St. Petersburg sent the remains of Black pioneers to neighboring Gulfport during segregation. The local pastor overseeing Lincoln Cemetery said it continues “being punished.”
Mayor Ken Welch and city council members now want to annex the nearly century-old cemetery. Gulfport must first facilitate the process, and Rev. Clarence Williams can no longer afford to maintain and rebuild the flood-prone burial grounds.
However, the mayoral administration cannot allocate taxpayer funding to projects in another city. A committee meeting Dec. 4 highlighted the conundrum faced by council members who want to right past wrongs, and St. Petersburg-based Cross and Anvil Human Services, which took control of Lincoln Cemetery in 2023…