Community Day: Watching and Waiting for Freedom at National Museum of African American History and Culture
New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day mark new beginnings, both in our lives and in history. Visitors will engage in Watch Night’s historical roots by creating their own scrapbooks. Inspired by the importance of scrapbooking during the Civil War, this activity includes pictures of objects, historical photos, and quotes that help them explore the significance of Watch Night.
Please help us keep this calendar up to date! If this activity is sold out, canceled, or otherwise needs alteration, email mindy@kidsoutandabout.com so we can update it immediately. If you have a question about the activity itself, please contact the organization administrator listed below.
In the United States, New Year’s Eve has been a cause for celebration for African Americans since December 31, 1862, when enslaved people in the Confederate States stayed up until midnight to watch and wait for the freedom granted by the Emancipation Proclamation. For the last 220 years, Haitians have celebrated January 1 as the day marking their independence from French Colonial rule.
Inspired by the Museum’s newest exhibition, In Slavery’s Wake, and Haitian Independence Day visitors will learn how soup joumou has come to symbolize freedom from French Colonial rule. There will be an art-making activity for all ages, based on the Flags of Freedom artwork by Nyugen Smith in in the exhibition.
*Times, dates, and prices of any activity posted to our calendars are subject to change. Please be sure to click through directly to the organization’s website to verify.
Location:
1400 Constitution Ave NW,
Washington, DC, 20560United States
See map: Google Maps
Phone:
844-750-3012Contact name:
General Information
Email address:
Dates:
12/31/2024
Time:
11 am - 2 pm
Price:
Free; Tickets required to enter the Museum
Ages
Adults & kids together Adults without kidsWeb Service