On May 17, 2022, after weeks of negative stories on Montpelier in the national press, the foundation that operates the Virginia plantation home of James Madison finally made good on its promise to share authority with descendants of people enslaved by the man known as the father of the U.S. Constitution.
This agreement is the result of a long struggle by this descendant community to make enslaved people more prominent in the history Montpelier offers the public.
Derek Alderman, professor of geography at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, along with colleagues from the University of Mary Washington and Georgia Southern University, wrote for The Conversation about how, although presidential plantation museums began addressing the topic of enslavement over 20 years ago, descendants were not given power over their ancestors’ stories. Read the full article on The Conversation.
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CONTACT:
Lindsey Owen (865-974-6375, lowen8@utk.edu)