From Watch Night To Renewed Emancipation:The Lincoln Decree to A New Obama Legacy

With the festivities of Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa and New Years Day now in our rear view mirror, there is still time to reflect on the ritual of my ancestors and many other African Americans, whose forefathers sat around campfires and wood stoves in the twilight of December 31, 1862. There they sang spirituals acapella, prayed, and thanked the Good Lord for what was about to happen the next day.

It was on January 1, 1863 amidst the cannon fire, gun shots, and burnings at the height of the Civil War that President Abraham Lincoln sealed his own fate and signed the Emancipation Proclamation. It begins with the following decree:

Whereas on the 22nd day of September, A.D. 1862, a proclamation was issued by the President of the United States, containing, among other things, the following, towit:
"That on the first day of January, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, all persons held as slaves within any State or designated part of a State, the people whereof shall then be in rebellion against the United States, shall be then, thenceforward, and forever free; and the Executive Government of the United States, including the military and naval authority thereof, will recognize and maintain the freedom of such persons, and will do no act or acts to repress such persons, or any of them, in any efforts they may make for their actual freedom.
"That the Executive will, on the first day of January aforesaid, by proclamation, designate the States and parts of States, if any, in which the people thereof, respectively, shall then be in rebellion against the United States; and the fact that any State, or the people thereof, shall on that day be, in good faith, represented in the Congress of the United States by members chosen thereto at elections wherein a majority of the qualified voters of such State shall have participated, shall, in the absence of strong countervailing testimony, be deemed conclusive evidence that such State, and the people thereof, are not then in rebellion against the United States."

CAROLE' S TRANSLATION: Effective January 1, 1963 all slaves in the states in rebellion against the Union are free.

Technically that is all that President Lincoln could do at the time. He used his wartime powers as Commander in Chief to liberate the “property” of the states in rebellion of the Union. The act did not free the slaves of the Union or border states (Delaware, Maryland, Kentucky, Missouri, or West Virginia) or any southern state under Union control (like parts of Virginia). It would take the Union Army winning the Civil War (April 9, 1965), the assassination of President Lincoln (shot on April 14th and died on April 15, 1865) for all of the slaves to be freed. That included the liberation of the slaves in rebellious Texas on June 19, 1865 (Juneteenth Day) and finally the ratification of the 13th Amendment on December 18, 1865, giving all black people freedom and permanently abolishing slavery in the US.

So in 1862 on the eve of this great era, the slaves “watched”, prayed, and waited. My ancestors, including Bishop Wesley John Gaines of the African Methodist Episcopal Church (AME) and the other four million slaves prayed for divine guidance and an empowered Abraham Lincoln to do the right thing.

That is the history of Watch Night in the African American culture.

It is as important today as the tradition of black people eating black eyed peas on New Year’s Day for good luck. (Yes my family ate black eyed peas this past Thursday.) And even though a new snowstorm blasted New England on New Year’s Eve, making driving tricky at best, my church used technology to hold our Watch Night Service. Bethel AME Church-Boston held Watch Night in the form or a teleconference call. A virtual way to praise the Lord by telephone.

Our low tech version of Watch Night by telephone included homage to our ancestors for that first candle light prayer virtual to prayers for our families. We prayed for our children, our hopes, and our dreams. We prayed for the sick, the financially strapped, and those in despair. We prayed for our country and our neighbors from Boston to Botswana.

And we definitely prayed for President Elect Barack Obama. The amens came right through the telephone as we prayed for his safety, for his family, and for his wisdom and guidance as he leads a troubled nation at a difficult time in our history.

Two wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. New violence in the Gaza Strip. Bail outs from General Motors to AIG. And layoffs just waiting to occur in the first quarter of this New Year.

It’s no coincidence that our first Black President will pledge his presidential oath on Abraham Lincoln’s bible. In many ways these two giants in American history are intricately linked. Just as President Lincoln faced enormous uncertainties in 1863, Obama faces high hurdles in the early dawn of 2009. They are separated by 146 years, but the Lincoln-Obama connection is as strong as ever.

Much work is needed in order to turn our global economy around, stop the regional fighting around the world, resolve our credit crisis, and get people back to work. At least we African Americans know that prayer is a powerful inoculation against life’s uncertainties.

And we know that continuing the Watch Night services of our ancestors is a powerful tool for the spiritual, economic, and social warfare we face today.

Happy New Year, keep praying, and God Bless America.

Holiday Greetings From My Family To Yours

Originally Published on Sunday December 28, 2008

As the holiday season continues, I wish for you and your family a joyous sense of peace and happiness throughout this Christmas Season and into the New Year.

During the holidays, I have enjoyed visiting the home of my oldest daughter and son in law here in West Hartford, Connecticut. Lorna and Jerome, have a beautiful 7 month- old daughter, Julianna Gwendolyn, who is enjoying her first Christmas. Becoming a grandmother has been something I treasure with the passing of each day.

Joining me in Connecticut has been my younger daughter, Michelle, who is quickly learning how to spoil her niece with toys and extra hugs. My niece DaVonne is now called “Auntie Cuz,” and is trying to find ways to smuggle little Julianna into her suitcase to take back to Boston.

Jerome’s mom, Vilma, traveled up to Connecticut by train from Philadelphia, and completed our goal to surround our grandchild with lots of love throughout the holiday season.

Even Godiva the cat received Christmas goodies from Aunt Michelle, who lovingly put his new bags of cat food and litter under the tree.

Phone calls, gifts, and well wishes came from Lorna and Michelle’s dad in Chicago, aunts, uncles, cousins, and godparents in Detroit, including Wilson, Debbie, Lauren, Macie, Nate, and Charles.

My family embraces the joys and sorrows of life, just like any other family. We’re concerned about the recession, while shouting hallelujah for President Elect Barack Obama. My son in law and daughter, Michelle are football fanatics and have screamed at the television set since the first kick off several days ago.

And boy, have we eaten a truckload of delicious, fattening food. Turkey, chicken, macaroni and cheese, sweet potatoes, collard greens, dressing, turkey soup, red velvet cake, salmon, omelets made to order, and brownies, golden vanilla ice cream. We’ve had it all. And yes, we will all start our diets as soon as the leftovers have been devoured.

The Christmas holiday season gives us time to reflect on the birth of Jesus Christ, while we review our accomplishments and setbacks for the year. We share our celebration with our friends who celebrate Hanukkah, Winter Solstice, and Kwanzaa.

For some, 2008 is a year to remember. For others, it is a year to quickly forget. The uncertainty and opportunities of 2009 await us in the next few days. Whatever is ahead, I give thanks for the precious moments of the past few days and surrounding myself with my family. It has given me an opportunity to remember what is really important in life, despite the demands of my business, my goals, and my personal ambition.

Family is everything. Family makes life worth living. Family is the ultimate support network when you need strength from a higher power and the loved ones both near and far.

So for you, I wish you the best throughout the holiday season and into the New Year.

We’ll be back in a few days with news about out exciting line up for 2009, and the game plan we’re designing to help you succeed through the coming months.

In the meantime, sit back, relax a bit, and soak in your own family bond, from the blood relatives who have known you from birth, to the support network you now call your family.

Whatever the combination, I wish you the very best through the season and into the New Year.

Merry Christmas.
Happy Hanukkah
Happy Kwanzaa.
Happy New Year.

See you in 2009.

Five Ways To Beat The Recession Part 2: Reinvention

Published on December 12, 2008
Commentary by Carole Copeland Thomas

The economy keeps spiraling downward with no real way to determine when it will bottom out. Every day a new company announces massive layoffs because of bailout blues, credit freezes, or consumer hesitance. Just this morning Bank of America, who recently bought out Merrill Lynch, announced 35,000 layoffs over the next three years.

And you’re thinking…that next pink slip or business contract cancellation could have my name on it.

Should you cry and crawl in the nearest hole …or should you do something else?

My recommendation to you is to do something else…

Reinvent Yourself.

If the Big Three auto manufacturers in Detroit should do it…why not you?

Reinvention is a personal overhaul of the way you project yourself to the world and the manner in which you do it. It’s not developmental plastic surgery…it’s a complete reconstruction of the professional package you present to the world.

And it takes work to get there.

Let me use myself as an example.

I had established myself as an office based diversity and leadership speaker and trainer working with large and small organizations to help enhance their developmental potential at work.

After considerable soul searching and research I have become…

A professional communicator specializing in the fields of global diversity, empowerment, multiculturalism, and leadership. I run a virtual operation that can serve the needs of a worldwide audience through my Multicultural Symposium Series and communication services.

Everything I do now filters through a virtual world since I do so much online. I use an iPhone, carry my laptop everywhere, and check in with friends and colleagues from New York to Nairobi.

That’s reinvention on a small business scale.

Perhaps you work for a large and small company and you’re trying to figure out how to reinvent yourself.

Take a look at every single thing you do on and off the job and prioritize their importance. With your “day job” talents, figure out a way that those strengths can LOCK you into your next job, a promotion, or your current positions. You should OWN those skills and learn how to communicate your strengths to everyone around you. No, I am not asking you to become a human brag machine. I want you to learn how to package and market your skills so that YOU are the preferred employee of choice when that next opportunity comes your way. You can’t expect someone else to do it for you. You must learn how to market your assets so that your organization realizes what a value you are to them.

And if you are continually overlooked at work…you must develop the courage and the GAME PLAN to move on to a new organization. That doesn’t mean quit your job in the middle of this recession with no job prospects. It means that you must develop a plan of action that will lead you to a smooth and effective job transition…either to a new department or a new company.

That’s the beginning of reinvention.