Was the Harriott II riverboat relative to historical figure, Harriet Tubman? The short answer--No
As an update to the August 5, 2023 riverboat brawl in Montgomery, Alabama on the Alabama River docks, there are now five people who have been charged in the ongoing investigation, where a Black co-captain was attacked by a group of white men.
The co-captain asked them to move their illegally parked pontoon, which was stationed in the spot typically reserved for the Harriott II Riverboat. The captain by loud speaker had already asked them to move several times, circling the river for 40 minutes, hoping the boat owners would follow his request and move their boat.
Meanwhile, the offenders who turned themselves in last week include: Mary Todd, 21, Richard Roberts, 48, Allen Todd, 23, and Zachery Shipman, 25. Also, the Black man, Reggie Ray, 42, wielding the chair at a few white offenders after exiting the riverboat due to racial slurs and threats of violence hurled his way before exiting the boat, has turned himself into the Montgomery law enforcement. One of the workers on the riverboat claimed the group of white men called him the n-word and threatened to use a gun. According to legal documents obtained by TMZ, a woman named Crystal Warren, who was working on the riverboat, said one of the white men who attacked the Black worker yelled, "F**k that n****r" before coming down the dock to fight him. Up to $300,000 has been raised online for Ray's case.
However, the memes keep coming, as many Black people are identifying the incident as racially motivated; videos posted to online social media pages are depicting wielding-chair scenes, a Black history lesson on folding chairs and memes relating the Underground Railroad, historical figure, Harriet Tubman.
BHN insider has the facts regarding the question of the two “Harriets." The truth is revealing of the real historical relevance of Harriet Tubman and the ship that was named after her.