“My father always said that we have a home over there.”
As the United States approaches its 250th birthday, the Braxton Institute’s upcoming programming reframes the national anniversary through the lens of reparative justice, memory, and the enduring resilience of Black communities. Under the theme “Unfinished Quilt: Unfinished Story,” these events invite all Americans to reflect not only on the nation’s founding ideals, but also on the histories of displacement, labor, cultural survival, and necessary repair for communities of African descent that remain central to the American story.
The “Unfinished Quilt” started by Emma Margaret Harrison, Dr. Braxton’s grandmother—was lost when the historic Black community of Lakeland, Maryland, (now part of the City of College Park) was dispersed by Urban Renewal in the 1970s and 1980s. The quilt, lost for nearly 50 years, was rediscovered only recently. Each piece of fabric, a bit of a necktie or someone’s dress, the muslin backing, bears a story; together these pieces embody the struggle to stitch torn fragments of story into a whole and beautiful memory. This “Unfinished Quilt” represents the 2500 communities that were broken and dispersed by urban renewal throughout this country from 1949 to the late 1990s. Mrs. Harrison’s father, William, was among the enslaved at Montpelier. The quilt, which will be shown at both the “Lakeland: Reclaiming Our Space” exhibit at the College Park Aviation Museum and the “African Odyssey” exhibit at Montpelier, connects the stories of Africans in the diaspora through many forced migrations, beginning with the Middle Passage. It is its own call to action, witnessing destruction and devastation and calling out for justice and repair.
The Braxton Institute’s 250th anniversary programming brings Maryland Black history, descendant communities, and cultural memory to larger national and even international conversations about reparations, historical accountability, and America’s unfinished democratic promise.Through exhibitions, public history engagement, and performance, the Institute has collaborated with the Lakeland Community Heritage Project and the Parks and Recreation Division of the Maryland National Park and Planning Commission to create spaces for education, reflection, and dialogue centered on the experiences of Black communities in Prince George’s County and across the African diaspora.
1950’s May Day Celebration in Lakeland, Photograph: Harry M. Braxton, Jr.
Upcoming Events
May 15, 2026 Exhibit Launch: Reclaiming Our Space: The Story of Lakeland
Hosted in partnership with Prince George’s County Parks and Recreation and the Lakeland Community Heritage Project, this event celebrates the opening of this historic exhibit and centers the story of Lakeland from its founding in the 1890’s, through the era of Jim Crow and segregation and the ordeal of Urban Renewal to tell the story of Lakeland, the beloved community. It also informs the public about the work of the College Park Restorative Justice Commission, the process of documenting harm, and the initial phases of the implementation of a program of repair. The “Unfinished Quilt” is shown as part of this exhibition, on May 15 and 16 only.
Exhibition: May 15, 2026-December 31, 2026. For more information, contact College Park Aviation Museum. 1985 Corporal Frank Scott, Drive, College Park, Maryland, 20740. (301) 864-6029.
May 16, 2026 Lakeland Community Day
Join us for a festive community day featuring music, activities, and food!
https://www.pgparks.com/event_list/celebrating-lakeland
May 18, 2026 Second Convening of Black-Eyed Susans for Reparations
A day of relationship-building, strategic coordination, and collective visioning as Maryland embarks on committed pathways towards reparations. Our first convening affirmed that there is a deep commitment across the state of Maryland to move reparations from concept to coordinated action. As we seek to end cycles of violence and bring our stories from the margins to the center to create the healing archive, we are carrying on the work of repair that our elders began before us. Invitation only.
“African Odyssey”, The Door of No Return, Goree Island, Senegal
Thursday, June 11, 2026 - Sunday, November 1, 2026
The African Odyssey Exhibition at Montpelier Historic Site & Museum, featuring “The Unfinished Quilt.”
This documentary photographic exhibition interrogates sites of memory in West Africa that were central to the inhumane trafficking of Africans to America. It further explores African identity, memory, enslavement and the meaning of repair through visual storytelling and historical reflection. As a descendant of African people enslaved at Montpelier, the photographer hopes that you will see and feel some of what she saw and felt as she journeyed to discover the meaning of the words of her grandmother, Emma Harrison, “My father always said that we have a home over there.”
https://www.pgparks.com/event_list/the-african-odyssey-exhibition
“If we move with the assurance that reparations can be realized in our time, we can live into that reality. In 2026, the work of repair also means repairing false narratives of our nation’s story as it continues to unfold. We in this movement contribute powerfully to that unfolding meaning— witnessing, documenting, intervening, interrupting cycles of harm, making repair.”