To the editor:

The Barrington Cemetery Commission feels that it is imperative to clarify some things about the cemetery’s monument dedicated to slaves who lived in Barrington. 

Members of the Cemetery Commission attended the town council Zoom meeting on July 27th and we were pleased that Councilman Steve Boyajian reminded everyone that the commission has control over cemetery property because most residents are probably unaware that the commission is charged by the town’s charter with “full control and management of all cemeteries and burial grounds… under such rules as they [the Commission] shall adopt”. Further, since 1909, when a $10,000 endowment was given by a resident to establish a cemetery commission, no taxes have been raised or allocated for the care and maintenance of Barrington’s six historic cemeteries. See http://www.barrington.ri.gov/cemeterycomm.

The commission takes this stewardship role extremely seriously and over the past hundred years has addressed concerns about our cemeteries, for instance, the kinds and sizes of monuments, their designs, and indeed their appropriateness. Our rules establish that “cemetery grounds are primarily for the use of grave lot owners and the families and friends of the deceased. Although they are public and exist primarily for the resting place of past generations, Barrington cemeteries are community resources offering places of serenity and beauty for quiet reminiscences and meditation”.

This brings us to the current topic. Every so often, someone brings attention to the Prince’s Hill cemetery monument dedicated to slaves. Since the death of George Floyd on May 25th, and the subsequent national unrest that grew out of that tragedy, we discussed the impact this may have on the monument at our June monthly meeting. In addition, the town manager apparently received a letter saying that social media was abuzz about it and some were threatening to bring a tow-truck into the cemetery and rip the monument out of the ground and carry it away. The commission welcomes public discussion, not the nameless, faceless, zeal of social media users, and it has been on our agenda in both July and August. In addition, we researched any past events involving the monument and discussed what our research found at our July meeting. 

What we found was that the current commission has conducted a program on the use of ground-penetrating-radar featuring the slave monument and the surrounding ground; the monument was featured in a cemetery tour during the town’s Tri-centennial Celebration Heritage Weekend; it was part of the October lamp-light walking tour co-sponsored with the preservation society; is regularly included in the annual school day-trip of the cemetery; and has been annually maintained with plants and flowers by an anonymous donor for years. Also, the monument is over 50 years old making it eligible for inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places. The only complaints, and sometimes outrage, have come from people who are white. To us, this has been an incredible “tell”. And we realize that we commissioners are all white, as is the town council.

So, while we welcome any and all input as we deliberate the appropriateness of any actions involving the monument, our commission is looking beyond whiteness and seeking input from non-white constituents of the stone.

We contacted Charles Roberts, director of the RI Slave History Medallion Project, to seek his input, suggestions, and direction. Mr. Roberts attended our August meeting and agreed to work with us as we concentrate on this. Understanding the gravity of our decisions on this (and all matters), the commission agrees with one mind that the lives of those slaves mattered then and still do, just as do all their descendants matter. And this commission realizes that we will be judged by our decision now, just as, in this moment in time, we are judging the decision made one hundred and seventeen years ago. Our decisions become our legacy and are not entered into lightly.

Respectfully,

The Barrington Cemetery Commission

Stephen Kirby, chairperson