Event
Song o' the Day-"Great Day"
Fee:
Free.Dates & Times
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Type of Event
Description
New Orleans JAZZ NHP’s Song o’ the Day:
“Great Day”
“Congress this week moved to formally recognize Juneteenth as a federal holiday, sending the bill on Wednesday evening to President Biden for enactment… Juneteenth is celebrated on June 19 and commemorates the arrival of Union troops in Galveston, Texas, following the end of the Civil War, marking the effective end of slavery in the United States more than two years after President Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation. The holiday is already recognized by 47 states and the District of Columbia.” (Eric Wagner, govexec.com, 2021)
“This is the day of Jubilee! Whichever day that enslaved people learned of their freedom during the Civil War, that particular day became their ‘day of jubilee’. The official celebratory ‘day of Jubilee’ was the emancipation proclamation on January 1, 1863, however it wasn’t until the summer of 1865 that the majority of enslaved peopled <sic> were free. The song, Great Day, applauds the righteous (freedom seekers) who have successfully marched to Zion (freedom).” (Matt Hampsey, album liner notes, 2011)
From: Freedom is Coming: Songs of Freedom, Resistance & the Underground Railroad
Written by: Traditional
Produced by: New Orleans JAZZ National Historical Park
Featuring: Tyrone Chambers (vocals), Matt Hampsey (guitar)
More information
Reservation or Registration: No
Image Gallery
National Archives (https://www.archives.gov/)
NPS photo: design by Diana Thornton, Crescent Music Svcs.
NPS photo