US President Donald Trump announced his intention to commemorate Prince Estabrook, an enslaved man who was wounded while battling the British Army in 1775, in a new national garden of American heroes.
Trump hosted a Black History Month reception at the White House on Thursday and said, “In the very first skirmish of the Revolutionary War at Lexington Green, an enslaved black man named Prince Estabrook answered history’s call and fought as the minutemen alongside the other patriots of the very small Massachusetts town… Prince was wounded in the early morning battle, becoming not only the first African American soldier to fight in the revolution but among the very first Americans to spill their blood.”
“The garden will predominantly feature incredible women like Harriet Tubman, Rosa Parks, Billie Holiday, Aretha Franklin and Coretta Scott King,” Trump said.
“We’re going to produce some of the most beautiful works of art in the form of a statue for men like Frederick Douglass, Booker T. Washington, Jackie Robinson, what a great athlete, MLK Jr., Muhammad Ali, and Kobe Bryant,” Trump added.
During his previous term, Trump had put forward a comparable proposal via executive order. Upon returning to office last month, he reintroduced this executive directive.
The East Room event featured Tiger Woods alongside Trump, who addressed a large gathering of guests. “Welcome to the White House. And we proudly celebrate Black History Month,” Trump said.
He continued: “Today, we pay tribute to the generations of Black legends, champions, warriors and patriots who helped drive our country forward to greatness. And you really are great, great people.”
The attendees included prominent Black supporters, such as Republican Sen. Tim Scott, Rep. John James, Alveda King (Martin Luther King Jr.’s niece), Herschel Walker (Trump’s nominee for US ambassador to the Bahamas), and prison reform advocate Alice Johnson, who received his pardon in 2020.
Johnson had been serving a life sentence without parole for non-violent drug offences before Trump granted clemency.
During his speech, Trump specifically mentioned Johnson, announcing his intention to include her in his administration.
“She’s going to be my pardon czar,” he stated.
The specific responsibilities of this position remain undefined.
During the event, Trump said that the chief executive of Pfizer, Albert Bourla, was in attendance — and the mention was met by boos from the crowd.
“We also have the head of Pfizer here. So I want to thank him, one of the great, great people, one of the great businessmen,” Trump said, as the crowd booed.
The guest list also included sports and entertainment personalities: former ESPN presenter Sage Steele, ex-NFL player Jack Brewer, and rap artists Kodak Black, Lil Boosie and Rod Wave, according to an anonymous official unauthorised to speak publicly.
