One of America’s most iconic landmarks includes an homage to slavery, and the little known
fact is raising eyebrows as Black Americans observe the Juneteenth and the Fourth of July
holidays.

The Statue of Liberty has stood on Liberty Island in New York Harbor as a “symbol of enlightenment … lighting the way to freedom and down the path of liberty” for 139 years. But few Americans are aware that a chain rests at the feet, and the original drawings reportedly placed them in the left hand of the statue.

When Frenchman Edouard de Laboulaye – an abolitionist – proposed presenting the statue to the United States as a gift from the people of France, sculptor Frederic Auguste Bartholdi agreed with Laboulaye’s goodwill gesture and began to conceptualize the idea for the monument. Both men wanted to recognize the end of slavery, and Bartholdi had intended to place a chain in the statue’s left hand to represent the end of slavery and oppression.

Instead, he placed them at her feet to symbolize liberty breaking free from bondage.

During a recent interview, Dr. Joy DeGruy – an internationally known researcher and educator – stunned many African Americans with the background about the original drawings which triggered her reluctance to visit Liberty Island when a friend, who managed New York’s landmarks for the Interior Department, invited her.

DeGruy said, “When I go there, I’m going there with the knowledge that the Statue of Liberty was holding originally in her left hand broken chains – commissioned in 1865, a pretty important date – end of slavery, end of the Civil War, all of the things were why she was the Statue of Liberty.”

DeGruy recalled that she and her friend went “into the basement of the Statue of Liberty, and we find the document encased in glass behind figurines facing a wall in the hallway.”

Batholdi, the sculptor, had apparently encountered resistance to his idea of placing the chains in the left hand, which would have been a more visible display, but he insisted that the chains remain a part of the statue.

“The agreement was, ‘We will keep the chains, but we’ll make it so no one can see them,’” DeGruy explained.

According to The Statue of Liberty website, “To symbolize the end of slavery, Bartholdi placed a broken shackle and chains at the Statue’s foot.”

After DeGruy’s discovery and frustration that the chains were not mentioned during tours, she began to tell the story of the chain at the feet of the Statue of Liberty. Eventually, she said she received a call from the Interior Department’s staff, and they apologized, adding, “We have been negligent.”

Now, when tourists visit the Statue of Liberty, the park rangers include information about the chain and their significance.

President Donald Trump signed an executive order that will provide support for Historically Black Colleges and Universities and establish a White House Initiative on HBCUs to “deliver high-quality education to a growing number of students.”

According to the White House, the Initiative will help develop private-sector partnerships, institutional development and workforce preparation in technology, health care, manufacturing and finance. 

The president and CEO of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund, Dr. Harry L. Williams said, “Today’s executive order serves as strong reaffirmation of President Trump’s support of investment of historically Black colleges and universities. This executive order should serve as a call-to-action for corporations, foundations, members of Congress and state lawmakers to redouble their efforts to support HBCUs and their students. TMCF looks forward to continued engagement with the administration and Congress to deliver results for HBCUs and the students they serve via appropriations and other legislative actions.”

On the same day, Trump signed another executive order that removes safeguards for African American schoolchildren by eliminating an Obama-era initiative to protect Black schoolchildren from excessive disciplinary action.

During the Obama administration, the first Black president’s administration created guidelines that sought to prevent school discipline from having a disproportionate effect on minority students. Trump revoked the civil rights initiative during his first term and Biden did not formally restore it. 

At his signing today, Trump said his decision was especially important to the current Education Secretary Linda McMahon, who held the signed order.

“Under the Biden-Harris Administration, schools were forced to consider equity and inclusion when imposing discipline,” McMahon said in a statement. “Their policies placed racial equity quotas over student safety – encouraging schools to turn a blind eye to poor or violent behavior in the name of inclusion.”

She added, “Disciplinary decisions should be based solely on students’ behavior and actions.

Studies show that Black students are punished more often than their white counterparts.

President Jimmy Carter advanced opportunities for African Americans throughout his life,
advocating for justice and peace consistent with the Christian values he embraced. Since his
death on December 29 at age 100, Mr. Carter’s praises have been sung from his home state of
Georgia to points around the globe. And while the former president’s one-term in the White
House is dismissed by some political pundits for a lack of policies or accomplishments that
changed the course of history, his character and integrity set him apart.

Carter became the first president to appoint a Black woman head of a federal agency. He chose
Patricia Roberts Harris to lead the Housing and Urban Development when he took office in
1977.

Harris said, “I feel deeply proud and grateful this President chose me to knock down this barrier, but also a little sad about being the ‘first Negro woman,’ because it implies we were not
considered before.”

Senator William Proxmire questioned Carter’s choice, saying Harris came from too much wealth and influence to be an effective leader. But Carter stood by his decision, and Harris stayed in the position for two years.

The 39th president’s name is also included on the International Civil Rights Walk of Fame.

Civil rights activist, Rev. Al Sharpton recalled a conversation he shared with Carter.

“It was very significant, I was talking there at the foot of the Lincoln Memorial, and I was talking to President Clinton and President Carter,” Sharpton recalled. “And when Clinton and I finished talking, President Carter touched me on my arm and said, ‘How are you doing with your ministry, Al? I see you out there with your activism. Don’t leave your ministry … keep your prayer life going.’ And you could tell he sincerely meant it. He was not one who talked about his religion as a political kind of something you could say to voters.”

President Joe Biden declared January 9, 2025, a national day of mourning. Millions watched the former president’s funeral on television as he was remembered as a man of honesty,
compassion and faith – which included championing the rights of Americans who knew firsthand the struggle of injustice