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April 16, 2018 by NOW National

Why We Observe Emancipation Day

Statement by NOW President Toni Van Pelt:

The District of Columbia celebrates April 16 as Emancipation Day. On that day in 1862, President Abraham Lincoln signed the District of Columbia Compensated Emancipation Act, which ended slavery in Washington, D.C., freed about 3,100 slaves in the District of Columbia, reimbursed those who had legally owned them and offered the newly freed women and men money to emigrate. The Act came nine months before President Lincoln issued the broader Emancipation Proclamation.

As a member of Washington, D.C.’s community NOW celebrates Emancipation Day and acknowledges the the continued struggle of African Americans. As we reconcile our country’s past, it is our duty to rectify the ramifications of that past on the present.

The U.S. has gone from slavery, to racial segregation, to the industrial prison system of today. The “New Jim Crow” disproportionately criminalizes African American men for low level offences with longer sentences that any other race in the U.S. Mass incarceration–as we all know–is merely the tip of the iceberg. Our country’s storied and dark history of discrimination is seen in gross racial disparities in income; neglected Black and Brown communities such as Flint, Michigan; increased segregation in public schools across the country; and even a lack of adequate reproductive care for Black women.

On Emancipation Day, NOW calls on our white sisters and brothers, to not only educate themselves on the true history of our country’s treatment of African Americans, but to uplift organizations such as Sister Song and The Black Women’s Blueprint that specifically help and address the needs of communities of color. It falls upon all of us as Americans to stand up, speak out, and move in solidarity whenever we see or hear injustice.

The struggle for emancipation is far from over for any of us until we all have an equal chance at economic and health security, education, safety and peace.

Contact

Dee Donavanik, press@now.org, 951-547-1241

About NOW National

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florida_now Florida NOW @florida_now ·
20 Feb

Of the 147 women in the US Congress, only 26 identify as Black. We can fix this. Join Congresswoman @LaurenUnderwood & GA State Rep. @reginalewisward on Tues. 2/21 at 7PM ET, learn about their historic journeys & how we can elect more black women. RSVP ->http://bit.ly/RunNOWFeb21

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#BlackHistoryMonth: In 2022, 134 black women ran for Congress. Join winners US Rep @LaurenUnderwood & Ga Rep @reginalewisward on 2/21 at 7PM ET to learn about black woman candidate reality and what it takes to win. RSVP➡️http://bit.ly/RunNOWFeb21

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16 Feb

#Allies Love the sign! "Old White Guys" allies are treasures! Anti-DEI ones, nope!

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florida_now Florida NOW @florida_now ·
16 Feb

Did you know women working full-time in the US still only make 83% of what men are paid? Urge Congress to support equal pay by becoming an @AAUW Two-Minute Activist today: https://www.aauw.org/act/two-minute-activist/paycheck-fairness/

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florida_now Florida NOW @florida_now ·
15 Feb

A fiery email from @Florida_NOW served as the polar opposite of a Valentine’s Day greeting for DeSantis, bristling with condemnations of “racist & undemocratic … culture wars” that “pervert fundamental rights and principles of U.S and Florida governance.” http://floridapolitics.com/archives/588222-now-desantis-autocracy/

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