We are thrilled to announce a screening of From Liberty to Captivity at St. Paul’s Missionary Baptist Church, where Dr. Joseph Green is Senior Pastor.
Dr. Green is also the former Chairman of the 400 Years of African American History Commission, which was established by Congress on January 8, 2018 to plan, develop, and carry out programs and activities throughout the United States to recognize and highlight 400 years of African-American contributions. The Commission’s activities included the coordination of the commemoration of the 400-year anniversary of the arrival of the first enslaved Africans to the English colonies in 1619.
Dr. Green will be joined by retired State Senator Stewart J. Greenleaf for a Q&A session after the screening of the film.
In October 2018, Senator Stewart Greenleaf’s Senate Bill 554 protecting the child victims of human trafficking was signed into law. Known as the Safe Harbor bill, the legislation will prevent the child victims of human trafficking and sexual exploitation from being criminally prosecuted for crimes they have been forced or coerced to commit. SB 554 will provide full immunity from prosecution for certain crimes for any minor who has been the subject of sexual exploitation or human trafficking. The legislation will require law enforcement to report any encounter with a minor who has been subject to sexual exploitation to the Department of Human Services. The Department will develop a state-wide protocol to provide victims with safe, long-term housing, education, life-skills training, and counseling.
Senator Greenleaf also introduced SB 75, which was passed in 2013, to address weaknesses in the state’s current law that often allows traffickers to be charged with lesser crimes. The legislation further addresses victim protection and prevention of trafficking by providing restitution to victims funded by seized property and creating the PA Council for Prevention of Human Trafficking. The goal is to have all law enforcement and first responders able to identify victims of human trafficking.
Senator Greenleaf said, “While we use the term ‘human trafficking,’ we are literally talking about slavery. Ironically, the Pennsylvania legislature was the first government in America to attempt to abolish slavery in 1780 with the Act for the Gradual Abolition of Slavery. Two-hundred and thirty-three years later we are still fighting human slavery, though in a very different form.”
The award-winning documentary, From Liberty to Captivity, looks at slavery then, slavery now and the abolitionists fighting to end it. Dr. Green and Senator Greenleaf will add a powerful dimension to the screening by discussing the very important work they have done and are doing to help bring healing, reconciliation and justice to our nation from the plight and scars of slavery then and slavery now.
The free screening of From Liberty To Captivity at St. Paul’s Missionary Baptist Church, will be held on February 29, 2020 starting at 2:00 PM in honor of Black History Month.
The event schedule is as follows:
-Doors open at 1:30 pm
-FLTC film screening from 2:00-4:10 pm
-Q&A session with Dr. Green and Senator Greenleaf from 4:15-5:15 pm
St. Paul’s Missionary Baptist Church
1201 N 17th St, Harrisburg, PA 17103
