Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture > Exhibitions

The Struggle for Black Freedom & the Emancipation Proclamation

From September 22, 2000 through October 1, 2000
Exhibition Hall
Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, 515 Malcolm X Boulevard, New York, NY 10037-1801 (directions)

Abraham Lincoln's handwritten draft of the Emancipation Proclamation, issued on September 22, 1862, is considered by many to be the third most important document in United States history, after the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. It has rarely been seen by the general public, and has never before been exhibited in a black community. The unique viewing of this historic document (on loan from the New York State Library in Albany and exhibited in a specially constructed display unit) begins on September 22, exactly 138 years from its original signing, and runs through October 1, 2000.

The exhibition also includes other rare and unique documents, correspondence, lithographs, and memorabilia drawn from the collections of the Schomburg Center, as well as the New York State Archives, the New York State Library, and private collections.

Press Release