Inspiration

A project envisioned by Bill Perkins more than three years ago is finally being actualized as a new freedom marker is set to be unveiled this September 13th in downtown Houston. This marks the culmination of an initiative dedicated to honor the courage of the enslaved people who escaped to freedom before the abolishment of slavery. This first freedom marker will be installed into Houston’s new Remembrance Park.
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In 2020, Mr. Perkins was actively involved in Cornell’s Freedom on the Move project that collected runaway slave ads from old newspaper articles. Drawing inspiration from the beautifully designed manhole covers in Budapest, and the stumbling stones in Europe that commemorate the Holocaust, Mr. Perkins conceived the idea of the freedom marker to celebrate the enslaved individuals’ unwavering resilience and fortitude as they sought their own liberation.

The freedom marker is an aggregation of symbols that are carefully chosen and designed to reflect the experiences and struggles of those who chose to emancipate themselves. It is a fusion of aesthetics and historical value, similar to the sewer plates in Budapest that carry distinctive designs that champion the capital’s culture. And just as the Stolpersteine (stumbling stones) are referred to as “stones against forgetting,” the freedom marker aims to engage passersby in a reflective experience to remind them of our collective past and the bravery of enslaved persons who fled from their injustice.