African American Monument depicts a family standing on broken chains

The bronze family stands in present-day clothes, arms around one another, positioned atop a set of broken chains. Below them, a granite base bears an inscription written by Maya Angelou that details the experience of those stolen from the African Continent. The text describes the conditions within the holds of slave ships, where people were forced to lie back to belly in the waste of others, often dying during the crossing and being thrown overboard.

When the monument was dedicated in 2002, this inscription became the subject of a public dispute. David Jones, a member of the city council at the time, argued that the description was too graphic and that he did not want to be reminded of those conditions every time he looked at the site. Mayor Floyd Adams Jr also opposed the inclusion of the original text.

In January 2002, Maya Angelou sent the city council an addition to her own words to address these concerns. She provided the final sentence of the inscription, which reads: Today we are standing up together with faith and even some joy. The council voted unanimously to accept this amended version in May 2002.

The monument exists largely due to the efforts of Dr. Abigail Jordan. She spent more than a decade persuading the city to allow a public acknowledgement of Savannah’s role in the slave trade and personally contributed $100,000 toward the project.

A plaque recognizing Dr. Jordan’s role in the creation of the monument was added to the base in July 2019.