1911: A Broken Promise
Over 111 years ago, the state of Maryland purchased land for the explicit purpose of offering care and healing to the state’s most vulnerable population - black mental health patients.
Amidst gross misuse of power and systemic racism, instead of receiving healing care, many of the hospital's patients were abused and subjected to unethical and inhumane experimentation and abuse. Not only did they not receive needed care, ultimately nearly all patients died at the facility, isolated from family — the trauma perpetuated. More than 1,600 nameless graves of former patients were left to be forgotten — and they nearly were.
2021: Today’s opportunity.
More than 17 years since permanently closing in 2004,
On September 2, 2021, the Maryland Department of Mental Health released a statement announcing the divestment of this historic property. This act unlocked a unique opportunity in time to preserve history, offer collective healing and model successful equitable spaces.
What elected leaders are saying
about the need for Trama + Greenspace = Healing
January 26, 2021 — “We have never fully lived up to the founding principles of this nation, to state the obvious, that all people are created equal and have a right to be treated equally throughout their lives. And it’s time to act now, not only because it’s the right thing to do, but because if we do, we’ll all be better off for it.”
— President Joe Biden, Signing of an Executive Order on Racial Equity
September 2, 2021 — Phase I of the Facilities Master Plan will occur from 2022-2026 and includes the divestment of Crownsville Hospital Center in Anne Arundel County.
“Development of this Master Plan was a collaborative process dating back to 2018 and included assessing [Maryland Department of Health] operations and infrastructure, focusing on creating the best care environment for patients now and in the future,"
— Ellington E. Churchill, Jr., Secretary at Maryland Department of General Services
October 7, 2021 — “I want to see [the Crownsville State Hospital] as a center for healing, a place where mental health and, really, all health is promoted and encouraged,” he told WYPR. “Also a place where the community can go to, a regional park”