December 27 proclaimed Sam Sharpe Day

December 27 has been proclaimed as Sam Sharpe Day.

Governor General, Sir Patrick Allen, made the proclamation on Tuesday.

The first annual Sam Sharpe Day — in memory and celebration of the National Hero, the Right Excellent Samuel Sharpe, who led the war for Emancipation — will be observed on Sunday.

In Photo: Sam Sharpe - Contributed 

In a statement, Culture Minister, Olivia Grange, indicated that the proclamation was made at the request of the Cabinet and is in keeping with the policy of the Ministry “to promote the knowledge and memory of those who have contributed to the development of Jamaica [and] the Right Excellent Samuel Sharpe stands tall among such men.”

The date, December 27, is significant. 

It was explained that it was on December 27, 1831, that the Emancipation War of 1831-1832 began under Sam Sharpe’s leadership. 

The plan called for enslaved people to refuse to work after the Christmas break unless they were being paid.

They were also told to prepare to fight in the event plantation owners tried to force them to continue working as slaves.

Sam Sharpe led the largest and most successful of the fights to end slavery, as his war was a major catalyst for the abolition of slavery in the British Empire.

Grange said Sam Sharpe Day, each year, will be an occasion to “reflect on and celebrate the unflinching courage and bold resolve of these our ancestors, led by Sam Sharpe, who gave their lives for our freedom.”

She expressed the hope that Sam Sharpe’s “life, commitment, and ultimate sacrifice” would inspire Jamaicans to “commit to nation-building, to see ourselves as our brothers’ and sisters’ keeper, and to promote the wellbeing and welfare of all Jamaicans.”

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