Tampa Emancipation Day

The community is invited to gather on Monday, May 6, 2024, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at St. James at ENCORE®, 1202 North Governor Street, Tampa, FL. This free event will feature music, food, and new USF research. Notable speakers include Dr. Elizabeth Horge-Freeman, Dr. Cheryl Rodriguez, and Dr. Tomaro Taylor with the University of South Florida, and Fred Hearns, Curator of Black History with the Tampa Bay History Center. 

The program will highlight a special reading of the Emancipation Proclamation by several dignitaries:
 

• Council Member Gwendolyn Henderson, City Council, District 5
• Commissioner Robert P. Edwards, Tampa Housing Authority Board of Commissioners
• Commissioner Gwen Myers, Hillsborough County Board of County Commissioners, District 3
• State Rep. Dianne Hart, District 63
• Board Member Henry "Shake" Washington, Hillsborough County Public Schools, District 5
• Natajha Tompkins, USF Black Student Union
• Malachi Brown, Afro-academic, Cultural, Technological and Scientific Olympics (ACT-SO)

The program also includes performances by local artists and speakers, enhancing the celebration of freedom and unity. The Tampa Housing Authority, USF Racial Justice Initiative, and WEDU PBS are supporting partners of this special program. Seating is limited to the first 100 guests to RSVP.