* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting. [Press Conference: “Evergreen Cemetery Discovery”] [00:00:58] I'LL BE HEARING FROM VERY SHORTLY. UH, BISHOP DIXON, OF COURSE, IS NOT ONLY, UH, THE PA A PASTOR, UH, BUT ALSO THE HEAD OF THE, UH, HOUSTON CHAP CHAPTER OF THE NAACP, AND JUST, JUST A NUMBER OF DISTINGUISHED INDIVIDUALS, CHIEF TROY FENNER OF HPD, AND A NUMBER OF MY DEPARTMENT HEADS AND DIRECTORS. UH, LOOK, WE ARE, WE ARE STANDING HERE, UH, QUITE FRANKLY, UM, ON HISTORIC GROUNDS, UH, RIGHT HERE IN IN FIFTH WARD. AND TO JUST PROVIDE SOME GENERAL CONTEXT BEFORE I, BEFORE I GET STARTED, UM, EVERGREEN NEGRO CEMETERY, UH, IS A HISTORIC, UH, CEMETERY, UH, NOT JUST, UH, IN THE CITY OF HOUSTON, NOT JUST IN FIFTH WARD, UH, BUT IN, BUT IN THE STATE, IN THE STATE OF, IN THE STATE OF TEXAS. UM, AND IT KIND OF GOES EVERYWHERE FROM ABOUT 1890 OR SO TO ABOUT 1966, UH, BUT WAS QUITE ACTIVE BETWEEN 1910 AND THE 19, THE 1930S, UH, IN EVERGREEN NEGRO CEMETERY. AND I, AND I, AND I SAY THAT VERY INTENTIONALLY, UH, BECAUSE YOU HAVE, UM, YOU HAVE EX-SLAVES THAT ARE BURIED IN, IN, IN THIS CEMETERY. YOU HAVE PEOPLE FROM FIFTH WARD, UH, RESIDENTS OF FIFTH WARD BURIED HERE, UH, BUFFALO SOLDIERS BURIED RIGHT HERE IN EVERGREEN NEGRO CEMETERY. YOU HAVE VETERANS FROM WORLD WAR I WHO ARE BURIED HERE. SO A NUMBER OF NOTABLE INDIVIDUALS, UH, ARE BURIED HERE. AND BECAUSE OF THE HISTORIC NATURE, SOME WITH NAMES ON, ON, UM, ON THE, UM, THE, SOME ON THE, UH, MARKERS. MARKERS AND THEN SOME WITHOUT, WITHOUT NAMES. UM, WE ARE STANDING ON A SITE THAT EXEMPLIFIES THE WORK. METRO, UH, IS ALSO DOING TO IMPROVE HOUSTON'S TRANSPORTATION INFRASTRUCTURE. UH, THIS INCLUDES, UH, METRO'S UNIVERSITY, UM, BUS RAPID TRANSIT LINES AND WORK TO IMPROVE DRAINAGE ALONG LOCKWOOD DRIVE, UH, IN, IN FIFTH WARD. UH, SOME OF YOU, AS I'VE INDICATED MAY KNOW, AND SOME OF YOU MAY HAVE BEEN AROUND, UH, IN THE SIXTIES, WELL, QUITE FRANKLY, IT WAS IN THE 19 ABOUT, IN THE 1940S, UH, THAT THIS LOCKWOOD CAME THROUGH, UH, THIS CEMETERY EVERGREEN NEGRO CEMETERY. IT WAS A TWO-WAY LANE, UM, CAME THROUGH AT, AT THAT TIME. UM, AND SO THAT GOES INTO THE 19, INTO THE 1940S. UH, AND THEN, UH, IN THE 1960, ABOUT 1960, UH, THE CITY ALONG WITH THIS CAME, CONTRACTORS CAME THROUGH AGAIN, AND IT WENT FROM LIKE TWO, TWO LANES, UH, TO XPLAN IN, IN BETWEEN. BUT THE BOTTOM LINE IS THAT EVEN IN THE 1940S, UH, THE CITY OF HOUSTON, UH, BUILT THIS TWO LANE ROAD LOCKWOOD, RIGHT THROUGH EVERGREEN NEGRO CEMETERY. UH, AND THE REALITY IS A LOT OF THE INFRASTRUCTURE DONE IN THE CITY OF HOUSTON, UH, DURING THIS TIME, THE FORTIES, THE FIFTIES AND SIXTIES, REALLY CUT THROUGH HISTORIC AFRICAN AMERICAN, UH, ASSETS OR SPACES, UH, DIVIDING, UM, AND RIGHT THROUGH, AND THIS IS, THIS IS, THIS IS THE SAME WAY THAT HAPPENED HERE. UH, EVERGREEN NEGRO CEMETERY IS THE THIRD OLDEST AFRICAN AMERICAN CEMETERY IN HOUSTON, ACCORDING TO THE TEXAS STATE HISTORICAL ASSOCIATION. AND AT ONE TIME, THE SITE WAS OWNED BY ONE OF THE FOUNDERS, FIFTH WARD RESIDENT BUSINESSMAN, AND FORMER SLAVE AK [00:05:01] KELLY. AND THERE'S A LOT OF HISTORY HERE, AND WE ARE STANDING NEAR THAT SACRED GROUND. AND THERE ARE PEOPLE WHO KNOW THIS STORY, UH, BETTER PROBABLY THAN THAN MOST WHO ARE HERE IN 1960, CITY OF HOUSTON, FIRST EXPANDED LOCKWOOD DRIVE WITH THE INSTALLATION OF THIS XPLAN AND THE WORK SPLIT THE CEMETERY. AND THEN WHEN LOCKWOOD WAS EXPANDED, THE CITY AGREED THAT ALL OF THE CASKETS, THOSE WHO WERE BURIED HERE AND TURD HERE, WOULD BE RELOCATED IN THE CEMETERY ON BOTH SIDES OF LOCKWOOD. UH, THEY REACHED OUT TO MANY OF THE FAMILIES AND ASKED FOR THEIR PERMISSION. UH, BUT THE UNDERSTANDING THAT WAS MADE BY THE CITY OF HOUSTON TO THOSE FAMILIES, UH, TO THE COMMUNITY, IS THAT THOSE BODIES WOULD BE, UM, RESPECT, RESPECTFULLY REMOVED AND THEN PLACED ON BOTH SIDES OF LOCKWOOD IN THE CEMETERY. AND SOME WOULD SAY THAT THEY REMOVED AS MANY AS 400, LET'S SAY, GIVE OR TAKE, BUT THEY WERE SUPPOSED TO HAVE REMOVED ALL OF THEM, ALL OF THEM, UM, AND PLACED THEM RESPECTFULLY ON BOTH SIDE. UH, AS PART OF THE ARCHEOLOGICAL DUE DILIGENCE BEING CONDUCTED RECENTLY BY METRO, UH, DURING THE PLANNING PHASE OF THIS NEW PROJECT, WHAT WAS DIS, UH, IT WAS DISCOVERED THAT NOT ALL OF THOSE BODIES HAD BEEN REMOVED IN THE XPLAN. IN FACT, ABOUT 33 GRAVE SITES, UH, WERE FOUND UNDERNEATH THE EXPLANATION OF THE 33 GRAVE LOCATIONS RECORDED, UH, 30 WERE IDENTIFIED AS BEING MY NOTES, SAY, SAY, UH, DISINTERRED. PRIOR TO THE ROAD CONSTRUCTION IN THE 1960S, THE CREWS DISCOVERED THE REMAINS OF THREE PEOPLE, OF THREE PEOPLE REMAINING IN THESE GRAVE SITES, UH, AND ALSO DISCOVERED SOME PERSONAL EFFECTS. THE DISCOVERY IS BOTH DISTURBING AND DISAPPOINTING. UH, AND IT IS CLEAR, UH, THAT THE CITY AND ITS CONTRACTORS DID NOT REMOVE ALL OF THE PERSONS, UH, THAT WERE BURIED IN EVERGREEN NEGRO CEMETERY. AND ESPECIALLY AS IT RELATES TO THE EXPLANATION IT DOESN'T GO UNNOTICED, UH, THAT THIS IS A HISTORIC CEMETERY. UH, AND THIS INFRASTRUCTURE RAN RIGHT THROUGH, RIGHT THROUGH IT. UH, I HAVE IN CONVERSATIONS WITH METRO, UH, WITH THE CEO, UH, WITH THE CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD, SANJAY RAM AND THEIR TEAMS ON, UH, FRIDAY OF LAST WEEK, UH, ASK THAT EVERYTHING BE SUSPENDED SO THAT WE CAN CHECK AND DOUBLE CHECK, UH, ON WHAT REMAINS REMAIN THERE. UM, AND WE WILL WORK CLOSELY WITH PROJECT RESPECT AND THE FIFTH WARD COMMUNITY TO ENSURE THAT THE RECENTLY DISCOVERED REMAINS ARE PROPERLY AND RESPECTFULLY RELOCATED, UH, AND THAT EVERGREEN NEGRO CEMETERY IS PRESERVED AND MAINTAINED. UH, WE WILL ENSURE THAT APPROPRIATE, UH, STEPS ARE TAKEN TO MAKE SURE THAT WE HONOR THOSE WHO HAVE BEEN BURIED HERE AND HONOR THE HISTORY OF THOSE WHO HAVE BEEN BURIED HERE. AND QUITE FRANKLY, JUST, UM, DISAPPOINTED ON THE WORK THAT WAS DONE IN THE 1960S AND HOW IT WAS DONE. IT WAS ONE THING TO PUT THE INFRASTRUCTURE THROUGH THE CEMETERY IN THE 1940S, THEN TO COME BACK IN THE 1960S, UH, TO PUT THE LANES ON BOTH SIDES WITH THE EXPLAN IN BETWEEN, AND THEN NOT DO THE WORK IN THE MANNER IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN DONE. AND QUITE FRANKLY, TO RESPECT THOSE WHO WERE BURIED IN THIS CEMETERY. AND NOW WE ARE FACED IN 2023, UH, WITH THE TASK OF, UM, HONORING THOSE WHO WERE BURIED HERE, THEIR DESCENDANTS, THE PEOPLE IN THIS COMMUNITY, UM, AND RECOGNIZING THAT THIS IS A HISTORIC, UH, CEMETERY. UH, AND THE QUESTION FOR US IS HOW DO WE MOVE FORWARD? IT'S NOT ABOUT THE CITY JUST COMING IN AND SAYING, THIS IS WHAT WE WILL DO, BUT IT IS ABOUT MAKING SURE AS WE MOVE FORWARD THAT WE ARE WORKING WITH PROJECT RESPECT AND OTHERS WHO OVER THE YEARS WE HAVE WORKED TO MAINTAIN THIS CEMETERY TO WORK WITH THE FIFTH WARD COMMUNITY AND ITS RESIDENTS TO WORK WITH ANY OF THE DESCENDANTS, TO WORK WITH THE STAKEHOLDERS TO MAKE SURE THAT WE HAVE A SUITABLE PATH FORWARD, UH, [00:10:01] THAT WILL ADDRESS THOSE REMAINS, AND AT THE SAME TIME, WORK TO PRESERVE AND MAINTAIN, UH, THIS CEMETERY AS WE GO FORWARD. WHAT WE HAVE, WHAT I MADE CLEAR IS NOT JUST ABOUT REMOVING AND REPLACING IN THE EVERGREEN NEGRO CEMETERY. IT'S ABOUT MAKING SURE THAT THE CITY, UH, CORRECT A WRONG THAT HAS BEEN DONE AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE AND RESPECTING, RESPECTING SPACES, UH, WITHIN OUR, WITHIN OUR CITY. UH, SO THE CITY METRO HOUSTON PUBLIC WORKS AND PROJECT RESPECT, AND OTHERS ARE COMMITTED TO DOING THE RIGHT THING WITH REMEMBRANCE, RESPECT, AND REFLECTION TO ENSURE THAT THE REMAINS WERE GIVEN A PROPER REINTERMENT. THROUGHOUT HISTORY, AFRICAN AMERICAN CEMETERIES HAVE NOT ALWAYS BEEN PRESERVED AND PROTECTED, AND GRAVES WERE ROUTINELY DISTURBED, AND A PART OF OUR COLLECTIVE HISTORY WAS LOST. THE REMAINS DISCOVERED AT THIS HISTORIC CEMETERY, A PART OF THAT BLACK HISTORY, WHICH IS AMERICAN HISTORY. AND WE OWE TO THOSE WHO WERE BURIED HERE, AND QUITE FRANKLY, TO THOSE WHO HAVE YET TO COME, UH, TO REMEMBER THESE FAMILIES AND TO GIVE THEM A FINAL RESTING PLACE WITH DIGNITY AND RESPECT. AND IT'S UNFORTUNATE WE ARE HAVING TO ADDRESS THIS, UH, IN 2023, BUT WHENEVER YOU FIND A SITUATION, IT'S IMPORTANT THAT WE FACE UP TO IT, THAT WE ACKNOWLEDGE IT, AND WE FIND A SUITABLE PATH FORWARD. HAVING SET THAT, LET ME NOW YIELD TO COMMISSIONER RODNEY ELLIS. THANK YOU, UH, MAYOR TURNER. FIRST, I WANNA SAY THERE'S NO BETTER PLACE FOR ANY OF US TO BE THAN TO BE STANDING IN A CEMETERY. LET THAT SINK IN. WHEN I WALKED UP, SOMEONE CALLED ME REVEREND ELLISON, THEN PASTOR F AND WILLIAMS SAID THEY GOT THAT WRONG. UH, BUT LOOK FOR THE RELIGIOUS LEADERS HERE IN PARTICULAR. GIVE 'EM A ROUND OF APPLAUSE. THANK, THANK THEM FOR BEING HERE AND PROJECT, UH, RESPECT. I WANT TO THANK YOU FOR WHAT YOU'RE DOING. BUT MORE THAN ANYTHING, I WANNA SAY THAT MANY MAYORS WOULD'VE HEARD WHAT WAS HAPPENING WITH METRO, MANY PREVIOUS MAYORS, AND MAYBE SOME FUTURE MAYORS WOULD SAY, WELL, HURRY UP AND GET IT OVER WITH. WE ARE HERE BECAUSE THIS MAYOR, SYLVESTER TURNER, FULLY COGNIZANT OF THIS BEING BLACK HISTORY MONTH AND FULLY COGNIZANT OF THE FACT THAT THE PEOPLE WHO ARE BURIED HERE WERE DISRESPECTED WHEN THEY WERE ALIVE. SAMIR TURNER, THANK YOU FOR BEING THE PERSON THAT YOU ARE. I WON'T GIVE A KEYNOTE NOTE JUST BRIEFLY. I WANT TO SAY IN PARTICULAR, WHEN I THINK OF THE PEOPLE HERE WHO WERE ENSLAVED, THERE IS NO GREATER ASSET IN THE HISTORY OF AMERICA. YOU KNOW WHAT I'M SAYING? THAN THE SLAVES. WE COLLECTIVELY, BLACK, WHITE, OR BROWN, PRETTY MUCH DON'T KNOW OUR HISTORY. YOU GOOGLE IT AT THE HEIGHT OF THIS COUNTRY BEING INDUSTRIALIZED, THE MOST VALUABLE THING THAT PEOPLE HAD WAS NOT THE LAND, IT WAS THE PEOPLE WHO WALKED IT FOR FREE. SO WHY DO WE, PEOPLE OF AFRICAN DESCENT IN PARTICULAR, GET SO UPSET ABOUT GRAVES WHEN THEY'RE BEING DISRESPECTED AND THEY'RE BLACK PEOPLE? BECAUSE BY AND LARGE, IF YOU THINK ABOUT IT, IN THE HISTORY OF THIS COUNTRY, THESE PEOPLE WENT THROUGH BEING ENSLAVED. THEY WENT THROUGH THE ERA OF RACIAL TERROR, THE LEAST THAT WE CAN DO AFTER THEY HAVE BUILT NOT JUST THIS COUNTRY, BUT WESTERN CIVILIZATION IS GIVE THEM THE DIGNITY OF A DECENT PLACE WHEN THEY'RE GONE, BECAUSE THE DAMN SURE DIDN'T HAVE ONE WHEN THEY WERE HERE. BUT LEMME STOP THERE. I FORGOT. THE PREACHERS ARE HERE. YOU RIGHT. THANK YOU. WE KNOW YOU PREACH. THANK YOU. COMMISSIONER S LEMME BRING UP THE COUNCIL MEMBER FOR THE YOU. OKAY, THEN LET ME BRING UP, LET ME NOW BRING UP, UH, THE CHAIRMAN OF THE, UH, METRO SYSTEM, SANJAY ROM. THANK YOU, MAYOR. GOOD AFTERNOON. I'M SANJAY RAMADAN, CHAIR OF THE METRO BOARD OF DIRECTORS. AS THE MAYOR MENTIONED, WE AT METRO ARE [00:15:01] COMMITTED TO IMPROVE EXISTING TRANSIT, BUT ALSO PROVIDE ADDITIONAL PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION OPTIONS FOR THE REGION. THIS PROJECT IS PART OF THE VOTER APPROVED METRO RAPID UNIVERSITY LINE, WHICH WILL PROVIDE A ONE SEAT 25 MILE RIDE THAT CONNECTS WEST CHASE, GULFTON, GREENWAY PLAZA, MONTROSE, THE FIFTH WARD, ALSO CONNECTING ALL OF THESE NEIGHBORHOODS TO THE TEXAS SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY, THE UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON, AND THE HOUSTON COMMUNITY COLLEGE SYSTEM. THESE PROJECTS ARE ALL DESIGNED TO ENHANCE THE QUALITY OF LIFE OF ALL THOSE WHO LIVE, WORK, AND VISIT THESE NEIGHBORHOODS. WHILE PRESERVING THE UNIQUENESS OF EACH OF THESE AREAS. THE DISCOVERY OF HUMAN REMAINS IN THIS, IN ALONG LOCKWOOD, DURING THE PLANNING PHASE OF THIS PROJECT NOW GIVES US AN OPPORTUNITY TO PROPERLY HONOR ALL THOSE WHO CAME BEFORE US, AND BEAR WITNESS TO THE EXTRAORDINARY CONTRIBUTIONS OF AFRICAN AMERICANS WHO ONCE CALLED THIS AREA HOME. CEMETERIES LIKE EVERGREEN ARE POWERFUL REMINDERS FOR EACH OF US. THIS IS ABOUT HISTORY, THIS IS ABOUT FAMILY, THIS IS ABOUT CULTURE, ALL OF WHICH WE MUST TREASURE ALL THAT THESE HALLOWED GROUNDS REPRESENT. SO TO THAT END, METRO IS COMMITTED TO WORKING WITH THE TEXAS HISTORIC COMMISSION, THE CITY OF HOUSTON PROJECT RESPECT TO ENSURE THE FOLLOWING THAT A PATH FORWARD IS OUTLINED TO CAREFULLY AND RESPECTFULLY REENTER THE REMAINS OF THOSE FOUND IN A PROPER REDETERMINED IN THE EVERGREEN CEMETERY. WORK TO LIMIT ANY EXCAVATION DURING THE CONSTRUCTION OF THIS PROJECT. CREATE A LASTING MONUMENT IN THE MEDIAN TO CELEBRATE THE LEGACY AND RECOGNIZE THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THESE GROUNDS. DIGNITY IN LIFE AND DEATH IS SOMETHING EVERYONE DESERVES. OUR HUMANITY REQUIRES IT AT METRO. WE ARE GLAD WE CAN PLAY A SMALL ROLE IN RESTORING WHAT MIGHT HAVE BEEN LOST FOREVER. THANK YOU. KEEP, THANKS, SANJAY. I ALSO WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE JUSTIN ROBINSON OF THE HOUSTON AREA URBAN LEAGUE, UH, AS WELL AS JUSTIN THERE. HE'S, THANK YOU, JUSTIN. LET ME BRING UP, UM, UH, A PERSON WHO'S, UH, BEEN A PART OF THE, UH, INITIATIVE TO PRESERVE AND MAINTAIN, UH, EVERGREEN, UH, NEGRO CEMETERY OVER THE YEARS, AND, UH, NONPROFIT. AND PRETTY MUCH THEY'VE BEEN DOING IT BY THEMSELVES. SO I CERTAINLY WANT TO UNDERSCORE THE, UH, THEIR IMPORTANCE. AND SO FROM PROJECT RESPECT, LEMME BRING UP LISA JERKINS. LISA, YAY. I'M LISA JENKINS MAYOR, NOT JERKINS . I BE OUT TO CORRECT THAT. THANK YOU. YES. BEFORE I START, I WOULD LIKE TO GIVE HONOR TO THOSE WHO HAVE HELPED WITH THIS PROJECT. THE PEOPLE WHO STARTED THIS PROJECT, WHO CANNOT BE HERE AT THIS TIME, WHO STARTED PROJECT RESPECT. I'M GOING, THAT CANNOT BE HERE AT THIS TIME. DR. WW JONES, HE WORKED HARD IN GETTING LEGISLATION CHANGED IN 1995 TO BE ABLE TO TAKE CONSERVATORSHIP OF THESE HISTORIC CEMETERIES. I LIKE TO ALSO, THE MAYOR, BOB LANIER AND OTHER PEOPLE, EVEN RODNEY ELLIS WORKED ON THAT PROJECT. AND THAT'S HOW WE GOT STARTED. THERE ARE MULTIPLE CEMETERIES ACROSS THE STATE OF TEXAS THAT THE SAME THING IS GOING ON. THIS WAS A PATHWAY TO SHOW US HOW WE COULD GET BACK TO LEARN OUR HISTORY, OUR HERITAGE AND CULTURE. I WISH JUSTIN ROBINSON WAS HERE BECAUSE WE HAVE PLANS TO HELP THE CHILDREN. IT'S NOT US, BUT THE CHILDREN NEED TO KNOW WHERE THEY COME FROM AND KNOW WHERE THEY'RE GOING. SO THIS IS NOT ONLY IMPORTANT TODAY, THIS IS IMPORTANT TODAY, TOMORROW, AND AS WE GO ON, BECAUSE THIS CEMETERY SHOWS PEOPLE WHO WORKED HARD IN THIS COMMUNITY, THESE SHOWS, PEOPLE WHO GAVE THEIR LIVES IN THIS COMMUNITY. IT SHOWS BUFFALO SOLDIERS. IT SHOWS THE FIRST AFRICAN AMERICAN POLICE OFFICER WHO WAS KILLED IN THE LINE OF DUTY IN 1914. ALL OF THESE CEMETERY, WE SHOULD WORK TOGETHER AS A TEAM, RIGHT? TO BRING THE YOUTH, BECAUSE THE YOUTH IS OUR FUTURE. NO, CEMETERIES ARE NOT BAD. THEY TELL WHAT HAPPENED BEFORE TIME. THEY TELL WITH THE LEADERS, PEOPLE DON'T KNOW. IN THE 18 HUNDREDS, WE HAD, WE WERE DOCTORS, WE WERE LAWYERS, WE WORKED AS A TEAM TOGETHER. WE HAD ONE COMMUNITY. WE WERE NOT DIVIDED THE WAY WE ARE TODAY. [00:20:01] SO I AM GLAD TO BE HERE. I'M GLAD TO HAVE THE MARY INVOLVED, AND I LIKE TO GIVE HOMAGE TO THOSE WHO HELPED IN THE BEGINNING AND ALL THE WORK THAT THE PROJECT RESPECT, BECAUSE IT TOOK A TEAM, A TEAM OF VOLUNTEERS, AND TOOK MONEY OUT OF DR. JOE'S POCKET, EVERYBODY WHO CAME ALONG. AND I WANNA THANK YOU AND WE'LL MOVE FORWARD TO HELP ANYBODY WHO MAY HAVE A CEMETERY WHERE THEY WANNA FIND OUT ABOUT THEIR FAMILIES. WE'RE WORKING WITH THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST WITH FAMILY SEARCH TO HELP PEOPLE BUILD LASTING MEMORIALS. AND TO KNOW THAT THEY HAVE THE LIST OF EVERYONE CLOSE TO ANCESTRY THAT I COME AND THEY CAN LOOK AND GO SEE WHO THEIR GRANDMOTHER IS. SEE WHO THAT GRANDFATHER IS MY DAUGHTER FOUND. WHO DID YOU FIND? COME TELL WHO YOU FOUND MY FIFTH GREAT GRANDFATHER WHO WAS FROM GUINEA BASU IN AFRICA AND WAS BROUGHT HERE DURING SLAVERY TO TEXAS, AND HE'S STILL BURIED HERE IN TEXAS, AND HE'S BURIED ON A COTTON FIELD. SO WHAT DOES THAT TELL YOU? WE'RE STILL ENSLAVED. I WENT TO SLAVERY REMEMBRANCE DAY, AND I WAS VERY EXCITED BECAUSE NOW WE HAVE A DAY OF REMEMBRANCE. AM I RIGHT? RIGHT. THAT'S RIGHT. AND SO THAT'S HOW GOOD GOD IS. HE KNOW THE RIGHT TIME, THE RIGHT PURPOSE TO GET IT DONE. THANK YOU, MA'AM. THANK YOU. I CERTAINLY WANT TO GIVE CREDIT TO CONGRESSMAN AL GREEN FOR THE SLAVERY REMEMBRANCE DAY. LEMME CALL ON BISHOP DIXON, WHO'S HEADS THE HOUSTON CHAPTER OF THE NAACP. THANK YOU MAYOR TURNER. I, AND THANK YOU FOR BEING SUCH A COMPASSIONATE, CARING, AND COMMITTED VISIONARY LEADER FOR SUCH A TIME AS THIS, AND FOR THE WAY THAT YOU AND YOUR ADMINISTRATION HAS HANDLED INHERITING CHALLENGES FROM PREVIOUS GENERATIONS. AND YET TAKEN US FORWARD TO ALL OF THE CLERGY WHO ARE HERE, CERTAINLY TO DR. FN WILLIAMS, WHO IS THE ELDER AMONG US, AND TO PASTOR HARVEY CLEMONS, WHO PASTORS IN THIS COMMUNITY, AND PASTOR MAX MILLER AND ALL OF THE PASTORS PASTOR JOHNSON AND OUR ELECTED OFFICIALS. LEMME SAY VERY QUICKLY, UH, WHEN I LEARNED ABOUT THIS ATROCITY, I THOUGHT ABOUT THE FACT THAT MY, MY GRANDPARENTS WERE IN THE FUNERAL BUSINESS FROM THE 1940S THROUGH 2000. I THOUGHT ABOUT THE FACT THAT I HAVE RELATIVES WHO WORK NOT ONLY FOR THE FUNERAL HOME, BUT WHO WERE BURIED ON THESE GROUNDS. I TALKED TO MY RELATIVES TO SEE WHAT HAPPENED. WHO DO WE KNOW THAT WAS BURIED HERE AT THE EVERGREEN NEGRO CEMETERY? ISN'T IT AMAZING? BEEN DRIVING THESE STREETS, CHIEF FINN, ALL THESE YEARS? MY FATHER OWNED A FEDERAL BUSINESS TWO BLOCKS FROM HERE FOR YEARS IN MY CHILDHOOD, NEVER KNOWING THAT THROUGHOUT OUR CHILDHOOD, WE WERE DRIVING ACROSS DISRESPECTED LIVES OF AFRICAN AMERICANS, BLACKS WHO WERE FORMER SLAVES, BLACKS WHO PRAYED THE PRICE. AND AS COMMISSIONER ELLIS ELOQUENTLY STATED, I'LL SAY THIS SINCE WE'RE DONE, AND WE'LL PROVIDE A FORMAL STATEMENT FROM THE NACP, WE COME TODAY TO SAY WE ARE IN SUPPORT MAYOR OF THE COALITION AND THE TEAM PROJECT RESPECT THAT'S GONNA WORK TO MAKE SURE THAT THE LIVES OF THOSE THAT HAVE BEEN DISRESPECTED ARE NOT JUST RESPECTED, BUT HIGHLY HONORED, HIGHLY HONORED, HIGHLY HONORED. I HEARD OUR SISTER SAY, SISTER JENKINS, THAT THEY'RE DOING THIS ALL OVER THE STATE OF TEXAS. I WOULD ASK THE QUESTION, HOW MANY PREDOMINANTLY WHITE CEMETERIES HAVE YOU FOUND WITH THIS CHALLENGE? WHO'S HAVING THIS CHALLENGE IN THEIR COMMUNITY OTHER THAN AFRICAN AMERICANS? THAT SAYS TO US THAT WE STILL HAVE A LONG WAY TO GO. AND AT A TIME WHERE THIS STATE IS EMBRACING THIS IDEA OF CRITICAL RACE THEORY AND TAKING PRECIOUS CONTENT OUT OF OUR TEXTBOOKS AND NONE OF OUR SCHOOLS, THIS STORY NEEDS TO BE REINSERTED INTO THE HISTORY BOOKS TO SAY THAT IN HOUSTON AND OTHER CITIES, THIS IS WHAT WAS DONE TO AFRICAN AMERICANS IN THEIR LIVES AND IN THEIR DEATHS, DISRESPECTED WHILE THEY LIVED DISRESPECTED WHILE THEY, WHEN THEY DIED, I VISITED A CEMETERY IN CHARLOTTESVILLE WHERE FORMER SLAVES WERE BURIED, AND THERE WERE NO NAMES ON THE MARKERS, NO NAMES ON THE MARKERS IN CHARLOTTESVILLE. IT IS NOW A TOURIST ATTRACTION. I WOULD HOPE THAT AS THIS PROJECT TAKES SHAPE, WE NOT ONLY NAME THE NAMES, BUT WE MAKE THIS A TOUR STOP FOR EVERYONE WHO COMES TO HOUSTON TO KNOW IT DID HAPPEN HERE. [00:25:01] BUT WE MUST NEVER GO BACK AGAIN. LET'S HONOR THEM NOW LIKE THEY SHOULD HAVE BEEN HONORED THEN. THANK YOU MAYOR AND ALL HERE. GOD BLESS. VERY GOOD. THANK YOU. I SPOKE TO THE CONGRESSWOMAN THIS MORNING. UH, THIS IS IN THE 18TH CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT. SHE WANTED TO BE HERE, BUT SHE SAID THAT SHE WOULD BE SENDING HER REPRESENTATIVE EUROPA HARRIS, YOU WANNA SPEAK ON HER BEHALF? YOU GOT, BUT SHE CERTAINLY WANTED ME TO LET HER KNOW, LET YOU ALL KNOW, UH, THAT SHE STANDS READY TO DO WHATEVER SHE CAN ON HER PART, UH, TO MAKE SURE THAT THOSE WHO HAVE DIED AND WHO WERE BURIED HERE OR WERE NOT DISRESPECTED. UH, LET ME BRING ON TWO PEOPLE AND THEN WE'LL STOP AND TAKE WHATEVER QUESTIONS YOU HAVE. I DO WANT TO CALL ON, UH, JUSTIN ROBINSON FROM THE HOUSTON AREA URBAN LEAGUE, UH, TO TO SPEAK, MAYOR, THANK YOU VERY MUCH. IT'S, UM, A PLEASURE TO BE WITH THOSE WHO TAKE IT UPON THEMSELVES TO BECOME COMMITTEES OF ONE. UH, WHEN MS. JUDKINS AND HER TEAM DECIDED TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT SOMETHING THAT NO GOVERNMENT, NO PARTICULAR ENTITY HAD TAKEN AN INTEREST IN DOING, SHE CHOSE TO GET INVOLVED. AND IT JUST GOES TO SHOW WHEN ONE PERSON MAKES THE DECISION TO DO SOMETHING THAT'S RIGHT FOR THE COMMUNITY, CHANDRA, THAT IT CAN LEAD TO THIS LEVEL OF MOMENTUM WHERE YOU HAVE ONE OF THE MOST POWERFUL MAYORS IN THE COUNTRY THAT IS P AND SUPPORT TO RIGHT OR WRONG, WHEN YOU HAVE LEADERS LIKE OUR COMMISSIONER, YEAH, UH, OUR NAACP, OUR URBAN LEAGUES, WHO ARE ALL STANDING UNITED WITH OUR COUNCIL MEMBER AND OTHER VOLUNTEERS, WHEN WE ALL WORK TOGETHER, WE CAN MAKE GREAT THINGS HAPPEN. AND SO I'M SO PROUD TO BE A HOUSTONIAN. I'M SO PROUD OF THE FACT THAT WE HAVE THE ABILITY AND THE DESIRE TO, WHEN WE DECIDED WE'VE MADE A WRONG, WE HAVE THE LEADERSHIP AT METRO TO COME FORWARD AND SAY, WE'RE GONNA MAKE THE WRONG A RIGHT, A HARD TIME GETTING IT IN. SO TODAY, I'M PROUD TO SAY, AS A NATIVE OF PLEASANTVILLE, A LITTLE COMMUNITY JUST RIGHT DOWN THE STREET. AND A LITTLE BOY WAS BORN AT ST. ELIZABETH'S HOSPITAL. A HOSPITAL IS JUST RIGHT DOWN THE STREET, ACROSS THE STREET FROM PHYLLIS WHEATLEY, THE OLD PHYLLIS WHEAT. MY SISTER FOUGHT MY FATHER EVERY DAY TO MAKE SURE SHE COULD GO TO PHYLLIS WHEATLEY AND NOT FUR BECAUSE OF THE HISTORY OF PHYLLIS WHEATLEY, LINDA BROWN. SO WE HAVE A LOT TO BE PROUD OF. WE HAVE A LOT OF HISTORY THAT'S VERY DEEPLY ROOTED IN THIS COMMUNITY. IT MAKES SENSE FOR US TO BE HERE TODAY, EACH AND EVERY ONE OF US. THANK YOU FOR THE LEADERSHIP OF THIS CITY. GOD BLESS AMERICA, . THANK YOU, MATTHEW. THEN LASTLY, WE'LL TAKE INTO QUESTION. LEMME CALL ON, UH, PASTOR HARVEY CLEMONS, UH, WHO'S, UH, UH, RIGHT HERE IN THE FIFTH WARD AT THE NICKEL IN THE NICKEL COMMUNITY. MAYOR, LET ME JOIN THE OF FOLK WHO ARE THANKING YOU AND YOUR ADMINISTRATION FOR THE LEADERSHIP THAT YOU'VE GIVEN IN, IN THIS PARTICULAR INSTANCE. BUT NOT ONLY IN THIS PARTICULAR INSTANCE, YOU HAVE BEEN A MAYOR OF MAYORS ALL THE WAY THROUGH COVID AND THROUGH ALL OF THE THINGS THAT I CITY HAS BEEN DEALING WITH, I LIKE BISHOP DIXON WHEN I GOT THE NEWS CALLED MY SISTER, WHO IS 15 YEARS OLDER THAN ME, AND I'M 72. SO YOU KNOW HOW THAT OLD THAT IS, AND ASKED HER IF WE HAD ANY FAMILY MEMBERS, UH, IN THIS CEMETERY. AND TO MY CHAGRIN, SHE WENT TO ROLLING OUT NAMES, ROLLING OUT NAMES. ANYONE WHO HAS GROWN UP IN FIFTH WARD, MORE THAN LIKELY HAD FAMILY MEMBERS WHO ARE BURIED HERE. STREET. AND FINALLY, I WANT TO SAY AND GIVE RESPECT TO YOUR GROUP. YOU KNOW, THEY HAVE WORKED VEHEMENTLY TO SUSTAIN THIS CEMETERY. MY HOPE IN MY REQUEST, I KNOW YOU PUT ME UP, I GOTTA PASS THE OFFERING PLATE, OKAY? IS THAT WE HAVE STRUGGLED WITH PERPETUAL CARE. I MEAN, PERPETUAL CARE. YEAH. WE COME, WE CLEAN THIS CEMETERY UP. WE HAVE VOLUNTEERS TO VOLUNTEER TO DO SO. [00:30:01] IN LESS THAN A YEAR LATER, IT IS GROWN BACK BECAUSE THERE'S NO PERPETUAL CARE. AND SO IF THERE IS ANY WAY IN MAKING AMENDS FOR THE WRONGS THAT HAS OCCURRED TO HAVE SOME DOLLARS AVAILABLE FOR PERPETUAL CARE. SO GOING FORWARD, WE NOT ONLY HAVE A MONUMENT, BUT WE'LL BE ABLE TO KEEP THE GRASS CUT AROUND THE MONUMENT. THANK YOU MAYOR FOR THE PRIVILEGE AND OPPORTUNITY, AND COUNTY COMMISSIONER. THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR LEADERSHIP. YEAH, THANK YOU VERY MUCH. AND THEN LASTLY, I WOULD BE REMISS IF I DIDN'T CALL ON CHIEF FINNER. UM, LOOK, HE'S FROM THIS, HE'S FROM, HE'S A NATIVE OF THE CITY. AND WHEN HE HEARD ABOUT THE SITUATION, YOU KNOW, HE WANTED, HE WANTED TO BE HERE. AND I APPRECIATE HIS PRESENCE, UH, FOR BEING HERE AND THE RESPECT THAT HE'S DEMONSTRATING. UH, SO CHIEF NER, CHIEF, THANK YOU, MAYOR. AND I'M GONNA BE REALLY, REALLY QUICK. UH, JUST A FEW, UH, BLOCKS ON FARMER STREET WHERE I WAS BORN. SO THE, THE ROOTS RUN DEEP, BUT THE SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPORTANCE OF TODAY IN THIS CITY WITH THIS LEADERSHIP, AND I MEAN ALL OF US. AND I WANT TO THANK Y'ALL FOR WHAT Y'ALL DO IN BRINGING A VOICE. WHEN YOU FIND SOMETHING THAT'S WRONG, YOU SIMPLY PAUSE AND YOU PUT THINGS INTO ACTION THAT MAKES IT RIGHT. AND THAT'S WHAT'S HAPPENING HERE. AND I'M PROUD OF THAT. BUT WE GOT A LOT OF WORK TO STILL DO HERE AND, AND IN THIS COMMUNITY AND IN OUR ENTIRE CITY. SO I'M HONORED TO STAND HERE TODAY. THANK Y'ALL. THANK, WELL, I CERTAINLY WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE AGAIN, PASTOR, MODERATOR, PRESIDENT, UH, FN WILLIAMS. HE IS 94 YEARS YOUNG. AND SO, UH, YOU KNOW, HE'S BEEN AROUND AND AND BURIED A LOT OF PEOPLE IN THAT TIME. SO I WANTED TO ACKNOWLEDGE, I WANTED TO ACKNOWLEDGE HIM. AND THEN I WANT, ESPECIALLY IF YOU ARE FROM FIFTH WARD, IF YOU'RE JUST RAISE YOUR HAND FROM FIFTH WARD COMMUNITY. LEMME THANK ALL OF YOU. ALRIGHT, UH, ANY QUESTIONS THAT ANYBODY HAS? YES, SIR. MR. BE YOU SAID REMAINS THREE BODIES, 30 SOMETHING, GREAT SIGHT. I ASSUME MOST OF THOSE MAYBE PIECES OF OFTEN, NOT NECESSARILY A BODY, BUT YOU COULD TELL IT WAS GREAT SIGHT. YEAH. SONJA, WHO'S THE BEST TO SPEAKER ON THAT? LEMME BRING UP SANJAY. SO WHAT WAS DISCOVERED WERE FRAGMENTS OF COFFINS AND SOME BONES THAT HAD BEEN PREVIOUSLY BEEN DISTURBED, UH, FOR A LOT MORE INFORMATION ON THIS. WE'VE GOT A PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR FOR THE ARCHEOLOGICAL WORK THAT'S DEALING WITH THE TEXAS HISTORIC COMMISSION. UH, THAT CAN GO INTO A LOT MORE DETAIL, SHOULD THAT BE DESIRED. YOU SAID BODIES, WHY DON'T YOU, WHY DON'T YOU COME AND TELL EM WHO YOU ARE AND TELL WHO YOU ARE FOR THAT DETAIL. YES. UH, MY NAME IS MINDY BONINE. I AM A CONSULTANT, UH, UH, WITH AMERA ENVIRONMENTAL OUT OF AUSTIN, TEXAS. AND I'M THE PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR FOR THE ARCHEOLOGICAL WORK THAT'S BEEN CONDUCTED OUT HERE AT THE EVERGREEN NEGROES CEMETERY, UM, UH, ON BEHALF OF, UH, HOUSTON METRO. AND, UH, I THINK I UNDERSTOOD YOUR QUESTION, UH, AS TO WHAT IT IS THAT WE FOUND HERE, , UH, WE FOUND, UH, 33 LOCATIONS WHERE, UH, THERE'S EVIDENCE OF BURIALS OF 30 OF THOSE LOCATIONS HAVE BASICALLY BURIAL, REMNANTS, UH, COFFIN BOTTOMS, UH, COFFIN HARDWARE, AND TINY FRAGMENTS OF BONE THAT INDICATE THAT THE BODY HAD BEEN EXHUMED, UM, AS WE EXPECTED IT WAS, YOU KNOW, BACK IN THE SIXTIES. UM, HOWEVER, THREE OF THOSE LOCATIONS HAD SIGNIFICANT HUMAN REMAINS IN THEM THAT LED US TO BELIEVE THAT THOSE BODIES WERE MISSED. UM, AND THEY WERE NOT EXHUMED. AND WHAT WE HAVE DONE IS, UH, SORT OF PROTECTED THEM AND REBURIED THEM, UH, TO GO THROUGH THE PROCESS OF COORDINATING WITH ALL OF THE STAKEHOLDERS FOR THIS PROJECT TO COME UP WITH A GAME PLAN FOR DISUR AND REINTER THEM ELSEWHERE IN THE CEMETERY. AND IF THINK, DO YOU THINK THERE'S ANY CHANCE OF USEFUL DNA? IT IS POSSIBLE, UH, IT'S POSSIBLE TO, TO OBTAIN DNA FROM THEM. THE PROBLEM IS FINDING A MATCH, UM, BECAUSE YOU HA YOU CAN OBTAIN DNA SAMPLE AND YOU CAN LOG IT IN THE DATABASE, BUT IF THERE ISN'T ANYONE WHO HAS A MATCH FOR THAT DNA THAT WE COULD FIND THEIR ANCESTRY, IT, YOU KNOW, IT CAN BE DONE, BUT IT WOULD BE PRETTY MUCH IN A HOLDING CYCLE UNTIL WE COULD FIND SOMEONE WHO'S RELATED TO THAT PERSON. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? ANY OTHER QUESTION FOR ME? WE FILES CLOSE, CLOSE TOGETHER, OR WERE THEY THREE? THEY, THEY WERE, UH, SPACED ABOUT, ABOUT, THEY WERE NOT CLOSE TOGETHER. UM, THEY WERE ACTUALLY SORT OF A INTACT BURIAL, [00:35:01] A REMOVED BURIAL, AND THEN OTHER INTACT BURIAL. SO, UH, THEY WERE SKIPPED. SO. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? THANK YOU. OKAY. THANK YOU. I'M SORRY. UM, IS ANYBODY GONNA BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE FOR THE MISTAKE THAT WAS MADE? THAT'S, THAT'S A QUESTION FOR YOU, . WELL, THAT'S THE, UH, THAT'S THE CITY. THERE ALL IS AT THE CITY. UH, THE CITY, UH, UH, RETAINED THE CONTRACTORS, UH, BACK IN 1960, UH, WHEN THE, UH, THIS TWO LANE LOCKWOOD CAME INTO, UH, UM, DIVIDED WITH THE EXPLANATION IN BETWEEN. UH, SO, UH, THE CITY ALONG WITH THIS CONTRACTOR SHOULD HAVE DONE THE WORK PROPERLY IN THE FIRST PLACE. AND NOW IT'S UP TO THE CITY, UH, WORKING IN, IN COLLABORATION WITH METRO AND OUR STAKEHOLDERS, UH, TO NOW, UH, CORRECT THE SITUATION, UH, THAT WAS NOT DONE CORRECTLY IN THE FIRST PLACE. LEGAL LIABILITY. SO, YOU KNOW, IT'S NO LEGAL LIABILITY HERE, BUT CERTAINLY, UH, EVEN THOUGH THIS DID NOT HAPPEN ON MY WATCH, IT'S MY, IT'S MY OBLIGATION, UH, TO MAKE SURE THAT WE DO IT RIGHT AS WE GO FORWARD. OKAY. UH, LET ME BRING ON KATHY BLUEFORD DANIELS TRUSTEE KATHY BLUE DANIELS FOR THIS AREA, AND ALSO A REPRESENTATIVE REPRESENTING SENATOR BORIS MILES. THANK YOU, MAYOR. THIS IS A SAD AND HAPPY DAY FOR THOSE OF US THAT ARE HERE ORIGINALLY FROM FIFTH WARD. AND I SAY THAT IT'S A SAD DAY BECAUSE OBVIOUSLY FOR, FOR THE ACTIONS THAT HAVE PREVIOUSLY OCCURRED. BUT IT'S A HAPPY DAY BECAUSE THIS MAYOR, THIS MAYOR HAS DECIDED TO DO THE RIGHT THING AND THE RIGHT THING IN, IN SPEAKING WITH MY COLLEAGUE AND FELLOW WA HAD CHEERLEADER, MS. DEBORAH BLACKLOCK SLOAN OVER HERE, SHE'S DONE GENE GENEALOGY. AND THIS FIFTH WARD IN THIS ONE HAS RELATIVES. THE BRAS BURIED RIGHT HERE IN THIS CEMETERY. I'LL PUT A PERIOD BEHIND IT, TROY. BUT WE HAVE RELATIVES BURIED RIGHT HERE IN THIS CEMETERY. AND I OFTEN WONDERED IF THEY WERE PART OF LOCKWOOD AS I DRIVE A ACROSS THE TO AND FROM. BUT TODAY TO LEARN THAT THERE'S GOING TO BE SOME EFFORTS TO HAVE THOSE REMAINS REMOVED AND INTERRED PROPERLY IS SO REWARDING FOR FAMILIES THAT HAVE DIRECT LINKAGE OUT HERE. SO, THANK YOU MAYOR. THANK YOU COMMISSIONER. THANK YOU ALL FOR BEING HERE. AND REPRESENTATIVE BORIS MILES, SENATOR REPRESENTATIVE, UM, OH, I WORK FOR STATE SENATOR BORIS MILES ALSO. AND ONE OTHER THING I WANT TO ADD. 'CAUSE IN THIS DAY AND AGE OF CRT, I'M A SCHOOL BOARD MEMBER. AND THIS, IN THIS DAY AND AGE OF PUSHBACK WITH CRT, IT'S IMPORTANT THAT WE BRING OUR CHILDREN AND OUR FAMILIES HERE SO THEY CAN RECOGNIZE AND UNDERSTAND THE IMPORTANCE OF, OF BEING BURIED OVER HERE AND THE SACRIFICES THAT WAS MADE. MORE IMPORTANTLY, BRING DAN PATRICK AND GREG ABBOTT OVER HERE. GOVERNOR, I THINK ON THAT NOTE, WE CAN SAY THIS PRESS CONFERENCE HAS NOW COME TO AN END. SO THANK YOU OFFICER VERY, VERY MUCH. OKAY. FEEL FREE TO TALK TO ANY OF THESE INDIVIDUALS, UH, INDIVIDUALLY. GOOD JOB. NO, NO. THANK YOU. * This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.