Meck ends contract with Historic Latta nonprofit over controversial Juneteenth event

Mecklenburg County is not renewing its contract with the nonprofit that manages Historic Latta Plantation, after a controversial Juneteenth program planned for the Huntersville site sparked a social media uproar last week.

Lee Jones, Mecklenburg’s Park and Recreation director, told county commissioners Tuesday evening the annual agreement will end June 30.

But the future use of the site remains unclear, and the county is still urging the plantation to rethink upcoming summer programming for children about training to be like young Confederate soldiers and southern belles, Jones said.

Mecklenburg owns the 19th century house, while a nonprofit called Historic Latta Inc. operates the facilities and runs events there, including field trips and tours, Jones said. The county notified the nonprofit about the end of the contract earlier Tuesday, Jones said.

The decision comes days after the town of Huntersville announced its annual contribution to Latta Plantation “will remain on hold pending further investigation into the facts surrounding this program.” That figure is $20,000, town Commissioner Stacy Phillips said on Twitter.

Historic Latta’s since-canceled event, called “Kingdom Coming,” did not acknowledge the historical significance of June 19th, which commemorates the emancipation of slaves in the United States.

Instead, the event struck a sympathetic tone for those who had owned slaves, referring to one slave owner as an “overseer” and “massa.” The event also used the term “freedmen” without mentioning slavery had lasted for 250 years.

The post was taken down on Friday following the criticism.

‘Trauma-causing’

Mecklenburg was not involved with Historic Latta’s Juneteenth event, Jones emphasized.

“That context we felt was not in accordance with what we were trying to do with the facility,” said Jones, adding the county is still determining next steps for how to use the site.

George Dunlap, chairman of the county commissioners, praised Jones for his fast action responding to the event Friday. He said it was proof that Mecklenburg’s “system worked,” though there is room for improvement.

“Within a matter of an hour or so, you had already begun to work on it,” Dunlap said. “You can’t expect anything more.”

Several county commissioners — who have sharpened their focus on racial equity in the wake of George Floyd protest and the pandemic’s disproportionate toll on marginalized communities — asked for an audit of what happened at Historic Latta.

This incident itself, they said, could be an educational opportunity.

Next year, Juneteenth is considered an official county holiday, according to Mecklenburg’s budget book.

“The outrage in the community is real,” said County Commissioner Mark Jerrell, who called the possibility of confederate camps a “trauma-causing event.”

Mecklenburg’s responsibility

Historic Latta occupies roughly 6 acres on Mecklenburg County Park and Recreation’s sweeping Latta Nature Preserve, a 1,460-acre property along the shoreline of Mountain Island Lake

There’s 16 miles of trails for hikers and horseback riders at the preserve, plus boat launch areas and a fishing dock, according to the county’s website. The Carolina Raptor Center, the largest eagle aviary in the Southeast, is another main attraction at Latta Nature Preserve.

Mecklenburg County allocates about $30,000 each year to subsidize Historic Latta’s operating costs and is responsible for physical repairs at the house, said Chris Matthews, division director for nature preserves and natural resources at the county’s Park and Recreation Department.

But Mecklenburg does not oversee day-to-day programs at the living history museum or help with repairs at the plantation’s visitor center.

Since the 1970s, “education and interpretation around the historic house” has been managed by the plantation’s nonprofit, Matthews said.

It’s a type of management agreement, Matthews said, where Mecklenburg expects to be notified of special events in order to coordinate traffic control. That did not happen with “Kingdom Coming.”

“We were unaware of this until it became obvious on social media,” Matthews told the Observer Tuesday afternoon, before the commissioners’ meeting. “This was not a county program. This was definitely something that was developed and advertised by the nonprofit.”

The mayor’s concerns

As the controversy over the plantation grew Friday, Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles tweeted that Historic Latta Plantation “should know better,” without specifically delving into the event and its deleted advertisement.

“We should not support any business or organization that does not respect equality, history, and the truth of the African-American people’s journey to freedom,” Lyles wrote.

During Monday’s City Council meeting, Lyles also read a proclamation that commemorates Juneteenth and urges all Charlotte residents to use the day as a time for learning, healing and renewal.

We should not support any business or organization that does not respect equality, history, and the truth of the African-American people’s journey to freedom. Despite intent, words matter. And the Historic Latta Plantation should know better.

— Mayor Vi Lyles (@CLTMayor) June 12, 2021

Historic Latta Plantation site manager Ian Campbell called out Lyles in a lengthy post over the weekend, in which he took “full responsibility” for “Kingdom Coming.” But he refused to apologize for the controversial event.

Campbell said the Confederacy, white supremacy, overseers, plantation owners and white refugees will never be glorified. “To the masses on social media and politicians, no apology will be given for bringing a unique program to educate the public about former slaves becoming FREE!” Campbell wrote.

“My job will be to continue to educate,” Campbell said. “Historic Latta Plantation’s narrative will be to give a voice to our ancestors enslaved and as freedmen who were denied a voice. We will speak for them in a compassionate, accurate, and sensitive manner.”