About Us
What is the Charleston African Burial Grounds Coalition?
We are a community guided by the Ancestors.
In 2012, Dr. Ade Ofunniyin envisioned an organization dedicated to advocating for, preserving, and protecting Gullah Geechee burial grounds, history, and culture. From 2013–2021, this work was carried forward by the Gullah Society, Inc., a grassroots nonprofit organization (501c3). That work set a powerful foundation for advocacy, remembrance, and community healing.
After the Gullah Society dissolved, we carried the mission forward through the Anson Street African Burial Ground Project. In 2025, we embraced a new name — Charleston African Burial Grounds Coalition to more fully reflect our commitment to honoring and protecting burial grounds across the city.
Our work is rooted in research, remembrance, and responsibility to the Ancestors. This website shares the story of ASABG and offers updates on our continuing efforts. Thank you for your support!
Photo taken by Servant Emannuel Branch, May 2022.
Our Team Ethos
It is our responsibility to work together as a team and in the community with integrity and honesty. We stand by the following statements:
As individuals we recognize our positionality – acknowledging social position and power dynamics that are at play.
Operate in a way that privileges the voices of individuals or groups who have been or are presently oppressed.
Recognize that descendant communities should have the authority to control the study, treatment and preservation of ancestral remains, sacred sites and cultural objects.
Embrace engagement at every level within the local and broader contexts in which we operate.
Regularly re-evaluate who the work benefits and how we can increase benefits to individuals or groups that have not been considered in the past and/or are under-represented.
Our research should focus on exploring the effects of complex social dynamics and contexts on human life experiences, acknowledging the value and experiences of individuals, giving voice to stories that were suppressed or invisible, and recovering their agency - which was denied through oppression.
Operate with mutual respect for each other and for the individuals that we serve. Ensure that relationships are founded on trust, integrity, dignity and connectedness.
Recognize the moral responsibility that we have as researchers, remain concerned with including and collaborating with invested parties.
Research should be systematic, rigorous, replicable and scientifically sound, with detailed contextual data collected.
As a team, communicate regularly, sharing plans and providing updates about ongoing work.
Be cognizant about different sensibilities regarding the sharing of knowledge, who has access to information, when it is appropriate to share information.
Operate in a way that is socially, economically, culturally and environmentally sustainable; for example, intentionally support local, Black-owned businesses.