Transcripts For CSPAN3 District Of Columbia Emancipation Act Of 1862 20240714

Frees 3100 enslaved individuals. For the past year as war raged between the union and the confederacy opponents of slavery had decried the scandal of slavery continuing to exist within the Nations Capital. Eight and a half month later, president lincoln signed the emancipation proclamation which did not free all enslaved persons but sent a powerful signal that slavery would no longer be tolerated. The emancipation proclamation has assumed a place among the greatest arguments of human freedom. The story of the emancipation proclamation is one that would help to redefine freedom and eventually change the course of history. Both the proclamation and the d. C. Legislation represent a promise of hope, freedom, and justice that continues to inspire and resonate with the American People more than 150 years after its creation. Now its my pleasure to welcome the reverend thomas brown to the stage. He is the director of the office of religious affairs and the executive office of the mayor. And the interim director of the Mayors Office of africanamerican affairs and the commission on fathers, men and boys. He serves as a liaison for the Faith Community in the District Of Columbia and also provides support to the mayors interfaith council. Please welcome the reverend. Well, thank you and good evening, everyone. Its a pleasure on behalf of mayor bowser who perhaps will come back for our book discussion. Youll get that later. For she is the second twoterm mayor in washington, d. C. In quite some time and the first woman twoterm mayor here in d. C. It is a pleasure to join the National Archives for this occasion. The emancipation proclamation and the compensated emancipation act of 1862, president lincoln signed that document although he did not author it on april 16th. Because of that we have since 2005 claimed april 16th as a holiday here in washington, d. C. [ applause ] in the proper way as many other holidays, king holiday and others, to celebrate a day like d. C. Emancipation day is not with a day off. Its not with spending our time in commerce but its to come to events like this to study our history, our culture, to know from whence we have come. I must say that im also i consider myself a member of the National Archives family. As a proud disciple of morehouse, one of the first jobs i landed was at the National Archives southeast region. With all that i understood about history and i would leave you with these words. I believe those words that those of us who do not remember our history or our past are condemned to repeat it. And i would just portend to that statement, the best way to value, to appreciate our democracy is with a knowledge of our history. And so today its a special day. So i come just like you have to view those sacred documents and to hear from these esteemed panelists just about the road we have traveled to pause as we continue along the struggle and the journey for total freedom for everyone. Thank you. [ applause ] thank you, reverend. And now onto our panelists and a special musical tribute. Our moderator this evening is a edna greene medford, who is a current chair and former director of graduate and undergraduate programs in Howard Universitys department of history. Our panelists are elizabeth clarklewis, professor davidson at bowie state university, and historian and author c. R. Gibbs. Before we [ applause ] yes. Before we start our discussion, we have a special Music Performance by the artist group corral of washington. It is composed of professional and Community Singers who have have been delighting audiences in this region since 2008 and very recently upstairs in the rotunda. There under the direction of cofounder calvin page who was president of the ben holt branch of the National Association of negro musicians in teaching in the performing arts. Now they will perform the song soon i will be done by william dawson. Going home to live with god calling home to live with god i want to meet my mother, i want to meet my mother i want to meet my mother im going to live with god i want to meet my mother, i want to meet my mother im going to live with god soon will be done with the troubles of the world troubles of the world soon i will be done with the troubles of the world going home to live with god soon i will be done with the troubles of the world the troubles of the world the troubles of the world soon we will be done with the troubles of the world going home to live with god no more no more im going to live with god no more no more no more soon i will be done with the troubles of the world the troubles of the world the troubles of the world soon i will be done with the troubles of the world going home to live with god soon i will be done with the troubles of the world the troubles of the world the troubles of the world soon i will be done with the troubles of the world going home to live with god i want to meet my jesus i want to meet my jesus i want to meet my jesus im going to live with god i want to meet my jesus i want to meet my jesus i want to meet my jesus im going to live with god im going to live with god im going to live with godinatesinates godinatesinates god im going to live with god [ applause ] good evening. Thank you so much for coming this evening. Its a very nice evening outside so i know that some of us would rather be out there enjoying that beautiful weather. But youre going to be imprisoned here for about an hour and a half or so. But we know itll be well worth your time. I want to make one slight correction. I am no longer chair of the department of history. Im sure that dr. Nikki taylor who is the chair would want me to let you know that. I am currently the interim dean of the college of arts and sciences at howard. But i will be returning to the department you know. I will be returning to the department in august, and im really looking forward to it. We are here to commemorate two very important documents. The first is the d. C. Compensated emancipation act which was signed by president lincoln on april 16th, 1862. It was actually passed by congress on april 11th and president lincoln signed it on april 16th. And well talk about that little period where there was lingering doubt about whether or not he was going to sign it. Of course the emancipation proclamation was signed by president lincoln on january 1, 1863. So the d. C. Emancipated compensation the d. C. Compensated emancipation act was enacted or passed more than eight months before the emancipation proclamation. And about 3 1 2 years before the 13th amendment. And we will get into a discussion of how each of those different before i start grilling my colleagues i want to indicate just a little bit about each one of those documents. The d. C. Compensated emancipation actually stipulated that all enslaved people in the District Of Columbia would be declared free. Their owners would be compensated for the loss of their property at the rate of no more than 300 per enslaved person lost. We will talk about the fact that some people did get more than that. Owners had to be loyal. They had to declare allegiance to the United States in that they could not have taken up arms in order to get compensated for their loss. There was also a colonization stipulation as well. 100,000 was allocated to enable africanamericans to go voluntarily, it says, out of the country. Either to liberia or to haiti. And thats a part of the measure that we dont talk about a lot. There was a commission established, a commission of three men established who would investigate the claims of these people were owned, that enslaved africans were actually owned by these particular slaveholders. There was testimony given by africanamericans which was really unusual for this period especially in the south and d. C. Was the south during this period. And so black people could testify about that. I missed that, but im sure someone will fill me in later. And it declared a felony to reenslave anyone or to transport them outside of the city once the law was passed. And of course the emancipation proclamation issued eight months later stipulated or at least promised the freedom of enslaved africanamericans in those areas in states and in those areas of states still in rebellion. And so it refers specifically to certain of the southern slave Holding States, but the states that were a part of the confederacy. As you know the states that were still in the union the slave Holding States that were still in the union were exempted from the proclamation. One of the most important things beyond the fact that it is freeing 3. 1 Million People it authorizes the recruitment and enlistment of africanamerican men into the union army and navy, and that was extremely important to the winning of the war. Let me turn to the panel, and any of you can answer these questions. When i want one of you specifically to answer i will call you out. But for this first question anyone can answer. At the beginning of the civil war, d. C. Had a population, i believe, of about 75,000 people. 14,000 of them consisted of people of color, people of africanamerican descent. Among the latter there were just over 3,000 who were enslaved. So if one of you would briefly describe the characteristics of slavery in the city on the eve of the civil war. I think the thing we probably should keep in mind was that the district was becoming more and more urban and switching economies from rural to urban and we begin to see a change. Now that both characters still prevailed in many parts of the city, im reminded of a slave owner who would be compensated. She was the fourth largest slave owner in the district. Her name was ana marie and she was a shy retiring elderly woman who they say seldom went out. Her address was rock creek georgetown. She decided to take advantage of the changing nature of the city by hiring out she had 32 enslaved people, and she had she was able to provide folks who wanted to do the rural stuff and folks who wanted, such as cooks and maids, to do something a little bit more urban. So she could go either way. And to show you the wisdom of her investment, it is estimated that she made about 900 per annum, with a 5 return on her investment. I dont think we can make 5 on anything we have invested today. So just to give you an idea, and when compensated emancipation occurred, this lady who never went out, went out and she decided to get a she decided to get quarters in a boarding house in georgetown, and with her fascial winfall, lived her best life. I think thats the best way you want to put it. So we have a city in the ferment of change, and they were able to ride it out. I just say in closing, my colleagues are aware of a recent article on the 7th of this month in the Washington Post that talked about how quickly the elite slave owners were able to recoup their losses, within about 20 years or so. And so when we hear people, we were talking backstage about a lady who is still mad. Right, roger . Still angry. Her family lost everything. And i dont want to take it away from roger, so go ahead. I was going to say when it came to just to add onto what professor gibbs was saying, you have a situation in the city that urban slavery is just a little different. You have a lot of skilled individuals, you have domestics, you have mechanics. You have people engaged in all sorts of trades. So and their routines are somewhat different. In this city where you have a majority of free blacks intermingling with the enslaved sometimes their lifestyle was a little different. You had situations in which the enslaved attended church with the free blacks and intermingled with the free blacks. And so though they were enslaved there was some feeling of freedom. They could see it, they could walk amongst it, they could feel it. So d. C. Was a little different. Baltimore was a little similar in that vein. One way to get a feel how similar they are if you read one of Frederick Douglass biographies, he talks about being hired out in baltimore, in which he had a room and a stipend he could live on. So these people are living though enslaved on the edge of freedom. They can smell it, they can taste it, they can touch it. Theres a notation somewhere in the census list for 1860 where the census taker listed an enslaved black man as free and then he had to correct himself. And he noted that the black man said we live like freedom. We live like freedom. This is why we appreciate the pencil mark, but he wanted to express the nature of his existence in a changing environment. However, in a diary in the library of congress, theres a gentleman who talks about this intermingling with enslaved and free people, and theres this back and forth. But i do think that even on the precipice of freedom, there is still that distinction and that you are unfree, and that i think the work of either jones in her work looking at the church in georgetown, there were clear stipulations that individuals who were enslaved talked about in one case feeling the strangling effects of enslavement. So although there is that interface i do think there are those stipulations that in the end there are those differences. And even for those persons who are free, with the black codes that are instituted in the district near the middle of the 19th century, it becomes a situation in which freedom becomes a lot more tenuous and a lot more difficult to maneuver about this city particularly in the evenings. So i do think there are as you said theres that incorporation of freedom and enslavement. But in the end nonwhite people are far more vulnerable and i think that becomes a part of what pushes the president in this era as he thinks about and rethinks enslavement. Dr. Clarklewis, there has been intense debate over the issue of slavery for a number of years. Whats happening during this period, no matter that the war is on, but whats happening that intensifies that debate during the winter and spring of 186182 . I think in that period everyone in the city feels the as you said the intense pressure of the war all around them. And it, of course, comes to a head for People Living in the city. But i think as a city that from its inception had been had slavery as a significant part of it, it never really becomes something that they ever can hope to get away from. Other than a dramatic action by the part of lincoln. I dont think that theres a belief that these individuals who owned enslaved people were going to free them. I think it took bold action on the part of the president to take this step. Im not sure if it was always what he wanted to do, but it was a reality of war. And as the war raged all around the city, the idea that these enslaved individuals could create an internal problem or other issues, i think that he tried to balance everything out. It was a horrific situation for him as the leader of the union, but i also think he was very sensitive to the realities of the city. And so trying to balance both as you said created these tensions and in a way i would say is the least bold, he made a decision. It was a decision slow in coming but when he made a decision, he stuck by it. And it was the decision to end enslavement, even if it was just an experiment. He was going to end it, and it was going to be in a way that allowed the union to make a statement in particular to the europeans. They had to do something. So i think there were a number of realities that pushed him and pulled him toward this decision. So in terms of whats happening in 61, 62 with emancipation in the District Of Columbia, specifically whos pushing that . It certainly would not have happened if not for the secession of those states and because there would have been men in congress who would have voted against it, and certainly, there were men in congress who voted against it this time as well. But who are the people who are actually pushing it . Lincoln does sign it, but who are the folks who are introducing this into congress during this period . I think that any conversation that opens as you did, theres several people we must consider and i happen to be a fan of a man who originally not born under the name he was going to be better known as. He was born in New Hampshire in 1812. And he will go on to be the 18th Vice President of the United States. He will also be the senator from massachusetts. And im going to leave that to the audience. I know we have some people here. Does anyone know who i might be speaking of . Thats right, thats right. And thank you, by the way. And we understand that it may have been his own upbringing. I mean here is a man whose father offered him, according to tradition at least, you know, if you would take my son, im willing to change his name to whatever it might be, whatever yours might be in order to give him an occupation. And yet the fact that henry is not properly recognized, not since his demise. I mean, black people in the city knew him for two things. Being a major force on behalf of abolition and emancipation. It also honored him for being a force behind getting rid of the black code in the district as well. But its important to know there had been a push over a 30year period. The historian temple talks about an attempt during the administration of Martin Van Buren to strike slavery from all of the law books on the eve of the renewal of the citys charter. And yet the southern powers defeat that at the last moment. So lincoln himself had had an idea in 1849 as well. But what we see also are efforts by citizens in the district that there is the founding of the Washington Abolition Society in 1827. And then various attempts, theres also an Abolition Society in alexandria. And prior to retrocession both groups existed in the same area. So we have people and one of the earliest petitions was signed by all of the judges on the local court. So we saw people that were repulsed by the sight of slave coppers in the district walking across the capitol square. One of the earliest female reporters talks about being surprised at a slave sale at the foot of capitol hill, and she talks about how the its near where the Peace Memorial is. So for you hard core d. C. Histori historians, and they havent moved the Peace Memorial, it gives you a sense, that was literally at the foot of capitol hill. She was so discomfitted and disoriented she stepped on the very fl platform where the slave sale was going to occur and her husband had to pull her off of it. So things got a little dicy there. So what we see are legislators, the judges of the court who realize for good or ill we need to take action, this is National Embarrassment as a capitol city and a nation which prides itself on being the land of the free and home of brave. Theres a fundamental contradiction here that has to be dealt with, and i think that pressure going back several decades only accelerates as we get to 1861 and early 1862. The issue of embarrassment is critical because we know that in 1850, with the compromise of 1850 one part dealt specifically with the ending of the buying and the selling of enslaved people in the District Of Columbia. It is an interNational Embarrassment that several times at least twice a week you have as you said on the national mall, the buying and selling of human beings. And all the drama that surrounds it. So in 1850 they make the decision as one of the compromises to end the buying and selling. And of course, the growth of enslaved the sale of enslaved people would then shift to alexandria and those areas contiguous to the District Of Columbia. In the Nations Capital with the focus on the capital and the people who come here in particular, it gets a lot of exposure and its an embarrassment. But you have to always consider not just those individuals, but there are lots of individuals who were working against the institution because of, as i said, its political impact, which is so negative. And the international work, International Articles that are constantly being written about this institution and its flourishing and its existence in the Nations Capital. Lets talk a bit about that time span between april 11th when Congress Passed the bill and april 16th when lincoln signed it. There are suggestions that lincoln delayed signing in order to give a friend of his the opportunity to remove two of his enslaved laborers from the city. On the with the suggestion perhaps that they were too old to take care of themselves. And so can either of you tell us about what the conditions were once freedom arrived . Were there any kinds of institutions in the city that sort of made certain that this transition from slavery to freedom was smoother or was there some truth in the idea that people who were older would just be left out on the street . To fend for themselves . What was in place that made it possible for people to survive . At that point really theres nothing but charitable organizations. And so you have people like elizabeth kickley, visitors coming from virginia, like henry jacobs, who are trying to do whatever they can to put together organizations. You have camps beginning to setup here to help the formerly enslaved. But theres a big problem. Because as the war goes on and you have the breakdown of slavery or the progress of emancipation, so you have the confiscation act which starts in virginia, hampton roads, where general Benjamin Butler confiskates three men or actually, they pushed the issue by running into federal lines, and when they run into federal lines, you know, the official policy is to return the enslaved so that the south will know that lincoln wants to reunify the country and he wanted to end slivery, but the people in the fields realize the best way to attack slaveholders, to take the property. The british realize that in 1812 and it ended the revolution. But anyway you have a situation now where these three men are telling the commander here, ben butler, theyre being used to augment the confederate forces. Theyre bringing food. Theyre bringing supplies, theyre nursing the sick, theyre building fortification. As a lawyer he decides ill confiscate this contraband of war. This catches on with the republican congress, and in july, if a slave could state that they were being used to the benefit of the enemy, for the benefit of the enemy for the confederate forces, they would be confiscated as contraband. Well, people are running into d. C. And, you know, wanting to be confiscated even if theyre from loyal maryland. Theyre making their way across the bridges, theyre coming in and you have these contraband camps. So at this point as emancipation takes place in d. C. , theres nowhere really to absorb the formerly enslaved, and thats becoming a problem. You know, the court master corps offers jobs, but the camps arent that they throw up, the government isnt doing much to help. So you have squalor, you have disease, you have other issues. Absolutely. And so we know that enslaved people are freed in the District Of Columbia. But whats happening with you talked about hiring out. Whats happening with those enslaved people who had been hired out to maryland but their owners lived in d. C. , or people whose owners were in maryland but were hired out to people in d. C. . Whats happening with them . Are they freed as well . No, technically the marylanders are not because the owners are in maryland. But there were a lot of slave holders even those in washington who were trying to resist the emancipation not the emancipation proclamation but compensated emancipation in d. C. So they would remove slaves from d. C. Take them into maryland. Baltimores jail was full of people taken from d. C. To baltimore. Others were taken to other areas of maryland because maryland since it was a loyal border state, slavery would be protected. You have 3,100 people approximately being freed as a consequence of compensated emancipation. Its a small fraction of the people who are enslaved in the south. Does d. C. Emancipation really have a major impact on the Emancipation Movement considering there are so few people who are freed . I think its a force multiplier. I think the symbolic importance of d. C. Emancipation cannot be underestimated. It effectively puts the nation on a freedom road where we begin with april 16, 1862. Then the success of d. C. Emancipation emboldens lincoln so that in june 1862, he signs legislation ending enslavement in the western territories. Then in september of 1862, we have the preliminary emancipation proclamation, which is something even bigger is coming. Get ready for it. And then we have the emancipation proclamation. After that, we have june 10th. Even though texas is listed in the emancipation proclamation, texans are not going to give up their more than a quarter million enslaved people. They have to be forced to do it. And slavery itself is not yet dead. Its still quivering. Its arms are still moving. It just wont die. We have to have a 13th amendment. Oftentimes people ask, well, didnt that other stuff do it . The answer is most certifiably, no. Its insufficient. Something else must be done. But the fact that the nation is put on this road begins here, 157 years ago today. And of course the 13th amendment does not truly get rid of slavery in the United States. There are pockets of slavery that still exist. Pockets of slavery still remain. I know in a lecture i do and there are those slave masters who simply dont tell the black folk that work for them that they are free. Theyre not going to bother with that last little detail. Theyre just going to keep it going. And that ranges from we now believe that members of jessie james family kept enslaved people well after emancipation. In a lecture i do, a man shows up in eagle pass, texas, in the early 1900s wanting to know if we are free. So you know, unfortunately, the way its taught in the schools, Abraham Lincoln is like the tooth fairy. He comes along with a star on a stick and touches people, and they change their minds overnight. That is not the way it worked. Harriet tubman said in the wider society, she was speaking about the fact that just like freedom, emancipation was declared, but there was no one there to welcome the emancipated. She talked about the fact that d. C. , and she was saying in general, but specifically freedom, d. C. Emancipation, the whole issue of emancipation, it was like a stranger in a strange land. But theres constantly this ebb and flow about freedom. And it can be contested, it can be legislated. But frequently on the local level, thats where really the issue has to come to head. The situation in virginia in which people as you said are running to the union line and saying i want to be a part please confiscate me. Please, i want to be a part of whatever helps the demise of enslavement, those individuals through family members, through talk, through whatever means, they get the word is continually spreading. But as you said very well, its an issue that is not easily resolved either socially or even with politics. It still takes time for these issues to be resolved. Now we know that d. C. Emancipation checks some of actually most of the boxes that lincoln wanted in place in terms of an order for emancipation to actually occur. Nationally we know that it was compensated. We know that colonization was a stipulation as well and a possibility there. What lincoln had hoped for, though, was gradual emancipation, and that didnt happen. And he had hoped that there would be consent of the owners, and that didnt happen. We know that d. C. Residents who are slave owners in general did not approve of what was happening. What similarities do you see between compensated emancipation in d. C. And the emancipation proclamation, if any . Or what were the differences other than that . You had a great deal of public resentment almost either way. There were people who refused to see that there was change coming, that that perhaps mirrored the nature of the response from the compensated emancipation act and d. C. Emancipation, and the emancipation proclamation. They had to be convinced. They had to be forced to let this happen. We must realize that these forces, once set in motion, did oftentimes meet with, if you will, speed bumps or brick walls. And the nation would have to be dragged into a new racial geometry. We find this in response to d. C. Emancipation, when people, as roger told the story of one man who moves his enslaved labor force to the maryland side of his plantation. Anything he can do to hold off that dreaded date, to fend off the freedom that he so dreads in coming. On a larger role we see as a result of the emancipation proclamation, tremendous resistance by tslave owners because they dont want to see their movable property to actually move. It will be ultimately up to black people to make these documents real, to give them a sense of tissue and blood and muscle. And i dont think even today we fully understand how strong the desire for freedom was and the risks that people were willing to take. Im recalling right now an account given by a soldier who would ultimate join the usct. This in the southern state. He has to evade bloodhounds and crocodiles in order to get to the union lines. And he observes that the bloodhounds crocodile, rather, seemed to prefer the meat of the bloodhounds rather than human meat. I mean, just think about it for a second. And if our children knew of the risks that were taken in order to be free. I was telling an audience earlier today about an event that we all know in the that congressman seth gates actually witnessed. He told Frederick Douglass about it. Its in douglass second biography my bondage and my freedom, if not his third. The life and times. About a young lady he saw break loose from just down the street, and shes running toward the long bridge, which is approximately where the 14th street bridge is today. She is probably disheveled. She is desperate. And in her desperation, we dont know how she got out of the slave pen, but she did. And with the strength that desperation gives, she makes it to the bridge, but by this time, there are slave owner s pursuin her from the d. C. Side and down along the span of the bridge, she can see men with angry faces coming toward her. They are yelling, catch her. Seize her. So she looks and she chooses to go over the side of the bridge. She chose the cold, gray waters of the potomac rather than live one more millisecond as an enslaved person. I think that we take a moment like that, she wasnt around to make a lofty speech about give me liberty or give me death. She didnt have time to do that. But she showed with her actions that she was willing to make the ultimate sacrifice if she could not have her freedom. Thats a powerful lesson. I also think theres a social fabric we have to remember. This nation had this social fabric and enslavement was woven into it. You cant get around it. Whether its the people involved in commerce in the north or the actual owners reaping the benefit of the slavery. Enslavement was worked into an essentially part of the fabric of this country, and to end it, whether you see it, as you said, from a very dynamic way or individuals who see it in a very static way, its ending. Were going to force this nation to reframe everything it stood for. It makes it almost impossible for people on either side to really understand, as you said, how allencompassing this issue is and why its change, why this shift. This paradigm shift that changes everything is so critical to the history of this country. Everything changes with this era. And you cannot take it away from lincoln. It had to be a heavy burden that he carried, but i also think there were so many people, particularly those africanamericans advising him, who continued to push and insist by writing the times they had to speak with him. They made it clear to him, lucidly clear, that this was a change that was inevitable. What role were District Residents playing, africanamericans playing in terms of influencing lincoln to move forward with the emanseimation proclamation . We know people like Frederick Douglass were doing that, but what about local people . What is it about this city and black people in this city that might have convinced lincoln that he needed to move forward in this . Or was it just simply for military expediency . I think, again, in the article, he talks about the rise of the powerful individuals in the District Of Columbia. The fact that you had so many schools here. When you look at the early histories of the District Of Columbia, they talk about the advent of schools, the activism of the churches. I think George Washington williams chronicled how extensive the church network, the unlimited number of schools, but also a social network that was extensive. I think the pressures of the i would say to me, the Church Leadership and Church Congregations were paramount with places like 15th street presbyterian, 19th street baptist which is at the door of lincoln. These are individuals who are writing, doing everything they can to encourage the president , but in the end, its lincoln who has to make these hard decisions. And he has to live with those hard decisions. And i think it is not easy on either side. But i do think that in the end, it is a moral decision for him. It is military, it is economic, but i also believe in the end it becomes a moral decision. And he makes the decision in favor of emancipation pushed by all these other factors, but i think the moral issue is critical to him as an individual. As a person. I have to agree with that because, i mean, i know there was military expediency that served the purposes of diplomacy during time of war, but with lincoln, to some aspect, like you said, in the 1840s when he was a congressman, he was pushing the idea of compensated emancipation. When war broke out with the preliminary emancipation proclamation, he was pushing the idea of compensated emancipation, primarily so slaveholders would buy into it. With the two documents, the one with d. C. Would be sort of a test, and somewhat easy to do, because congress can control d. C. So they could mandate this is going to happen. Whether you like it or not. Now, he cant lose the border states. So he tries to convince them to buy into the compensated emancipation, but they wont. In fact, maryland wont emancipate until 1864. You know, when they write a new concentration. And that barely happened. And this is after the emancipation proclamation. Because the emancipation proclamation actually protected slavery in those loyal regions. And in fact, when midnight struck on january 1st, those people were supposedly free, and in rebellion, no one really gained their freedom. I mean, as my colleagues have stated, people had to take their freedom. They had to get up and move towards the line. And this is an erosion of slavery. This erodes slavery even more, but yes, i think lincoln had to make a moral decision. And live with that. He was a man of his times. Yes, he would be considered a bigot by some in the 21st century. He stated this is a white mans country. He did push he did push colonization, but at the end of the day, he thought slavery was immoral, and so much so that he acted upon it. And one last thing. In d. C. , with the people here, with maryland and virginia bordering washington, he couldnt help but see those people streaming towards freedom, fighting their way towards freedom. Then reading the reports from his commanders in the field, he knew what was going on. That they would risk death just to get to where they could find refuge, where they could claim some freedom if any at all. And in one report from maryland, slaveholder named samuel cox rode into the camp of the excelsior brigade. Geez guys from new york, theyre no angels, they were men of their times as well, but when they saw the enslaved for the first time, some of them were truly shocked. Some of them wanted to just like anyone would if you saw someone coming to you for refuge. Somcox caught up with some of the slaves in the camp, and to prove the point, when the officers made them give up the enslaved individual, he dragged him behind his horse, dragged him to his death. Thats to let people know, thats my property. You just made a few more antislavery adherents by doing that, but lincoln had to give up the slavery. We know that d. C. Emancipation occurs before other areas during the war. To what extent does it serve as a model in terms of the postemancipation era . What are the differences or the similarities between what happens in d. C. After emancipation and what happens in the former confederacy . Youre going to have people coalesce like iron filings around a magnet. Theyre going to come in for umthe countryside to the cities and go to the posts. Theyre going to go to places where they feel some measure of safety. Theyre going to take haven or refuge under the union guns. I am often thinking about a little place, insignificant up in in the palisades called battery kimball. And if any of you know the area around palisades if youve driven along the George Washington parkway. You know the river and high cliffs dominate that drive. And so you just wonder how these folks coming from montgomery county, even after in postemancipation they are coming, theyre going to build a community in what is now the edge of palisades. But they have to get there. They are willing to is your mount the physical, formidable physical obstacles to come from montgomery county, to come into and under the guns of battery kimball. That same road is till there today if you turn on chaim bridge road. And there is a cemetery there. One of the few reminders in an upscale neighborhood that black people lived there in some force, in some amount. And then if you go a few more yards up the colonial era road there is the chain bridge road colored school, which is a reminder that there was a significant number of freedom seekers that came from hardship in maryland and came into the district, and settled there willing to establish their own communities in peace and safety if people would leave them alone. And contribute to the country at large. Thats all these men and women and children ever sought was to take part in the full banquet of american rights and liberties. I have to say in answer to your question when you ask what happens. One of the articles about first free talks about moment in the sun that you have individuals in the District Of Columbia who through their own tenacity pulled together literally grass roots political parties. They become activists and work very hard to economically, socially and politically move the city forward in very progressive ways, in education for example. They begin to move all the stipulations away so that there is access to education for every individual. But you ask what happens . There was in brief period of progress. But with the return of the Southern States in congress, there is this clear heavy hand that begins to move over the District Of Columbia. And many of these progressive experiences are slowly but surely scaled back. So that you begin to have the even if its not segregation by law its understood by custom. You have limited access to economic and social activity. And of course political power is cut off. And that slow moving scale that youre talking about comes to a head in the 20th century when president wilson absolutely reinstitutes gracious . All the federal agencies. It was always believed that the federal areas were somehow the islands against segregation in washington which is in the south. Well, with the advent of president wilson after 1912 that changes. So you begin to see just as you said in the District Of Columbia there was this brief time for progress. But those exterior forepersons who are focused on recreating if not enslavement at least a world in which gracious dominates. They become the powers that be in the Nations Capital. I do think there is this pendulum that for a short time there is this progress. But very soon the pendulum swings back and individuals in the city experience it. But in spite of that im thinking in terms of emancipation that no matter what any continue to celebrate emancipation, even when the scholars said it ended in 1,900 when i was doing my own research. I was interviewing an older person my great aunt i was explaining she was talking about emancipation programs in the 30s. With my aunt you have to be gentle. I was gently correcting her because emancipation ended as a person her age i figured she was mixed pup she politely told me i dont care what the box say. She talkshow about the daughters of isis, the masons, elks, all the different civic organizations and helped me understand i had to go back to local records, places like the nanny helen the fliers that show they were celebrating emancipation up through the 1950s. Even though there is this almost invisible celebration that continues in the africanamerican community, even if its ignored in the wider community, emancipation still resonates with individuals in the District Of Columbia, in spite of those external forces. Umhum. [ applause ] were going to open the discussion up for questions from the audience. But i do have one last question for you. You have large numbers of people coming into the district who are not born there, who had not labored there, who had not lived there before the war. They are mixing with a large group of free black people, people who had been free before the war, some of them had become quite prominent in their own communities. What kind of mix was there . What was the dynamic between that new group and the group that had been there already . What was the relationship between the two . Just as i guess it would be similar to some of the stuff happening during the great migration where you had rural people coming from rural areas, migrating into places, urban areas. So you have the established individuals there that have the difference between a middle class and a working class. To some extent. And so they saw the some of the newcomers as loud, and sometimes uncouth. But nonetheless they worked together. When they had to move things forward. You see some of that. And i grew up in a neighborhood called Shepherd Park named after alexander r. Shepherd. He brought in a lot of people. And provided jobs for them. And they were somewhat menial jobs but then veterans came in gaining jobs as clerks and whatnot in congress. You have other activists like was it george w. Hat, a sergeant at the colored infantry. The individuals are making the best of it. Not everyone gets along but they make it happen. There are tensions we see as roger pointed out this is sometimes reflected in the emancipation parade where where they are going to ultimately have two parades because folks are not getting along. This leads to the end of the pair are parades make it clear, not the end of the emancipation celebrations. And that is is important as professor clark lewis pointed out, there are black os that tick over and are responsible for the celebrations and then they lateral it off to another group thats responsible. And theyre doing this in the face of an increasingly hostile congress. Understand that one of the basic reasons that d. C. Lost the vote is because there was southerners in congress and the senate who were repulsed by seeing black men and white men standing in line to vote. And they never forgot this. There was one southern senator who had been a confederate general and a member of the klan, so not surprisingly he was not in favor of this. But in the halls of the senate he compared this to burning down the barn to killing all the rats. That was his and one of his fellow citizens said so this is what you mean you want to burn down the barn. Is to say kill the vote for everybody in order to cripple black political growth . And he said yeah, i want to burn down the i want to kill all the rats by burning down the barn. And the barn is the franchise. These this represents a portion of the obstacles we had to face in those times as were moving supposedly into the 20th century when way too much of the most negative aspects of the 19th still hung tli a shroud over the District Of Columbia. So first question. Oh, thank you. Fredrick douglas in 1888 had a speech about emancipation. And he denounced emancipation as a stupidous fraud, fraud on the negro and fraud on the world. The history of ee mance or manu Mission Never produced a citizen. So how valuable is freedom without full citizenship . Our emancipation was followed by black hots aba imprisoning complex. A emancipation created a schmidel position to be exploited. Not a citizen. My question to you is what is the value of freedom without full citizenship . Id like to remind that you history, John Henry Clark said history is not everything but a starting point. History is a clock pennsylvania people use to tell their political and their cultural time of day. It is a compass to find themselves on the map of human geographicy. It tells them where they are but more importantly it tells them where they must be. Emancipation is not the answer. And thats clear. However, it is a significant part of people moving forward, and theyre not moving forward easily. Theyre not moving forward without resistance. But still there is that forward movement. And as professor clarke has said,s it the compass, the clock. And it may not always move the way people think it should. But there is movement. [ applause ] okay. And of course we know that from the period of emancipation right down to 1875 people are pushing to make sure that those Citizenship Rights that were not granted with emancipation now will be a part of the lives of africanamericans with the 14th and the 15th amendment and the the act of 1875. But of course thats overturned by 1883. And thats when things start going downhill. Yes. Good evening, folks. First off id like to acknowledge one of miss Harriet Tubmans designedant miss ernsta wyatt who is in the audience. I appreciate her being here please stand. Please stand. Please stand. Yes. [ applause ] now, to my point. There was no embarrassed slave masses in america period. And Abraham Lincoln was a racist to the core. He said there was there were two races one white one black, the whites just happened to be superior. If you have any question base that you can read the book by the author Jerome Bennett who used to be an ebony magazine writing did an excellent book on him. Remember abraham ling refused to allow black folks in the union army. Could we get to the question. Ask the question. Okay, my question is, with Fredrick Douglas and Harriet Tubman putting pressure on abraham lingen finally allow black folks into the civil war and their courageous fighting gave rise to then Abraham Lincoln decide what was he going to do in relationship to aiding those black men as far as legislation, what did he sign. Im confused. Im not clear. Let me clear it up for you then. The south and the north they was winning sometimes, and the other side winning sometimes. It was even stevens. But then Harriet Tubman and Fredrick Douglas put pressure on him to finally allow black folks like Harriet Tubman became the first spy and officer beside being a nurse in the union services. In re courageous fighting of those black men with weapons in their hand, killing white folks, and there is i think miss clark said earlier those black men then coming back to d. C. , africanamerican soldiers from the civil war they would become a problem because they wouldnt give up guns so the question is, what about those black soldiers fighting gave rise to Abraham Lincoln deciding im going to pass legislation to give them what to do . Well if you are talking about compensated emancipation that was prior to blacks being enlisted formally inlestised in the United States army. Even though africanamerican sailors had been serving in the navy from the out set and even before the war. And 19,000 served. But i didnt get a good clear sense about the what as far as afterwards. After the war a lot of these veterans will come home and be involved in community formation. So in maryland in the rural areas, you have them coming home and creating small areas. And well throughout the south actually theyre building schools, theyre forming towns. Theyll later be part of a militia movement. There were black militias in various states. In d. C. They were part of an early civil rights movement. Ner quite active. And even before lincoln gave his approval you had africanamericans, free blacks drilling in various cities. And petitioning congress and the president to be able to serve. So. And actually there lincoln writs a letter to a friend in august of 1863 in which he talks about the fact that he is freeing black people to help win the war. And so what he says to miss friend is, when the war is over, there will be some black men who can hold their heads high because any helped to preserve the union. And there will be some white men who will lower their heads in memory that they did all they could to hinder it. And so he certainly recognized the significance of the black soldier and sailor. Yes. Yes, good evening. My question is revolving around the freedmen. We mention the 3,000 slaves that were emancipated. But this is in the face according to Carter G Wood snn. A centny negro migration. This is the 3,000 freedman in maryland, 54,000 freedmen in virginia which at that time i think included parts of washington, d. C. And the district know tats another 11,000 freedmen. This is in 1850. So i guess the concept of freedom i guess is what im saying, is that these freedmen had homes, businesses. These freedmen had built churches. They were prospersous in business. They had carriage companies. They were black smiths, masons, copper smiths. They had a life outside of the dialogue that walls always goes on around emancipation. You know, we get in image of in raggedy field person that has in just always running. So what my point the point im making is that these neighborhoods, youre talking georgetown that was a blackbuilt neighborhood. Logan circle that was a black built neighborhood. Foggy bottom, niece freedmen built hospitals, built churches. These freedmen had, you know its not image that we continue to push. So and then there is the Freedmens Bureau act which no one ever talks about in history which was really one of the first forms of represeairations. Can we do deal with that because the records are in the building and they would fill up the stage three times over and probably the most complete records of American History in the country. Okay could we have your question, please so that we could. What about what do you think about the Freedmens Bureau act and what do you think about general grant who was another guy we never talk about who set up the Justice Department to enforce our freedoms . And he was in president for eight years we never mentioned it him. He enforced it. Id like to say with regard to some of this, that stuff is out there. There have been there is tons of material written about it. Its been researched and it may not seem that its popular but you can go lets say do amazon search. And can you find some of in stuff there. There is literature on the freedmens bank on the freedmen bureau. Three of us up here are closely associated with a school founded by all of ourlanded howard. I dont want to belabor it. But and when we talk about these see we did talk about a free black skmunt yes they had that throughout the south especially in the upper south no matter where you are youre going to find these these free are freed black people. I apologize if it seems as though we were talking about ragged individuals running to freedom when we had tliechgt churches here. I think we mentioned 15th street presbyterian and 19th street these are historical landmarks. Maybe we should highlight it more on shed more light on it but there are books on d. C. During the period. And the stuff thats out there may not be as prominent as it needs to be to be. I think in terms in terms of grant, there is a lot out there about grant. There are volumes and volumes and volumes about general grant. And there will be more very soon because were about to commemorate the bicentennial of his birth. And there is a commission established that will be doing all kinds of activities all over the country, i know because im on that commission. So, okay. You will be hearing a lot more about general grant. Youre absolutely right. There are some president s that dont get a lot of attention. He certainly should get more but he should get more not just because of what he did do but some of the things he didnt do as well. There is a lot of stuff out there that people need to learn. All right. I quickly would like to add that in spite of as you said the images of the ragged and the persons who like my ancestors were enslaved in virginia, eventually the 33 children, they imbued the children the desire for freedom. And that doesnt wax and wane. And when my colleague here who went to hampton, they have an emancipation tree. Howard university in its earliest periods had specific programs that addressed these issues of enslavement and freedom and the responsibilities. No matter what group you were in this whole Movement Toward emancipation doesnt necessarily take on a class issue. It is something that is important to all africanamericans. It meant freedom for individuals, no matter where, whether at a college, whether it is in a community, whether its the civic organizations. Emancipation and the ending of enslavement is significant for people at all levels. No matter what and where and what their status. I just think that has to be added. On the evening before d. C. Emancipation Daniel Alexander payne, the great a. M. E. Prelate, made a speech in a church at 2626 o street in georgetown. That was a. M. E. That ebb kneeser a. M. E. The speech is called ran some of the oppressed or the duties of the black folk doing better than the people who are going to be free. And what our responsibilities are. This is in sets forth the relationship between those free blacks and knows about to be free black folk. So that was discussed. It was reflected on. And there was unity. It was never going to be easy. It was never going to be perfect. But whatever we had immediately after emancipation in my humble judgment beat the heck out of slavery. So i think that were as we trace this scheme from slavery to freedom to the use of our rights, this is an unfinished road. We we have we aint done. And so [ applause ] so this is this is not finished. This is not finished. And its a reminder that whether were in d. C. Where we continue to press for the vote or whether were in other parts of the country where it seems the vote is being taken from us, this is an unfinished journey. This is still true freedom as an undiscovered country. Absolutely. Yes. Thank you. This is fascinating discussion. Ive always been a civil war buff. I grew up with ken burns civil war, glory, thats where im come from. And but the more i read about this the more i want to learn more. And when it comes to Abraham Lincoln, and, again, ken burns of course dealt with this subject, i thought fairly honestly, accurately. Lincoln of course is the same person who said i would, you know, preserve the union by freeing all the slaves, some of the slaves, none of the slaves. So are we perhaps discounting a fact that he is with a party, republican party, and his congress and congress does have democrats. It does have slave owners, right in congress. So but but as a political cover for the emancipation starting with the d. C. Emancipation, could it have been the political cover he had that that this was revenge against the south . In other words, they are going to pay for breaking up the union . And isnt that what the abolitionist said from the beginning, that that the that the price of disunion will be the the end of slavery. Are you saying that. Im saying perhaps that lincoln himself knew he had political cover. Yeah, i think we got it. Because of this. I think weve got it. There is a triumirate of power in europe. France, england, and although germany isnt unified, there is external pressure on lincoln unceasing. There is the internal issue of how to preserve this union. I think that i know that one of the leaders in london wrote that the this union was not lincoln should just let the south go. And the south would be choked off by the international pressure. He refused to do that. I think that the external pressure, the internal problems and this issue of how to create a union in spite of this institution is what we have to understand or we try to understand. We have the records. We have oral testimonies. But its a period that is very complex on every level. And so thats what makes it so fascinating. But i dont think there are any easy answers. And its not simply the domestic issues, that the International Pressures are very real. And he has to figure out how to do in a way in which it doesnt destroy his precious union. And i dont think anyone could read the second inaugural address and think that lincoln is trying to punish the south. There is absolutely no way that that is happening. Just just take another look at that. And yeah. Its sherman maybe. Sherman definitely. Yes. But not lincoln. Sherman was going to go down there and destroy everything. Yes. Yes. Thank you to the panel. Maam, you talked a pendulum shift. As d. C. Is emancipated annual afcen americans making their way to the derick what can you say about our current history and the pendulum shift of africanamericans leaving the city and how would this impact the celebration inform holiday . It is one of the most nelgtssome issues we confront today. We are worried about the continueual drain, worried about the difficulty of getting information into the schools and in a gentrifying environment. Were working on it. Thats the only way i know to say if. We are aware and dissatisfied with the status quo. There are people working valiantly to talk about this history and to inspire our young folk it seems like right now many of them because they are unfamiliar with it, because its not really the taught in the schools they dont want to approach it, thinking that theyre only going to get a tale of woe and sadness when in fact there are marvellous episode of resistance and inspiring courage shown. We are going to continue to tell the story. And we hope it will catch on. Its stillworthy of being noted that d. C. Is about 40 still 47 africanamerican. And according to greater greater washington, there are small numbers of africanamericans continuing to move into the district. They at least see Something Worthy and salvageable in coming here and perhaps for the future the black community it may very well lie in increasing those numbers of young people, several of whom i know personally that decided to make the district their home. I think that part of that reclaiming of history you have to look at people like dr. Paul Phillips Cook who as a leader in minor Teacher College which becomes federal city college, which becomes the university of District Of Columbia. There is a long legacy of teachers up through the 1960s. It was required that they did one important segment of civic history on emancipation. That begins to change when you have teachers who are coming in from other areas who dont have the same sensitivity. But i think this issue of gentrification and movement is not in new. Look at the georgetown, the west end, other communities, there is the constant pendulum and the constant shift because if there is nothing more in the district of Columbia Land is finite and people come here for employment, whether in 1,800, 1,900, 2000. In draw is continuous. And woodson and others talk about the District Of Columbia and its impact, and that importance of land and land ownership. But it is not necessarily just a an issue that is going to be resolved very quickly. It has been an ongoing issue. You have people writing in the 1930s and 1940s about displacement on capitol hill. In the 1970s, the push of displacement in southwest. Its an ongoing issue. I know you talk about in several articles p articles palisades and the issues around american university. This is an ongoing issue. Its not new just takes on a different form. Yes. And with regard to the continuation of the emancipation celebration it has to go beyond the black community. Cant see this as a black monthly day or black celebration,s in a celebration of our city. [ applause ] this is a celebration of our city, american progress. You know, you have now this thing about make America Great again. Well lets go back to the constitution and talk about making this a more Perfect Union. What happened here in 1862 made this a more Perfect Union and it has to go beyond the city and has to go beyond black communities to be celebrated nationwide. [ applause ] well, you know, im so sorry. We are out of time. So we are not going to be able to take any additional questions. Im really sorry. But so thank you all for coming. Thank you for your wonderful questions [ applause ] and id like to thank this marvellous panel. [ applause ] and can we thank our marvellous moderator. Yes, indeed. Have a good evening. All we can we are featuring American History tv programs as a preview of whats available every weekend on cspan3. The lectures in history, american artifacts, real america, the civil war, oral histories, the presidency, and special event coverage about our nations history. Enjoy American History tv now and every weekend on cspan3. Week nights this month we feature American History tv programs as a prevau of whats available every weekend on cspan3. This week a look at our weekly lectures in history series taking to you College Classrooms around the country. Font programs examining legal history including the 1981 trial of jean harris ached of murdering scarsdale diet doctor. Sarah fields discusses mrs. Harrisis background, her longs relationship with the doctor and conviction for his murder. Watch American History tv tonight at 8 eastern on every saturday and sunday on cspan3. Labor day weekend on American History tv, saturday, at 8 00 p. M. Eastern, on lectures in history, a discussion with Abraham Lincoln and native americans. Sunday, at 4 00 p. M. On real america, the 1950 army film invasion of southern france. And monday, labor day, at 8 00 p. M. Eastern, the commemoration of the 400th anniversary of virginias first general assembly, held at jamestown. Explore our nations past on American History tv, every weekend on cspan3. In the late 1850s americans generally truchted congressman but it did not trust congress as a institution more did congressman trust each other by 1860 many were routinely armed not because they were eager to kill opponents but out of fear their opponents might kill them. Yall history professor joe anne freeman will be our guest on indepth his latest book is the field of blood. The other titles include the essential hamilton. Hamilton writings. And affairs of honor join our live conversation with your phone calls, tweets and facebook questions. Then at 9 00 p. M. Eastern on after wards in his latest book the immoral majority, ben howe examine attention whether evangelical choose political power over christian values. I think the lesser evil argument is dangerous. Contributing to keeping a system in place that takes accountability out of the system. And i think it also is an easy way to bring in Something Like evangelic i. And use that as a way to get votes which seems about the worst possible way to use faith. Watch book tv every weekend on cspan2. University of maryland history professor George Derek Musgrove talked about race in the District Of Columbia during the early republic and ante bell up period. He is the author of Chocolate City with a history of race and democracy in the nations capitol. You decided to cowrite a fourcentury story about race and democracy in washington, d. C. Why did you decide to narrow it down to washington, d. C. . And why not give yourself a more narrow window of time . Well, we wrote about d. C. Because there was a need. There were a lot of new residents to the city that wanted to know what they were getting into. A lot of older residents who felt the old city slipping away and wanted to understand, make sure other people knew the story. And there hadnt been a good book on race in washington, d. C. In about 50 years. And so we wanted to philamena void