In a move that could mark a turning point for the residents on Duffield Street in Downtown Brooklyn, Yvette Clarke has written a letter of support for the preservation of their homes. The properties, purportedly part of the historic Underground Railroad movement of the Civil War era, are threatened with seizure by the New York Economic Development Corporation (EDC). The EDC wants to build in their place an underground parking lot and access road for a hotel.

Yvette Clarke was recently elected to Congress, beating out three other candidates in a grueling contest. This move suggests a growing sense of leadership for Clarke. In the wake of Clarke's letter, David Yassky and Congressman Ed Towns have expressed their intention of standing up in favor of the Abolitionist homes. The Brooklyn Papers published Clarke: Save Duffield Houses in this week's edition.

Congressional Representative Clarke writes:

This area was widely recognized as an active Abolitionist neighborhood at a time where much of New York supported the vicious institution of slavery.

The New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC) has released a report declaring that the area had no connection between the Abolitionists and the Underground Railroad movement. While I commend the NYCEDC for its extensive research, I would like to point out that the peer reviewers hired by the City came to the conclusion that the properties should be protected

Background: In June 2004, an EDC executive claimed that "a dozen agencies" including the Schomberg Center for Research on Black Culture had been consulted when they made the determination that there was not sufficient evidence to save the homes. This turned out to be false. As Christopher Moore of the Schomberg Center testified, "Had any representative of your firm actually spoke to me, I would have informed them, without hesitation, that the entire length of Duffield Street is one of the city’s most promising areas for the study of Underground Railroad activity." The EDC’s lie forced them to spend three years studying the issue again, leading to a report that was released in March 2007.

Clarke is known for her promotion of economic development, and writes that saving these homes is consistent with those goals. "The preservation of the Duffield and Gold Street blocks for historical purposes would benefit Downtown Brooklyn’s further development... and the education of our society."

She concludes with a more moral tone: “Preserving the Abolitionist homes on Duffield and Gold Street is simply the right thing to do.”

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