- Spiritual Baptist Emancipation Day becomes a national holiday
The Cabinet is due to decide whether to officially recognise the Spiritual Baptist Church and its Path to Religious Emancipation and to make May 21 a national holiday.
Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves made the announcement at a press conference today. Prime Minister Gonsalves said he met with the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Spiritual Baptist Organization after the issue was brought to the forefront and that he offered his unwavering support.
“I have spoken to the Cabinet and I will be telling the people… that they are grateful for the recognition day and that they are grateful for everything that was done on May 21st.st “This is a day when people commemorate their freedom to worship… I believe the overwhelming majority of people would agree with me,” the prime minister said.
The colonial government outlawed Spiritual Baptists with the Anti-Shaker Ordinance on October 1, 1912, making it illegal for members to practice their faith and subjecting them to persecution for many years.
The Act was repealed on 22 March 1965 by the Legislative Council led by E. T. Joshua, which passed Ordinance No. 7 of 1965 lifting the 1912 legal ban.
However, the Spiritual Baptist Church celebrates May 21, 1951, as Liberation Day following a court victory in which it represented former Prime Minister Robert Milton Cato.
On March 28, 2002, Parliament passed the Spiritual Baptists (Official Recognition of Freedom of Worship Day) Act 2002 (Act No. 13 of 2002).
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