http://blogs.smithsonianmag.com/aroundthemall/2009/04/then-and-now-easter-monday-at-the-national-zoo/ A new Smithsonian blog covering scenes and sightings from the Smithsonian museums and beyond. Sun, 05 Feb 2012 21:16:32 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.1 http://blogs.smithsonianmag.com/aroundthemall/2009/04/then-and-now-easter-monday-at-the-national-zoo/comment-page-1/#comment-3175 History of Blacks and the White House Easter Egg Roll « Political News and Opinion for African-Americans on Politic365 Mon, 05 Apr 2010 17:02:11 +0000 http://blogs.smithsonianmag.com/aroundthemall/?p=4476#comment-3175 [...] Smithsonian.com offers the following information about black participation at the White House event: Two decades after the White House began its Easter Egg Roll tradition in 1878, the National Zoo started one of its own. The event, which involved an Easter egg roll down the zoo’s Lion-Tiger Hill and a day of picnicking, became a hit, especially for DC-area African Americans, with attendance reaching a whopping 55,000 in 1919. Apparently, native Washingtonian Justine Love, at her 50thEaster Monday in 2003, said, “I always would ask [my father] why we couldn’t go to the White House to the Easter Egg roll, and he’d say because this activity is better for us.” The African American community claimed this event as their own, and it’s blossomed into a rich, multicultural celebration. And why Easter Monday, instead of Sunday? According to a Washington Post article from 1986, in the early days of the event, many of Washington’s African Americans worked as servants and were given Easter Monday off. – Around the Mall, 4/10/09 [...] [...] Smithsonian.com offers the following information about black participation at the White House event: Two decades after the White House began its Easter Egg Roll tradition in 1878, the National Zoo started one of its own. The event, which involved an Easter egg roll down the zoo’s Lion-Tiger Hill and a day of picnicking, became a hit, especially for DC-area African Americans, with attendance reaching a whopping 55,000 in 1919. Apparently, native Washingtonian Justine Love, at her 50thEaster Monday in 2003, said, “I always would ask [my father] why we couldn’t go to the White House to the Easter Egg roll, and he’d say because this activity is better for us.” The African American community claimed this event as their own, and it’s blossomed into a rich, multicultural celebration. And why Easter Monday, instead of Sunday? According to a Washington Post article from 1986, in the early days of the event, many of Washington’s African Americans worked as servants and were given Easter Monday off. – Around the Mall, 4/10/09 [...]

]]> http://blogs.smithsonianmag.com/aroundthemall/2009/04/then-and-now-easter-monday-at-the-national-zoo/comment-page-1/#comment-3173 Events: Easter Monday, Guitar Workshop, Earth Day and More! | Around The Mall Mon, 05 Apr 2010 13:55:14 +0000 http://blogs.smithsonianmag.com/aroundthemall/?p=4476#comment-3173 [...] Monday at the Zoo has been a long standing African American family tradition in Washington, DC. The day is rife with food and activities, which include an Easter egg hunt, [...] [...] Monday at the Zoo has been a long standing African American family tradition in Washington, DC. The day is rife with food and activities, which include an Easter egg hunt, [...]

]]> http://blogs.smithsonianmag.com/aroundthemall/2009/04/then-and-now-easter-monday-at-the-national-zoo/comment-page-1/#comment-689 Michelle Obama Leads White House Easter Egg Roll - Jack & Jill Politics Mon, 13 Apr 2009 15:19:00 +0000 http://blogs.smithsonianmag.com/aroundthemall/?p=4476#comment-689 [...] the Smithsonian blog: Two decades after the White House began its Easter Egg Roll tradition in 1878, the National Zoo [...] [...] the Smithsonian blog: Two decades after the White House began its Easter Egg Roll tradition in 1878, the National Zoo [...]

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