An April 15 luncheon celebrating D.C. Emancipation Day, April 16, 1862, not only commemorated the historic freeing of enslaved Black Washingtonians, but on Tax Day, reminded attendees D.C. residents still fight for full freedom– as taxed citizens without full representation in the U.S. House or Senate.
“Our democracy is on the line in this country,” said U.S. Rep. Maxwell Frost (D-Fla.), the keynote speaker at the Full Democracy Champions Luncheon, a gathering of 200 people held at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Northwest, D.C.
Frost, 27, thanked D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser for her advocacy for District citizens on Capitol Hill.
“I want to thank Mayor Bowser for being on The Hill when it comes to fighting for the rights of residents,” said Frost, who sits on the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability with D.C. Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton.“Whenever we need [Bowser], she always comes and defends the city.”
Washingtonians ‘Want Full Liberty’
Symone Sanders Townsend, co-host of MSNBC’s “The Weekend,” served as the master of ceremony.
Townsend, 34, admitted that she is a native of North Omaha, Nebraska “where there are not that many Black people” but said the District is her adopted home.
“We are not free,” Townsend said. “We want full liberty, full equality and full representation for the citizens of Washington, D.C.”
Bowser honored Addison Rose with the John Lewis Youth Leadership Award for her two terms as youth mayor of the District and Patricia Elwood for her years of government service.
The Washington Douglass Chorale performed the National Anthem and the “Negro National Anthem” under the direction of Nolan Williams Jr.
The rapper, Priest Da Nomad performed a song “Defend Our Vote” while Cartier Williams danced along.
D.C. Council Chairman Phil Mendelson (D) attended the luncheon with D.C. Council members Anita Bonds (D-At Large), Brooke Pinto (D-Ward 2) and Matt Frumin (D-Ward 3).
Mendelson, 71, talked about the congressional meddling that takes place on issues ranging from the city’s regulation of cannabis to how the Congress manages the court system. He said the Congress recently shortchanged the District for its police services. Mendelson also made a somber political fact.
“We are the only city in the free world where the national capital has no representation,” the chairman said.
Kimberly Bassett, the secretary of state for the District, also advocated for fair representation and full freedom
“Over 700,000 D.C. residents do not have the share of the same freedoms as other Americans,” Bassett said.
Bassett talked about a little-known fact about the emancipation of District slaves that took place in 1862.
She said a Black man, Gabriel Coakley, worked hard and “pursued relentlessly” the freedom of eight enslaved family members. When the Emancipation law came into life, he was compensated for his family members. Bassett said Coakley serves as an example of “one’s commitment for freedom of all.”
“Let’s all be Gabriel Coakley,” she said.
