The county's decision to relocate the African American cemetery near Lake Panasoffkee without having first researched its historical significance is at best regrettable.

We conducted 10 minutes of research in public records easily accessible to County Commissioners and were able to confirm that all of those in marked burials were indeed African Americans, who do not appear to have family connections, therefore Administrator Arnold's belief that this is a family plot is clearly mistaken.

This is a cemetery which once served an African American community and is now endangered. The World War I veteran buried in this cemetery should be honored, not disinterred and relocated.

If the county owns this parcel, then the County Commissioners and Administrator Arnold are the stewards of the cemetery's history.

As such they have a moral responsibility to research the cemetery's history before deciding to relocate the burials.

Administrator Arnold speaks of moving these graves to a "more appropriate location." There is no more appropriate location than this cemetery, where people were buried by loved ones who fully expected that this would be their final resting place.

Sumter County has a duty to rediscover the history of this cemetery and dialogue with descendants before removing the burials.

Best,
Toni Carrier
Founding Director
USF Africana Heritage Project
www.africanaheritage.com