“Free at last, free at last, Great God a-mighty, we are free at last.” Every now and then, something happens to remind us that we as a community, State and nation need to face our history, confronting the difficulties we encounter to fulfilling America’s promise of true equality and justice for all.

The most recent reminder of our country’s shameful past and history of repression was the discovery of unmarked slave graves in a local Clinton cemetery according to a recent news story in The Sampson Independent. The fact that the Clinton Cemetery Advisory Board stumbled upon some 50 or more unmarked slave burial sites is another piece of the huge puzzle we will need in our continuing struggle to complete America. Indeed, this might be the long awaited moment we were hoping for to nudge us to begin an official process of reconciliation and moving forward.

Jolted by the discovery of those unmarked slave graves, it boggles the mind to think about the expanse of unmarked slave graves where slavery existed in the United States, more particularly, right here in Sampson County. Even though the majority of slaveholders in NC owned five or fewer slaves, it is quite likely there are many slaves buried in long-forgotten unmarked graves that have been disturbed over the years. Also, slaves in NC were generally forbidden to organize their own churches, but they were allowed to attend the church of their owners. With that said, I would like to encourage local churches, especially First United Methodist on Sampson Street, to research their connections to slavery as “an act of truth-telling and confession.”

Interestingly, a short time back, Drake University ethicist, Jennifer Harvey, while speaking with Duke Divinity School students stated, “What divides the races in America is not the failure to embrace differences but the failure of white Americans to repent and repair the sins of the past.” So, local pastors, maybe you can lead us in a reflection and discussion to find ways to “repair the sins of the past,” here in Sampson County. First and foremost though, we have to be willing to learn our nation’s history from every aspect in order to be able to find real solutions to America’s race dilemma. I think most would agree that many of you were not taught African American history in school, and it was not available in most textbooks. Therefore, your whole lifetime has been void of learning about the history and contributions of African Americans.

We may never know anything about the history of the slaves in those unmarked graves, but a monument would be a good place to start in honoring their memory. The inscription on this Slaves Memorial should be composed carefully, taking into consideration the countless other unmarked graves throughout Sampson County, giving them the dignity and respect in death that they didn’t get in life. Now, with that said, maybe we can better understand the meaning behind “Black Lives Matter.”

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By Larry Sutton

Contributing columnist

Larry Sutton is a retired teacher from Clinton High School.