CALENDAR OF EVENTS
On April 17, 1871, the City of Richmond established a gerrymandered sixth ward known as Jackson Ward. Historically, this political district extended from 18th Street to Leigh Street along the northern neck of the city and while the ward began as an integrated community consisting of freed and urbanized enslaved Black Richmonders alongside European immigrants, it would soon be segregated by gerrymandering, separated by redlining, and saturated by gentrifying. However, the lineage of Black Richmonders who forged a legacy in the ward, and on whose shoulders we all stand is rich and rooted in resiliency. The resilient residents of this ward not only survived, but thrived, in a space that was designed to suppress and oppress both the Black voice and vote, taking on many names along the way, such as "Little Africa", "Harlem of the South", and "Black Wall Street" – and ultimately offering a blueprint as the "Birthplace of Black Entrepreneurship." As we broach the origin date of the nation's first historically registered Black urban neighborhood, The JXN Project will launch a year-long sesquicentennial celebration beginning with "Illuminating Legacies" Giles B. Day" on April 17 and culminating with "Unveiling the Vanguard" during the Second Street Festival.