Today we want to talk about Liberation and Freedom Day, a topic that has gained great relevance in recent times. Liberation and Freedom Day is an aspect of life that affects everyone in one way or another, and that is why it is so interesting and important to explore it in depth. In this article we will analyze different aspects related to Liberation and Freedom Day, from its historical origin to its impact on current society. We will also try to address the different opinions and perspectives that exist around Liberation and Freedom Day, with the aim of offering a complete and enriching vision of this interesting topic.
Annual holiday in Charlottesville, Virginia
In a unanimous vote on July 1, 2019, the City Council of Charlottesville, Virginia, established a new city holiday, Liberation and Freedom Day, to be celebrated on March 3. Union Army troops, under the command of Major General Philip Sheridan, arrived in Charlottesville on March 3, 1865, liberating over 14,000 enslaved workers. "Blacks were the majority race in the Charlottesville-Albemarle area." In the 1870 Census, the first one in which Charlottesville appears, its population was 2,838.
By a 4–1 vote, the city council decided that the April 13 birthday of Thomas Jefferson, founder of the University of Virginia, would no longer be an official holiday in the city of Charlottesville. News stories report that this change was because Jefferson was an enslaver.
On March 3, 2019, the slaves who built the university were honored in a ceremony held in the University Rotunda. The university has built a Memorial to Enslaved Laborers, honoring the contributions of slaves who helped build and maintain the school. "The memorial was recommended by a commission convened in 2013 to study slavery and the university."
(federal) = federal holidays, (abbreviation) = state/territorial holidays, (religious) = religious holidays, (cultural) = holiday related to a specific racial/ethnic group or sexual minority, (week) = week-long holidays, (month) = month-long holidays, (36) = Title 36 Observances and Ceremonies