Republican Legislators Who Funded Freedom Park Praise Effort, Despite Exclusion from Event

Gov. Cooper blocked Freedom Park funding when he vetoed budget bill

Republican senators passed separate bill to fund the park, but were excluded from groundbreaking event

Raleigh, N.C. — Today is the ceremonial groundbreaking of Freedom Park, which honors the contributions of Black North Carolinians.

The project was originally defunded when Gov. Roy Cooper vetoed the state budget, but Republican lawmakers revived the effort and passed a separate bill to fund the park.

Despite the broad bipartisan effort, Republicans were excluded from the groundbreaking, unfortunately turning the project into a political affair.

Despite the petty exclusion from the project, Republican senators praised the effort and are proud of their work to ensure Freedom Park moves forward.

Sen. Kathy Harrington (R-Gaston), a Senate budget writer, said, “It’s unfortunate that organizers turned this into a political event by declining to invite Republicans, but this project is an important acknowledgment of the critical contributions made by Black North Carolinians over the past several hundred years.”

Sen. Bob Steinburg (R-Chowan) said, “Turning an acknowledgment of the historical contributions of Black North Carolinians into a political event only adds to the discontent and polarization that pervades our politics. Despite the pettiness, I’m still proud of our work to fund this important project.”

Sen. Joyce Krawiec (R-Forsyth) said, “This project was years in the making, and it’s exciting to see it finally become a reality due to the Republican effort to fund it.”