The Black Lives Matter movement was founded in 2013 in response to the exoneration of Treyvon Martin’s murderer. Exhausted by the cruelty and injustice which black people face from the system, the organization was built on the principles of inclusivity, acceptance, improvement, and humanity in order to “eradicate white supremacy and build local power to intervene in violence inflicted on Black communities by the state and vigilantes.” However, the overt and repeated lack of recognition towards Black female victims – and even for its three queer, black, female founders – begs the question of whether this movement is truly about all black lives, or rather just black male lives.

Trayvon Martin. A 17-year-old Black boy murdered on February 26, 2012 while walking home from a 7-eleven in Sanford, Florida. His killer? George Zimmerman, a white man who served as coordinator of the neighborhood watch. The video of Trayvon’s murder sparked national outrage.

The Young Abolitionist Leadership Institute is one of our core programs. For several weeks each summer, local youth come together at the Myers Residence to steep themselves in the past, present, and future, and leave better equipped to become agents of change for a more just world. Here’s what we’ve been up to this summer!

UREC Black Lives Matter Statement Underground Railroad Education Center stands in solidarity with the ongoing peaceful movement for social and racial justice. Our solidarity is implicit in our efforts to…

Slave. Master. Among the many rocks we can turn over to see the dark side of our country’s racist past and present, the very words we use to tell the story of our history are ones that are hiding in plain sight. Language holds power, and our beliefs and prejudices are embedded in it; we must look more closely at the words used to describe the institution of slavery in America.

“No one is born hating another person because of the color of his skin, or his background, or his religion. People must learn to hate, and if they can learn…

A 2016 study by the Urban Institute and Brookings Institution found that the household wealth of a typical white family ($171,000) was ten times that of a typical African American family ($17,150). A major reason for this is the huge gap in homeownership between the two groups.

“When white folks catch a cold, black folks get pneumonia”: an old saying to describe the often unequitable effect of an economic downturn on the Black community. Does it actually bear some truth in the field of public health as well?

Sanctuary. Shelter. Welcome. These concepts have been built into the very walls of the Harriet and Stephen Myers Residence. From the days of meetings of Albany’s Vigilance Committee in the 19th century, the house on Lumber (now Livingston) Street has been a place to connect with the kindness of strangers, to receive a helping hand, and the resources to attain freedom. And now we must close our doors. Not forever, thankfully, but still – it hurts.

The Underground Railroad network, by its nature, attracted humanitarians of character and integrity. One little-known man who shone among them is John W. Jones, who escaped from slavery near Leesburg, Virginia, and helped more than 800 people to freedom through Elmira, New York.

Hidden in an unlikely location in a grassy area at the entrance to the Federal Express facility along Route 32 in Colonie, the Schuyler Flatts Burial Ground is a singularly important record of African American history.

Albany was a busy port city throughout the nineteenth century. During its most active Underground Railroad days, the city was occupied by lumber and other businesses at the riverfront and numerous retail establishments along Market Street (our current Broadway), Pearl Street, and corresponding cross streets.