Emancipation Day is the only official holiday in the District of Columbia to mark the anniversary of the signing of the Compensated Emancipation Act, which president Abraham Lincoln signed on April 16, 1862. It is in commemoration of Lincoln buying all 3,400 slaves in the District in 1862. It is the only compensated emancipation in US history. He did this as a prelude to the Emancipation Proclamation which came 9 months later.

Our guest this Sunday on "Shadow Politics" will be historian C.R. Gibbs. We will discuss the holiday Emancipation Day in the District of Columbia. Emancipation Day is the only holiday in Washington D.C. and this year all of America gets an additional 3 days to file their Income Taxes due to the government being closed for the Holiday. Emancipation Day commemorates President Abe Lincoln (a Republican) buying all 3,100 slaves in the District and setting them free nine months before the Emancipation Proclamation.