Moses African Cemetery, located largely on the Westwood Tower property in Bethesda, was first desecrated in the late 1960s by workers building the apartment tower. The rest of the graves were paved over for a parking lot, and the matter was covered up by Montgomery County officials for decades. A potential sale of the Westwood Tower property, including the graveyard, by owner Housing Opportunities Commission of Montgomery County is stalled in a legal battle that is now moving to the Maryland Supreme Court. BACC has alleged that the HOC violated Maryland law by entering a sale agreement of a burial site without contacting the descendants of those interred there.
Over 200 bone fragments from a construction site directly adjacent to the cemetery have been trucked to a warehouse in Virginia over objections by the BACC, which has asked the private developer and County officials to allow their independent expert to examine them. Neither has agreed to date to allow the review.
"The report provides a detailed overview of the desecration of Moses, detailing the crimes, the criminals, and their accomplices," BACC said in today's statement. "Despite years of advocacy and appeals by BACC and our legal team to end the pillaging of funerary objects, tombstones, and possible human remains, we have seen no action from local officials. As we have documented and shared with the public, it is clear that many of these officials are themselves deeply involved in this hate crime and subsequent cover-up. They have been named in the report.
"BACC will continue to demand the return of all funerary objects, possible human remains (for independent testing by Dr. Michael Blakey), and ultimately the return of Moses Cemetery to the descendant community for proper stewardship. The county and the developers it has provided permits to (which they have failed to comply with) should not be responsible for our ancestors, whom they have dug up and disrespected time and time again."
A series of rallies outside the U.S. Department of Justice are being planned by BACC. The organization is hopeful that the report they have filed will result in a long-sought federal investigation into the known crimes and alleged crimes that have taken place at the historic Black cemetery over the last six decades. Maryland's Supreme Court is expected to take up the BACC's case against the HOC in January.
Tomorrow is Halloween, and what is Halloween without a ghost? There's one who haunts the area around the Shady Grove Metro station in Derwood, and has since his untimely death there in 1864. Walter "Wat" Bowie was among many Marylanders who were Confederate sympathizers during the Civil War. Like some, such as Bethesda plantation owner Nathan Loughborough, Bowie couldn't resist getting in on the fighting action himself despite living in a state that hadn't seceded from the Union. And yes, Wat Bowie was a member of that Bowie family, whose home turf is now a fast-growing city in Prince George's County.
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| BACC President Marsha Coleman-Adebayo at a 2017 protest regarding Moses African Cemetery |
Today's protest will take place between 12:15 and 2:30 PM outside 9400 Persimmon Tree Road in Potomac. This appears to be a private mansion. According to the website of the Montgomery County Democratic Party, the "Afternoon of Elegance" event will be held from 2:00 to 4:00 PM today.
Did you know there is a real Route 666, and it is located in Kensington, Maryland? The Satanic-numbered Maryland highway designation was given to Armory Avenue, a portion of Howard Avenue, and St. Paul Street, when they served as the original route to cross the Baltimore & Ohio (now CSX) Railroad tracks in Kensington. Today, the newer Connecticut Avenue serves that purpose to the west, with a grade-separated bridge crossing. The controversial 666 route number was removed in 1958, but you can still drive the real-life "Highway to Hell" today. However, the only way to travel the entire length continously is on foot, by using the pedestrian crossing at the Kensington railroad station.
Today on the Montgomery County Halloween Countdown, we have the creepiest license plate you're likely to find in MoCo. "Casket" is the vanity tag for a Chrysler 300 sedan staff vehicle at the Robert A. Pumphrey Funeral Home in downtown Bethesda. The black car also features the flashing emergency lights for funeral processions that have become standard on most funeral home hearses in recent years. Don't expect an actual casket to fit into a Chrysler 300, despite the spine-chilling tags.
Today, as we count down the final days to Halloween, let's take a look at the Halloween 1976 edition of The Rockville Mall Times. Yes, Rockville's ill-fated dead mall of the 1970s and 80s had its own newspaper, and it could be as creepy as many considered the mall to be. Especially the Halloween edition. Who was Mr. Barfly, and was he a denizen of the shadows of the mall? Are you encouraged, or discouraged, to visit Ransom's, with Mr. Barfly as the face of the business? His disturbing visage suggests a ransom may indeed be involved to secure your release from his clutches, and from the mall's infamous dark parking garage.
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| Mr. Barfly, a denizen of the darkest corners of the Rockville Mall |
Trone not only handily funds his own campaigns with his Total Wine fortune, but is a powerhouse fundraiser for Democrats nationally, including Obama. He has hosted Obama for fundraisers at his Montgomery County home in the past. But Obama endorsed Moore in his successful 2022 gubernatorial campaign, and Moore's name entered the 2028 presidential race discussion before he had even been sworn in as Maryland's first Black governor in January. Along with Moore's central casting persona, and stellar resume, the fallout for the rookie governor may be minimal.
The Moore and Jawando tag-team endorsement has potentially united the Black vote in the race behind Alsobrooks. She leads the second-wealthiest majority-Black jurisdiction in the nation, and the wealthiest - Charles County - is also in Maryland. The Black vote is critical to victory in the state, although that didn't help Donna Edwards in her U.S. Senate race against eventual winner Chris Van Hollen. Trone is popular among independents, and among the growing number of Republicans who switch to the Democratic party for primary elections in Maryland. Even many conservatives respect his business acumen and success.
Former state legislator Robin Ficker is the only current Republican candidate in the race with any statewide name recognition. Former Gov. Larry Hogan was well-positioned to run - and had an outside chance to win. But he chose to focus on a potential presidential campaign instead, and remains among those rumored to be under consideration for the No Labels independent ticket, should it materialize next year. Fantasy GOP candidates like Cal Ripken and Pat Sajak have shown no interest in running, and the Republican farm team is virtually non-existent. The absence of a prominent MAGA Republican candidate in the race means there is a wide lane open for a Hogan-style moderate GOP candidate to enter the race.
