Photo: Irma McClaurin

How people bury their dead tells you something about who and what they valued in life. African American cemeteries are few and far between because often, after Reconstruction and during the era of Jim Crow and segregation, black property was confiscated or destroyed, and sometimes Black cemeteries were covered over to make room for highways and urban development. This makes the presence and preservation of Oberlin Cemetery in Raleigh, NC very special and very necessary.

Efforts to preserve this historic Africa American cemetery, which is one of four in the city of Raleigh, is being done by a dedicated group of descendants of the original Black freedmen founders who were the original residents of Oberlin Village, current community members, and supporters such as myself. 
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Originally published on LinkedIn, Oct. 19, 2016