Philadelphia designates May 21 as Ona Judge Day, honoring woman who escaped George Washington’s household

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Philadelphia will officially recognize May 21 as “Ona Judge Day,” honoring the woman who escaped enslavement after fleeing President George Washington’s household in the city on that day in 1796.

Judge, an enslaved woman who worked as a seamstress and personal attendant to Martha Washington, was among the nine enslaved people Washington rotated between his Philadelphia residence and Virginia plantation to evade Pennsylvania’s gradual abolition law.

Judge is recognized in one of the many placards on display at the President’s House Site in Philadelphia’s Independence National Historic Park. President Donald Trump’s administration sought to remove her history, along with that of eight other people enslaved by Washington during his time in Philadelphia.

President Donald Trump’s administration ordered the National Park Service to remove the panels in January, in fulfillment of an executive order to erase displays about the history of slavery from national museums, parks and landmarks. Many, but not all, of the panels taken down were restored to the exhibit in February as court proceedings continue between the city of Philadelphia and the administration.

“It’s so important to tell her story, because her story is fascinating, even what we know about the nine,” Philadelphia-based civil rights attorney and activist Michael Coard told Jennifer Lynn on WHYY’s Morning Edition, referring to the enslaved people in Washington’s household. Coard is a founding member of the Avenging the Ancestors Coalition, known as ATAC.

The Trump administration is still trying to overturn the injunction preventing the executive order’s changes to the President’s House Site. Lawyers for the Trump administration and the city of Philadelphia are expected to present oral arguments before the Third Circuit Court of Appeals on June 2.