Officials of the city of Savannah recently announced the final list of nominees being considered for the renaming of a public square.
Nine months after announcing that the green space will no longer be named after John C. Calhoun, a former U.S. vice president whose racist ideology supported enslavement in the 19th century, a final list of six finalists was announced by officials.
Per AP News, the nominees for the renaming of the space are all figures that represent the different communities of Savannah. Out of the six nominees, four are figures in Black history. The other two potential names honor specific groups, such as the Native Americans who lived in the area of the city when it was founded, as well as a group of women who worked to protect Savannah’s history in the 1950s.
“Regardless of what name is picked, it will be a name that represents more diversity in Savannah and sort of expands the story that Savannah tells about itself,” said Kristopher Monroe, the chairman of the local Historic Site and Monument Commission that submitted the recommendations for the renaming of the square, per AP News.
Of the nominees, the four Black Americans who are selected as potential candidates include nurse and educator Susie King Taylor as well as Rev. George Liele.
Born in 1848, Taylor is considered to be the first Black nurse of the Civil War and the first Black woman to self-release her own writings about her life. At the age of 14 years old, she founded a school for Black children and adults in Georgia, teaching over forty children and adults how to read and write.
Known as the first ordained Black American Baptist preacher in the U.S., Liele helped found the First African Baptist Church in 1777. Now considered to be one of the oldest Black churches in Savannah, the First African Baptist Church continues to thrive in the community to this date.
Civil rights activist W.W. Law and Army Maj. Clayton Carpenter are also under consideration for the naming of the space.
In the 60s, Law was a prominent figure in the civil rights movement, serving as the president of the Savannah quarters of the NAACP. Under his leadership, he helped the division desegregate establishments such as schools and restaurants in Savannah.
Meanwhile, Army Maj. Clayton Carpenter was a former pilot who passed away in 2014 while saving his co-workers during a Blackhawk helicopter training accident.
The vote for the final decision for the renaming of the square is expected to be held later this month on Aug. 24.
