"Rebelling for the Promise of Revolution: Black Emancipation and the Civil War”

Date: September 20, 2012
Contact: Cindy Small, Gettysburg Foundation, [phone]

(Library of Congress)

Scott Hancock, Ph.D., Professor of History and Africana Studies at Gettysburg College, will offer a free lecture, "Rebelling for the Promise of Revolution: Black Emancipation and the Civil War," on Saturday, September 22 at 5 p.m. at the Gettysburg National Military Park Museum and Visitor Center, in commemoration of the 150^th anniversary of President Abraham Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation.

Hancock's talk will propose a different way of thinking about the American Civil War and the kind of American Revolution that African Americans hoped it would create. "Confederates have long been called 'Rebels,'" Hancock explains, "but the American Civil War witnessed one of the largest rebellions of enslaved people in world history: 200,000 Black men taking up arms to make the Emancipation Proclamation a reality."

Gettysburg Foundation President Joanne Hanley says, "Dr. Hancock's talk is part of a series of opportunities for visitors to come to the Gettysburg National Military Park Museum and Visitor Center to remember, learn about and be inspired by Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation. The talk sets the stage for next year's commemoration of the Gettysburg 150^th. I believe that the more we ponder and contemplate these incredibly significant and pivotal moments in our nation's history, the more we will grow as individuals and as a country."

Other events at the Gettysburg National Military Park Museum and Visitor Center marking the sesquicentennial anniversary of Lincoln's ground-breaking executive order include: a limited-time museum exhibit featuring a Lincoln-signed copy of the Emancipation Proclamation, a signed copy of the Thirteenth Amendment, and other rare artifacts open from Sept. 21 through 29, and "Forever Free," An Evening with Dr. James McPherson and Dr. Allen Guelzo at 8 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 21 at the Majestic Theater.

The Emancipation Proclamation was an executive order issued by President Abraham Lincoln on Jan. 1, 1863, proclaiming the freedom of slaves in the 10 states that made up the Confederate States of America. A preliminary proclamation was made on Sept. 22, 1862 (150 years ago) - giving Confederate states a final chance to rejoin the Union.

For more information about events at the Gettysburg National Military Park Museum and Visitor Center, visit www.gettysburgfoundation.org or call [phone].