Maryland Lynching Truth and Reconciliation Hearing

The Maryland Lynching Truth and Reconciliation Commission (MLTRC) will hold a public hearing in Maryland on April 4th and 5th, 2025, as part of its ongoing effort to bring awareness to Maryland's history of racial violence and to foster reconciliation in the present. Research reveals that no fewer than 38 Black men were lynched across the State of Maryland.

The two-day hearing will focus on the history of lynching in Maryland, with an emphasis on the role that institutions---such as law enforcement, the media, and elected officials---played in these egregious crimes. The hearing will explore topics of reconciliation, reparations, and community advocacy.

This page will be updated with additional details, please check back often.

Over the course of 13 hearings that covered all 17 counties where a documented lynching occurred, descendants of the victims and aggressors, expert witnesses, community members, scholars, and archivists have had the opportunity to provide testimony and make recommendations for achieving racial healing. You are encouraged to continue to submit testimony to mltrc@maryland.gov or bring written testimony to be collected at the public hearing.

HEARING DETAILS

When: Friday, April 4, 2025 and Saturday, April 5, 2025

Time (in person and streaming): 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Where: Reginald F. Lewis Museum of Maryland African American History & Culture, 830 East Pratt Street, Baltimore, MD 21202

Food and Lunch: Food and lunch are not be available at the Lewis Museum. A list of local restaurants will be available at check-in, or feel free to bring nourishment for during the breaks.

Parking: A parking garage is located across Pratt Street from the museum, and a second garage is situated diagonally across President Street. Validation inside the museum helps to offset parking costs.

Please register for each day.

If you are unable to attend in person, a link to the live stream will be posted on MLTRC’s website the morning of the hearing.