January 1st is a significant day in civil rights history.  On January 1, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation which proclaimed that “all persons held as slaves … are, and henceforward shall be free.”  It is said that slaves in the confederate states watched all night on December 31, 1862, to see what freedom looked like on January 1st.  Accordingly, 157 years later, in the African American culture, we continue to attend watch night services on New Year’s Eve.  Maybe in 2020, we can truly see what freedom looks like.  #freedom #watchnight #vote