DC residents recognize April 16 as Emancipation Day, a holiday commemorating the freeing of over 3000 people from slavery in 1861. 

In 2023, US and DC League members joined other leaders in the movement for DC Statehood to honor the holiday and discuss how statehood is both a human rights and racial justice issue. 

Led by moderator Nile Blass, panelists included:

• Virginia Kase Solomón, LWVUS
• Jason Fink, DC Office of Federal and Regional Affairs
• Jamal Holtz, 51 for 51
• Dr. George Derek Musgrove, DC Vote, co-author of Chocolate City: A History of Race and Democracy in the Nationa's Capital
• Philip Panel, Anacostia Coordinating Council

Watch the full video or read the transcript below.

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