Beyond “Sectional Superiority”1: Memorializing Black History in Northern New England

Abstract New England's lingering sense of itself as the locus of abolitionist virtue makes it imperative to interrogate this self-perception while examining the cultural import of contemporary African American memorials in the region. Twenty-first century commemorations in Northern New England are attempting to correct the visual and historical record of the suppression and expulsion of African Americans by erecting memorials that celebrate New England's Black history.