Amistad memorial (New Haven)
| Amistad Memorial | |
|---|---|
 Amistad Memorial
Location within Connecticut
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| Artist |
Ed Hamilton Architect: Herbert S. Newman & Associates |
| Completion date | Dedicated September 18, 1992 |
| Medium | Bronze sculpture |
| Subject | Joseph Cinque |
| Dimensions | 3.04 m (10 ft) |
| Location | New Haven, Connecticut, U.S. |
| 41°18′27″N 72°55′28″W / 41.30745°N 72.92450°WCoordinates: 41°18′27″N 72°55′28″W / 41.30745°N 72.92450°W | |
| Owner | City of New Haven |
The Amistad Memorial in New Haven, Connecticut is a bronze sculpture created by Ed Hamilton to recognize the events of the 1839 Amistad Affair. The affair was a kidnapping of 53 Africans and their subsequent mutiny aboard La Amistad. It led to a historically significant United States Supreme Court case, in which the Amistad captives were ruled to be acting in self-defense, thereby granting them the right to mutiny.
The memorial sits in front of the New Haven City Hall on Church Street, the location where the Amistad slaves were jailed during their trial. It was dedicated on September 18, 1992.
La Amistad was an American ship owned by a Cuban Spaniard that was retrofitted to carry slaves. It is historically infamous because of the revolt which occurred on board the ship in 1839. The long journey of the 53 Mende captives responsible for the revolt began when they were abducted from their home in present-day Sierra Leone, and forced aboard the Portuguese slave ship Tecora, bound for Cuba to be sold as slaves. Upon their secret arrival in Cuba, the captives were transferred to 'La Amistad'. On July 2, 1839, a revolt was led by Sengbe Pieh (also known as Joseph Cinqué) in which the captives overran the ship, threatening death, and ordered the surviving crew to chart a course back to their native Sierra Leone. In a secret act of defiance, the navigator steered the ship north towards the American coast in hopes of rescue. La Amistad was escorted ashore by USRC Washington after being spotted off the tip of Montauk, Long Island. The slaves were interned in New Haven, CT to be tried for mutiny and murder.
After the Amistad Africans won their court case, and their freedom, many members of the community volunteered their aid: the residents of New Haven gave them housing, tutoring, and legal aid. Participating residents formed the Amistad Committee, and among them was John Quincy Adams, who defended the Amistad captives in their case in front of the supreme court. The Amistad captives assimilated into the community, and would spend time in the town green with the locals.
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