Seven Years A Slave: The Past and Present Journey

Film screening in commemoration of the 150th Anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation

Date: Friday, September 21st, 2012
Time: 6:00pm to 8:00pm
Place: U.S. Embassy to the Holy See, via delle Terme Deciane 26, Roma
Language: English

Please RSVP by 18 September to VaticanRSVP@state.gov and bring a photo ID.

We invite you to join us in marking September 22 as the 150th anniversary of the date on which President Lincoln issued the preliminary Emancipation Proclamation. Together with the final executive order on January 1, 1863 and the 13th Amendment to the Constitution three years later, the Proclamation formally freed the slaves.

Slavery still exists, and, fortunately, so does the equivalent of the 19th century Underground Railroad.  The video we will show at the U.S. Embassy to the Holy See tells the story of two slaves, while pointing out the striking similarities:  Vannak Prum from Cambodia, who was tricked and sold into slavery in 2003, and Solomon Northup, a freeman from the north, who was kidnapped into slavery in 1841. 

Just like the American historical heroes of the Underground Railroad, modern heroes operate today.  The film tells the stories from the Underground Railroad, along with the stories of the U.S. State Department Trafficking In Persons (TIP) Report Heroes, highlighting the striking similarities and tactics that all have employed.  Each TIP Report hero, with their particular approach (care-giver, freedom fighter, etc.), is paralleled with a hero from the history of the Underground Railroad. 

The goal of the documentary is to help you understand better both the history and the present state of slavery, and encourage you to be inspired to action.  It was a community of people who ended slavery in the 1800s, and it will be a global community that acts together – each member with their own strengths, abilities, and passions – that will bring an end to modern day slavery once and for all.

The evening will start at 6:00pm with light refreshments. At 6:30pm, the one-hour documentary will be shown, followed by a discussion.