Before the Civil War, disputes among Congress members were settled with pistol-drawing duels. In Bladensburg, Maryland, the land on which some of those duels happened is now covered with art projecting a different message of peace.
It’s estimated that at least 50 people died at the Dueling Grounds in Colmar Manor. There’s a creek nearby that was formerly known as “Blood Run” or “The Dark and Bloody Grounds.”
Now, this place of violence is being reclaimed in the name of peace and hope.
Over the summer, a 124-feet long anti-gun violence street mural, titled “Streets of Solidarity” was painted in the same spot. The mural stretches across four intersections: 38th Avenue, 37th Avenue, Newark Street and Newton Street.
Brandon Bell, one of the artists behind the mural, has hope that the mural