August 9th, 2025 by WCBC Radio

The plan to fund a monument to honor Black Marylanders who fought in the Revolutionary War has been approved by the state’s Board of Public Works.  The monument would be placed on the grounds of the Maryland State House.  The monument would be placed on the side of the statehouse that previously featured the statue of Roger B. Taney, the nation’s fifth chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court.  Taney is remembered for writing the majority opinion in the 1857 Dred Scott case, which ruled Black people, whether free or enslaved, could not be considered citizens of the United States.  The proposal is timed so the monument could be completed by July 2026, the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.