Join us to celebrate Tennessee’s Emancipation Day in conjunction with Black Joy, in Spite of . . .
About Tennessee’s Emancipation Day
The Emancipation Proclamation went into full effect on January 1, 1863. Andrew Johnson, Tennessee’s military governor at the time, and later the 17th president of the United States, successfully persuaded Lincoln to exclude Tennessee from the consequences of the Proclamation. This meant that enslaved Tennesseans did not join people in states such as Alabama, Florida, Georgia, and Mississippi in celebrating Emancipation Day on January 1.
Seven months after the Proclamation’s implementation, on August 8, 1863, when Andrew Johnson freed his personal slaves at his home in Greeneville, Tennessee, emancipation was finally acknowledged in East Tennessee. August 8 became Emancipation Day, also known as Freedom Day, and was celebrated in Greeneville. Sam Johnson, a man formerly enslaved by Andrew Johnson, was instrumental in having the date observed and celebrated.
Source: The History of Emancipation Day in Tennessee
Schedule
5:00–5:30 p.m.
Poetry Sets
5:30–6:00 p.m.
DJ Set
6:00–6:30 p.m.
Poetry Sets
6:30–7:00 p.m.
Performance: Sankofa African Drum and Dance Company
7:00–7:30 p.m.
Gallery Talk: Sicasso
7:00–7:45 p.m.
DJ Set
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