CAMBRIDGE, Md. - The empty space outside of the Dorchester County Courthouse will soon be home to a towering statue honoring Harriet Tubman.
Adrian Holmes, co-founder of the community group Alpha Genesis says the idea for this permanent statue came after a temporary statue was placed at the courthouse in 2020 and received positive reaction.
"We had no idea that the community would respond as strongly as they did so this is in response to what the community said and we've just taken the lead on it," Holmes said.
Holmes says the 11 foot tall bronze statue will show Tubman reaching out to touch the hand or her younger self. Holmes says that is a nod to the famous "Take My Hand" mural downtown.
As neighboring Talbot County continues to debate the future of the Talbot Boys Confederate statue outside of it's courthouse, Holmes says a tribute to a leading abolitionist is a fitting show of unity outside of Dorchester County's courthouse.
"This is about this own county's history and it's healing journey because here is where enslaved people were auctioned and sold. We need to speak to that, we need to understand what happened here and be able to process that," she said.
Jermaine Anderson of Alpha Genesis says the statue's powerful message speaks to him.
"It's been all spiritual. This whole process has been a spiritual process," he said.
This permanent tribute to Harriet Tubman will be unveiled at the courthouse in September during the city's annual Day of Resiliency.