trees.
Mr. Cummings has been working on the Whitney Plantation museum ever since he purchased the former sugar-cane fields from a petrochemical company 16 years ago.
In researching the history of the plantation, he found household inventories from former owners that showed that the second most valuable property here next to the real estate was slaves, he says. One female slave was described as a good breeder. She was worth more than a woman who did not have many kids.
http://m.csmonitor.com/World/Making-a-difference/2016/0324/A-retired-lawyer-opens-first-US-slavery-museum-with-8.6-million-of-his-money
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Crosspost from GD: Retired Lawyer Opens First US Slave Museum (Original Post)
OneGrassRoot
Mar 2016
OP
Dustlawyer
(10,495 posts)1. We need to learn the real history of this abominable era and practice.
Mary Mahoneys (sp) is a restaurant in Biloxi, MS., that is mentioned in two of John Grisham's books. I went there before Hurricane Katrina and discovered that they still had the slaves quarters that were next to the old and famous restaurant. Just seeing the dirt floors and small, closet sized "rooms" gives you a small idea of what it was like. I don't know if this survived the storm or was rebuilt, but this museum is long overdue.
I would like to thank my fellow "ambulance chaser" for what he has done. Not all of our bad reputation as attorneys is deserved.
OneGrassRoot
(22,920 posts)2. I know quite a few of you good guys and gals...
and I'm grateful to each and every one of you doing such important work with integrity.