Labor to March in DC Emancipation Day Parade Today

(Metropolitan Washington Council, AFL-CIO)Local labor leaders and activists are once again participating in the annual D.C. Emancipation Day activities today. Emancipation Day is an official public holiday in the District of Columbia to remember April 16, 1862 when President Abraham Lincoln signed the DC Compensation Emancipation Act into law, which abolished slavery in the District and freed 3,100 enslaved persons. Each year to honor and commemorate this historic event a grand parade is held on Pennsylvania Avenue, NW beginning at 11a on 4^th Street NW and ending at Freedom Plaza on 14^th Street NW. Participants include public officials, government agencies, the DC schools, the US military, churches, universities, community organizations, and more. Following the parade there will be a live concert at Freedom Plaza with performances by Talib Kweli, Doug E. Fresh, DJ Kool, J. Ivy and DC's own Black Alley Band; the concert kicks off at 4p. photo: AFSCME Council 20 marches in the 2012 Emancipation Day Parade; photo by Julia Kann/Union City