''FreeUp! The Emancipation Day Special'' is an annual
Canadian
Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...
television special, which was broadcast for the first time by
CBC Gem
CBC Television (also known as CBC TV, or simply CBC) is a Television in Canada, Canadian English-language terrestrial television, broadcast television network owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the national public broadcasting, p ...
CBC Arts
CBC Arts () is the division of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation that creates and curates written articles, short documentaries, non-fiction series and interactive projects that represent the excellence of Canada's diverse artistic communitie ...
, July 30, 2020. Growing out of an arts festival created by actress Ngozi Paul in 2017, the special features musical, acting, dancing, comedy and spoken word performances by
Black Canadian
Black Canadians () are Canadians of full or partial Afro-Caribbean or sub-Saharan African descent.
Black Canadian settlement and immigration patterns can be categorized into two distinct groups. The majority of Black Canadians are descendants ...
and
Indigenous Canadian
Indigenous peoples in Canada (also known as Aboriginals) are the Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous peoples within the boundaries of Canada. They comprise the First Nations in Canada, First Nations, Inuit, and Métis#Métis people in ...
performing artists to celebrate
Emancipation Day
Emancipation Day is observed in many former European colonies in the West Indies and parts of the United States on various dates to commemorate the emancipation of African slave trade#Abolition, slaves of African descent.
In much of the British ...
.
Performers
2020
2021
2022
In 2022, the special was paired with ''Freedom Talks'', a special roundtable discussion on freedom and racism in Canada. It also followed a different format than the previous two years, blending creative performances, documentary segments on
Caribana
The Toronto Caribbean Carnival, formerly and affectionately known as Caribana, is a festival of Caribbean culture and traditions held each summer in the city of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is a pan-Caribbean Carnival event and has been billed ...
Buxton National Historic Site and Museum
The Buxton National Historic Site and Museum is a tribute to the Elgin Settlement (also known as the Buxton Mission, Raleigh, Kent County), established in 1849 by Reverend William King (1812–1895), and an association which included Lord Elgin, ...
, and a tribute to jazz musician
Joe Sealy
Joseph Arthur Sealy (born 16 August 1939) is a Canadian jazz musician. He was awarded the Order of Canada in 2010.
Awards
* Juno Awards of 1982 - Nominee for Best Jazz Album - '' Clear Vision''
* Juno Awards of 1995 - Nominee for Best Contemporar ...
.
Awards
The 2020 special received a
Canadian Screen Award
The Canadian Screen Awards () are awards given for artistic and technical merit in the film industry recognizing excellence in Canadian film, English-language television, and digital media ( web series) productions. Given annually by the Academy ...
nomination for Best Performing Arts Program at the
9th Canadian Screen Awards
The 9th Canadian Screen Awards were presented by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television from 17–20 May 2021 to honour achievements in Canadian film, television, and digital media production in 2020. The presentations were held as a seri ...
ET Canada
''Entertainment Tonight Canada'' (commonly shortened to ''ET Canada'') is a Canadian entertainment news television series that aired on the Global Television Network from 2005 to 2023. Its branding and format were based on the American entertainm ...