[1] According to a 2001 article in the Los Angeles Times, "none of the more than 40 plaques, pillars and statues" in the city paid tribute to African Americans.

[2] The proposed quote would have read, in part, "We lay back to belly in the holds of the slave ships in each others’ excrement and urine together, sometimes died together, and our lifeless bodies thrown overboard together.

"[2][3][4] At the time, the quote was considered controversial in part due to the monument's proposed location along the Savannah River promenade, which was one of the biggest tourist attractions in the city.

[2][3] Jordan claimed that she had fought back against the insistences of some city council members who proposed placing the monument at a church rather than the promenade.

[2] David Jones, an African American city council member at the time, had the following to say about the quote: “Maya Angelou’s description was a little far out.