Welcome to my project. This page will help you understand a little about what my project is and why it is important to me.
About Me
My name is Sydney Wohltmann and I am a junior at the University of Mary Washington, studying Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies and American Studies, with a minor in History. I was born in Chesterfield, Virginia, and grew up in Short Pump, about 30 minutes outside of Richmond.
My mom was raised in Williamsburg, Virginia, and went to Longwood University before moving to many states along the East Coast with my dad in her 20s. My dad was raised in Rye, New York before he moved to Tennessee and then many other states with his mom in his late teens and then with my mom in his 20s. My parents were married for about four years before they had my older sister, Jillian, who is two years older than me and graduated from VCU in the Spring of 2024.
Richmond has been part of my life since I can remember, especially with it being so close to my house. Since I was little, I went with my family to Flying Squirrels games, right near Arthur Ashe Boulevard at the Diamond, and when I grew up I got many tattoos at Lucky 13 on Broad Street. My sister went to college in Richmond and I even graduated high school at the Siegel Center in Richmond. In 2023, a very close family friend and my mom’s goddaughter, Becca, came to live with us when she started working at VCU Medical Center in Richmond. My dad’s job requires him to spend a lot of time traveling in and around Richmond, and my mom’s job is located about ten minutes from the heart of the city.
What is this project?
My project aims to describe the history of the monuments on Richmond’s Monument Avenue: when the statues were erected and who they are of or who they represent, what proponents for and against the removal of the statues argued, and finally when and how they were eventually taken down.
importance
I chose to do this project on Monument Avenue because I had grown up with it right around the corner, meaning I heard about the protests surrounding the monuments and I was able to visit the street before and after the statues were removed. The project is important because racism is so prominent in the United States and has been for centuries. From the beginnings of slavery in the U.S.—the beginnings of racialized slavery in the world—to today, where Black Americans are continually targeted unproportionally more than Americans with other identities. Race theory is heavily studied, especially in the field I want to pursue and the career plan to have, so this project adds substantially to my knowledge of race in America.
All of this is to say that this project means a lot to me because Richmond means a lot to me. Its rich history intrigues me and the fact that I basically live there makes it that much more important. Moreover, my majors WGST and AMST and my minor in History make this an important project in terms of what I have been studying for almost three years. I hope my project can inform those who are unaware about Richmond’s racist and troubled past so that the city can continue to evolve.