Close to home: The men and women who live in Emancipation Park speak out

In the center of Charlottesville is a park. A park that, lately, has seen its fair share of blood and spit, pepper spray and violence, tears and prayers. It sits in the city’s northeast quadrant and takes up a square block, sandwiched between First and Second streets to the west and east, Jefferson Street to the north and Market Street to the south. For nearly 93 years it was known as Lee Park. But for the last three months, officially at least, it’s been called Emancipation Park.

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