Freedom Walk, Harriet Tubman statue are coming to the Corridor!

BUFFALO, NY – In case you missed the news, a traveling statue of Harriet Tubman has been retracing the path many African Americans took to escape enslavement, and it’s coming to the historic Michigan Street African American Heritage Corridor!

The statue — “The Journey to Freedom” by artist Wesley Wofford — is part of Freedom Walk 2026, an eight week event in which participants retrace the Underground Railroad route to freedom used by the heroic individuals who fled state-sponsored slavery.

“The Freedom Walk and ‘The Journey to Freedom’ statue are modern reminders that enslavement was legal in the United States for 246 years, from 1619 to 1865,” said Terry Alford, executive director of the Michigan Street African American Heritage Corridor Commission.

“As the 250th anniversary of the nation’s independence and founding moves closer, these are important reminders that even though America has been great for some, it still has a way to go for so many others to fulfill its promises of ‘liberty and justice for all.’”

The Tubman statue, which shows the fierce abolitionist on a harrowing rescue mission, represents America’s struggle to live up to its promise of freedom. Currently in Niagara Falls, it will be celebrated in the historic Corridor on June 28 at 2 p.m. and June 30 from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m. It will be proudly displayed on the “Freedom Path” behind the Nash House Museum and the historic Michigan Street Baptist Church. Freedom Walk 2026 will cross into Canada on July 1.

This news comes after Gov. Kathy Hochul signed legislation to officially add the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Byway into the New York State scenic byway system.