Sign-In
Cart
O Freedom!: Afro-American Emancipation Celebrations
Paperback
Black American StudiesPlaysStorytelling
ISBN13: 9780870496653
Publisher: University of Tennessee Press
Published: Nov 8 1990
Pages: 232
Weight: 0.60
Height: 0.53 Width: 5.50 Depth: 8.50
Language: English
Winner of the B. A. Botkin Prize for a First Book in American Folklore (American Comparative Literature Association) and received an honorable mention for the Chicago Folklore Prize (University of Chicago).
O, Freedom! is the first full scholarly treatment of not only Juneteenth, but also May 28, August 9, January 1, and other dates that were regionally celebrated as emancipation day in America. This lively account traces the evolution of emancipation celebrations from early slave festivals to twentieth-century offshoots like Black History Month and Martin Luther King Day. Wiggins describes the dramatic proclamation readings, historical pageants, colorful parades, all-night barbecues, exciting ballgames, and a myriad of other customs and rituals with which people of color have celebrated their freedom. He analyzes the historical, symbolic, and political significance of these celebrations.A lucid and interesting account of the numerous 'Emancipation Day' holidays long celebrated by black Americans. . . . readable, interesting, useful, and important. --S. Cresswell, Choice
This is an engaging study of a significant yet neglected aspect of American social, cultural, and political history. --Michael Kammen, New York History
Basing his analysis on fieldwork and solid historical research, Wiggins gives a vivid portrayal of a celebration of ethnic pride in all its diversity. Though varied over time and space, the celebratory message of freedom from slavery comes through clearly. Activities--singing, dancing, speechmaking--are described. Interesting illustrations, posters, programs, buttons, photographs support this intimate, carefully produced book. --David S. Azzolina, Library Journal
Wiggins has combined painstaking research and detailed interviews with a relaxed, readable writing style to produce a richly textured and fascinating account of a little-known slice of Americana. --Martha Southgate
A valuable contribution to Afro-American history . . . describes the author's thousands of miles of travel . . . in order to understand the emancipation celebrations and to capture the different flavors of celebrations from Texas to Indiana, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, and Georgia. The account of his travels is lively, inviting, scholarly, and earthy. His research and writing point to an obvious conclusion: emancipation celebrations are alive and well. --G. W. Reid, North Carolina Historical Review
Also in
Black American Studies
In Search of the Black Fantastic: Politics and Popular Culture in the Post-Civil Rights Era
Iton, Richard
Paperback
Nothing But Love in God's Water: Volume 1: Black Sacred Music from the Civil War to the Civil Rights Movement
Darden, Robert
Hardcover
Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome: America's Legacy of Enduring Injury and Healing
Degruy, Joy a.
Paperback
When Trees Testify: Science, Wisdom, History, and America's Black Botanical Legacy
Montgomery, Beronda L.
Hardcover
Sacred Pampering Principles: An African-American Woman's Guide to Self-Care and Inner Renewal
Gandy, Debrena Jackson
Paperback
Decoding the Devil: Black Women Codebreakers and the Secret War Against Stalin's Bomb
Valentine, Sarah
Hardcover
Freedom Is a Constant Struggle: Ferguson, Palestine, and the Foundations of a Movement
Davis, Angela Y.
Paperback
Nature Knows No Color-Line: Research into the Negro Ancestry in the White Race
Rogers, J. a.
Paperback
The Instigators: How Black Women Have Been Essential to American Democracy (and What We Can Learn from Them)
Omara, Atima
Hardcover
A Terrible Strength: The Hidden Crisis of the Black Womb and Your Survival Guide to Healing
Doll, Kemi, MD Mscr
Hardcover
How the Word Is Passed: A Reckoning with the History of Slavery Across America
Smith, Clint
Paperback
The Delectable Negro: Human Consumption and Homoeroticism Within Us Slave Culture
Woodard, Vincent
Paperback
Redeem a Nation: The Century-Long Battle to Restore the Soul of America
Solomon-Simmons, Damario
Hardcover
Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome, Revised Edition: America's Legacy of Enduring Injury and Healing
Degruy, Joy a.
Hardcover
A Second Sight: How the Wonder and Vision of Black Mediamakers Push America Toward Freedom
Jackson, Sarah J.
Hardcover
The People Can Fly: American Promise, Black Prodigies, and the Greatest Miracle of All Time
Bennett, Joshua
Hardcover
African-American Heritage Cookbook: Traditional Recipes and Fond Remembrances from Alabama's Renowned Tuskegee Institute
Tillery, Carolyn Q.
Hardcover
The Legend of Wyatt Outlaw: From Reconstruction Through Black Lives Matter
Boggs, Belle
Allen, Sylvester, Jr.
Hardcover
The Cure for Everything: The Epic Struggle for Public Health and a Radical Vision for Human Thriving
Williams, Michelle A.
Hardcover
Mindful Meditations for Black Men: Restorative Practices to Soothe Mind, Body, and Spirit
Caraballo, Jor-El
Hardcover
This Nonviolent Stuff'll Get You Killed: How Guns Made the Civil Rights Movement Possible
Cobb, Charles E., Jr.
Paperback
The Assassination of Fred Hampton: How the FBI and the Chicago Police Murdered a Black Panther
Haas, Jeffrey
Paperback
A High Price for Freedom: Raising Hidden Voices from the African American Past
Ford, Clyde W.
Hardcover
Black Film: A History of Black Representation and Participation in the Movies
Walker, David F.
Hardcover
Self-Care for Black Women: 150 Ways to Radically Accept & Prioritize Your Mind, Body, & Soul
Adeeyo, Oludara
Hardcover
Rooted: The American Legacy of Land Theft and the Modern Movement for Black Land Ownership
Baker, Brea
Hardcover
How I Know White People Are Crazy and Other Stories: Notes from a Frustrated Black Psychologist
Lassiter, Jonathan
Hardcover
Africulture: How the Principles, Practices, Plants, and People of African Descent Have Shaped American Agriculture
Carter, Michael, Jr.
Hardcover
Marked by Time: How Social Change Has Transformed Crime and the Life Trajectories of Young Americans
Sampson, Robert J.
Hardcover
Black Against Empire: The History and Politics of the Black Panther Party
Bloom, Joshua
Martin, Waldo E., Jr.
Paperback
The Vanishing Black Family: How Welfare and Feminism Made Marriage Optional and Children Vulnerable
Squires, Delano
Hardcover
The Valley of the Dry Bones: The Conditions That Face Black People in America Today
Windsor, Rudolph R.
Paperback
How the Word Is Passed: A Reckoning with the History of Slavery Across America
Smith, Clint
Hardcover
Black Wall Street: From Riot to Renaissance in Tulsa's Historic Greenwood District
Johnson, Hannibal B.
Paperback
Voices of Freedom: An Oral History of the Civil Rights Movement from the 1950s Through the 1980s
Fayer, Steve
Hampton, Henry
Paperback
Stories in the Seams: A People's History of Black Quilts and Their Makers
Plummer, Sharbreon
Hardcover
Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome: America's Legacy of Enduring Injury and Healing
Degruy, Joy Angela
Paperback
The Cooking Gene: A Journey Through African American Culinary History in the Old South
Twitty, Michael W.
Paperback
Refusing Compulsory Sexuality: A Black Asexual Lens on Our Sex-Obsessed Culture
Brown, Sherronda J.
Paperback
The Spirit of a Man: A Vision of Transformation for Black Men and the Women Who Love Them
Vanzant, Iyanla
Paperback
White Evangelical Racism, Second Edition: The Politics of Morality in America
Butler, Anthea
Paperback
Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria?: And Other Conversations about Race
Tatum, Beverly Daniel
Paperback
Contempt of Court: The Turn-Of-The-Century Lynching That Launched a Hundred Years of Federalism
Curriden, Mark
Phillips, Leroy
Paperback
Think and Grow Rich: A Black Choice: A Guide to Success for Black Americans
Kimbro, Dennis
Hill, Napoleon
Paperback
W. E. B. Du Bois's Data Portraits: Visualizing Black America
The W. E. B. Du Bois Center at the University of Massachuset
Hardcover
The Half Has Never Been Told: Slavery and the Making of American Capitalism
Baptist, Edward E.
Paperback
Historically Black Phrases: From I Ain't One of Your Lil' Friends to Who All Gon' Be There?
Hill, Jarrett
Anderson, Tre'vell
Hardcover
Never Wear Red Lipstick: 8 Lies That Stop Black Women from Succeeding in Life and Business
Dunham Burton Phd, Karmetria
Hardcover
Expecting Inequity: How the Maternal Health Crisis Affects Even the Wealthiest Black Americans
Bridges, Khiara
Hardcover
I Have a Dream - Special Anniversary Edition: Writings and Speeches That Changed the World
King, Martin Luther, Jr.
Paperback
Devil in the Grove: Thurgood Marshall, the Groveland Boys, and the Dawn of a New America
King, Gilbert
Paperback
Farming While Black: Soul Fire Farm's Practical Guide to Liberation on the Land
Penniman, Leah
Paperback
Hellhound on His Trail: The Electrifying Account of the Largest Manhunt in American History
Sides, Hampton
Paperback
Slavery by Another Name (Pulitzer Prize Winner): The Re-Enslavement of Black Americans from the Civil War to World War II
Blackmon, Douglas A.
Paperback
Nature Knows No Color-Line: Research into the Negro Ancestry in the White Race
Rogers, J. a.
Hardcover
Punished for Dreaming: How School Reform Harms Black Children and How We Heal
Love, Bettina L.
Paperback
When The World Was Black, Part One: The Untold History of the World's First Civilizations Prehistoric Culture
Understanding, Supreme
Hardcover