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 The
proclamation will be displayed at the ALPLM’s library building,
where there is no charge for admission, on Saturday, June 15, and
then on weekdays from June 17 through July 3 – including June 19
itself, which is a state holiday. The address is 112 N. Sixth Street
in downtown Springfield.
The presidential library and museum will also host two special
discussions about Juneteenth and civil liberties, debut a new
theatrical presentation and offer free admission to the museum on
June 19.
The theatrical event, “The Nature of Freedom: A
Literary Commemoration of Juneteenth,” features the words of some of
America’s greatest activists for freedom and equality, from Harriet
Tubman to Martin Luther King Jr. to Maya Angelou. The 35-minute
piece, directed by the ALPLM’s Reggie Guyton, is a readers theater
presentation. That means actors will not use costumes, dramatic
staging or special lighting and instead will depend on their voices
and the power of the script to engage the audience.
“The Nature of Freedom” will be presented three times: at 11 a.m. on
June 15 and 19 and at 6:30 p.m. on June 19. The evening performance
will be accompanied by a presentation of “Small Beginnings,” a short
play about Robert Smalls and his daring plan to rescue family and
friends from slavery during the Civil War. For details, visit
https://presidentlincoln.illinois.gov/events.
Other programming includes two events offered in conjunction with
Springfield’s Juneteenth Celebration and the Center for Lincoln
Studies at the University of Illinois-Springfield:
“Freeish - A Discussion of Black Citizenship in the Land of
Lincoln,” a brown bag panel discussion about the history of Black
Americans in Illinois and their fight for full citizenship. The free
event begins at noon on June 14 in the ALPLM library building.
“An Evening with Annette Gordon-Reed: The Long Road
to Juneteenth,” a presentation by the Pulitzer Prize-winning writer
of “The Hemingses of Monticello.” Her latest book, “On Juneteenth,”
is a powerful work of history that weaves together America’s past
with personal memoir. This free event takes place June 18 at 6:30
p.m. in the museum building.
ALPLM staff also will have an
activity tent set up all day at the 30th Annual Springfield
Juneteenth Celebration in Comer Cox Park on Saturday, June 15, from
10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Children can enjoy a variety of crafts and the
chance to design and make their own buttons, and we’ll also be
giving away free Lincoln swag and a chance to win a museum
membership.
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“Few documents in all of American history carry the
weight of the Emancipation Proclamation. We are proud to share it
with the public and celebrate its connection to such a joyous
holiday,” said Christina Shutt, executive director of the Abraham
Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum.
President Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation on Jan. 1,
1863, freeing anyone enslaved in states trying to secede from the
Union. But the proclamation could not be enforced until federal
troops captured Southern territory. That meant many people remained
in chains until the end of the Civil War.
Among them were the enslaved people of Galveston,
Texas, who achieved freedom with the arrival of federal troops on
June 19, 1865. The anniversary of that “Juneteenth” became an annual
celebration that gradually spread across the country and came to
symbolize the end of slavery, although that was not totally
abolished until the 13th Amendment was ratified six months later.
The ALPLM’s copy of the proclamation is one of about two dozen
remaining. It is signed by both Lincoln and Secretary of State
William Seward.
The presidential library and museum offers an online tool letting
people around the world explore the Emancipation Proclamation, its
meaning and its impact on history. Just click on key words in the
document and up pop boxes full of helpful information. The site
includes educational resources for teachers and parents, a photo
gallery and links to other sources of information about the address.
The site
www.PresidentLincoln.Illinois.gov/
EmancipationProclamation.
The mission of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum
is to inspire civic engagement through the diverse lens of Illinois
history and sharing with the world the life and legacy of Abraham
Lincoln. We pursue this mission through a combination of rigorous
scholarship and high-tech showmanship built on the bedrock of the
ALPLM’s unparalleled collection of historical materials – roughly 13
million items from all eras of Illinois history.
For more information, visit
www.PresidentLincoln.illinois.gov
[Christopher Wills (he/him/his)
Director of Communications
Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum] |
