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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 9, 2023
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Leon County Library Lecture Series Explores
Emancipation Day's Legacy
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| WHO:Â |
Leon County Government |
| WHAT:Â |
Leon County Library Lecture Series |
| WHEN:Â |
Tuesday, May 16, at 6 p.m. |
| WHERE:Â |
LeRoy Collins Leon County Main Library, 200 West Park Ave. |
Celebrate Florida Emancipation Day with Leon County Government at its Library Lecture Series on Tuesday, May 16, at 6 p.m. at the Main Library in downtown Tallahassee. The event, "Emancipation Day: Where Do We Go From Here?," will feature an engaging panel discussion with local professors and historians. They will explore the history of Florida Emancipation Day celebrations and how Leon County residents can commemorate this important day.
The panel includes Dr. Andrea Oliver, history professor at Tallahassee Community College, and local historians Gloria Jefferson Anderson and Hunter Hill. Althemese Barnes, founder and former executive director of the John G. Riley Center & Museum, will moderate the program.
Emancipation was declared in Tallahassee-Leon County on May 20, 1865, over two years after President Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation. Communities across Florida have celebrated Emancipation Day on May 20 ever since. In 2020, Leon County became the first in Florida to officially recognize the day as a holiday.
The Library Lecture Series is free and open to everyone, with refreshments provided. For more information, visit LeonCountyFL.gov/GetEngaged.
Since 2017, the series has showcased local, regional, and national speakers, engaging the community in discussions on arts and sciences topics.
In addition to the Library Lecture Series, Leon County has multiple ways for citizens to learn more about our community’s long and storied history. The LeRoy Collins Leon County Public Library System provides access to a robust collection of books, electronic books, graphic novels, and streaming films for all ages detailing the history and experiences of Black men and women throughout Florida’s history. Citizens can also research their own family history through Ancestry Library, which is available to all citizens at no cost from inside any of the County’s seven branch libraries. Additionally, Tallahassee-Leon County Geographic Information Systems (GIS) maintains the History in Your Hands online mapping resource that provides citizens the opportunity to explore our community’s history through archival photographs and historical maps.
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For more information, contact Sally Mason, Learning & Workforce Services Manager, at (850) 606-2665 / MasonSa@LeonCountyFL.gov or Leon County Community and Media Relations at (850) 606-5300 / CMR@LeonCountyFL.gov.
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