Celebrating Juneteenth AND Fighting the System All Year Long

When I first joined Embracing Equity and reviewed the employee handbook, I read through the paid holidays. I paused when I saw Juneteenth as a recognized, paid company holiday. Was this true? Was I reading the handbook correctly?  

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Juneteenth is a holiday celebrating the emancipation of those who had been enslaved in the United States. Originating in Galveston, Texas, it is now celebrated annually on June 19th throughout the United States, with increasing official recognition.

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Recently, many companies and some states are beginning to recognize this holiday. Some companies, although not closing for the day, are allowing their employees to take the day off to celebrate, reflect, and honor.

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Should we celebrate this day and how?

To answer this question for myself, I went to my elders. I called my 93-year old grandmother, Mama Grace, and her 103 year old cousin, Cousin Robbie, to ask these strong women about the day and the celebration itself. Did we still need it? Should it be celebratory or somber? Should it be a national holiday? What were their thoughts about it?

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My grandmother answered almost without hesitation: Absolutely! She recalled her parents working on the Danner Plantation in Arkansas. My great-grandparents were not enslaved, yet contemporary behavior,  historical legacy of de jure segregation, and Jim Crow laws created de facto segregation for them. This left few choices for how to support a family. She remembered that they talked about their time on the plantation as painful, yet the end of a system that crushed the very bodies and souls of our ancestors NEEDS and DESERVES to be celebrated. It is in our celebration where we remember what our ancestors went through for us. Mama Grace shared that she had little hopes of Juneteenth becoming a national holiday anytime soon.

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My grandmother’s cousin had thoughts about this day as well. Cousin Robbie, born in 1918, recalls that her grandmother was enslaved and that she did not talk about being enslaved. Being enslaved had left her grandmother numb. Cousin Robbie’s grandmother had been torn from her family and avoided the conversation, so that they did not have to deal with the remnants or thoughts of slavery. Cousin Robbie believes that we MUST celebrate Juneteenth to keep Black issues in the forefront. We MUST joyfully celebrate the resilience of our people, lest we forget.

Embracing Equity is living into its true mission. As a full time team member, I truly felt seen, welcomed, and recognized as a Black woman.

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So with the support of Embracing Equity and with the guidance of my elders, I celebrate Juneteenth with my family here in St. Louis.

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Today, we will have a celebration with traditional food and red drinks. On Saturday, we will participate in “Juneteenth on Their Shoulders”, to celebrate those who came before us.

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We will march, dressed in African attire, on the grounds of the Old Courthouse, where Black people were sold at slave auctions and where the infamous Dred Scott Case was tried. Additionally, we will visit the Missouri History Museum with my granddaughter to learn more about Juneteenth.

Fighting the System

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Celebrating Juneteenth is important. This week, President Biden signed the bill to make Juneteenth a federal holiday. Nearly every state already recognizes Juneteenth as a holiday, but it will now become the first federal holiday created since Martin Luther King Jr. Day was established in 1983.

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We count this as a win, this was a huge step, even though we know that there is often a neoliberal response of just counting this as a day off and not thinking deeper to move to systemic change. We see this in the current fight against critical race theory and other teachings of racism in schools. We must push for systemic change. It is critical to fight the system that allowed slavery to exist and that hinders Black folx from thriving even today.

Additionally, I invite you to join me in celebrating Juneteenth. here are some suggestions:

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FIND AN EVENT IN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD

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Juneteenth activities are becoming more recognized within communities and by organizations. Look for celebrations and events that recognize and teach what the holiday is all about.

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HOST YOUR OWN BACKYARD PARTY

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Gather your family and friends and celebrate with them! The celebration can yield itself to an education of Juneteenth and perhaps some reflection while you are enjoying the festivities.

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LEARN AND TALK ABOUT JUNETEENTH VS. THE FOURTH OF JULY

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Both of these days and celebrations are about freedom and liberation. This would be a good time to learn that historically, the two days mean different things to Black people. Learning about the two different days gives a perspective and places a critical lens on race and racism in America. Frederick Douglass gave a Fourth of July speech on July 5, 1852, that described what the Fourth of July meant to enslaved people

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COOK SOME TRADITIONAL FOODS

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Cook some traditional foods for Juneteenth. There'll be dishes that represent prosperity (collard greens, black-eyed peas), and red foods and drinks (such as hibiscus-tinged punch) that represent the shed blood of enslaved Black people and that have been served at special occasions throughout the African diaspora.

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PATRONIZE BLACK-OWNED BUSINESSES

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Patronizing black businesses means to move beyond only going once a year during Black History Month. To patronize means to be a patron, to be a regular or frequent customer of a business. This allows support of the advancement of Black people within the American economy.

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LISTEN TO BLACK ARTISTS

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June is Black Music Month and music has always made things more festive! Spotify has playlists like Black Lives Matter, Black Girl Magic and The Black Power Mixtape that highlights past and present Black artists.

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READ BOOKS WRITTEN BY BLACK AUTHORS AND POETS

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Black authors can give both historical perspectives and creative perspectives. There are books for each age range! Books by Maya Angelou, Toni Morrison and Ralph Ellison are just a few iconic Black authors and poets. Picture books for young children are readily available. Black-owned bookstores, such as EyeSeeMe, located in St. Louis, carry these books and many more!

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WATCH BLACK TV SHOWS AND MOVIES

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There are shows like Black-ish that have episodes dedicated to Juneteenth. In addition, some organizations are calling for us to “widen the screen” and view shows and movies that highlight Black culture, experiences, and stories from a lens of joy!

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ADDITIONAL RESOURCES:

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https://www.purewow.com/family/how-to-celebrate-juneteenth

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Get Involved Year-round!

Even after the holiday passes, we must continue to push for systemic change! Here are some groups that you can join in the fight for racial justice all year long:

• #BlackLivesMatter was founded in 2013 in response to the acquittal of Trayvon Martin’s murderer. Black Lives Matter Foundation, Inc is a global organization in the US, UK, and Canada, whose mission is to eradicate white supremacy and build local power to intervene in violence inflicted on Black communities by the state and vigilantes.
• Black Visions Collective (BLVC) is community-led and believes in a future where all Black people have autonomy and safety is community-led. As an organization dedicated to Black liberation and to collective liberation, BLVC builds the resources needed to integrate healing justice into all that they do.
• The Black Youth Project (BYP) examines the attitudes, resources, and culture of Black millennials. It explores how culture influences the decisions young people make in terms of health, sex, and politics. BYP conducts research, shares knowledge, and takes action. Its headquarters are in the Chicago area, but they have chapters in cities across the nation where they provide social activism training to young people. BYP offers several ways people can help its members make a difference, including pitching and writing articles related to racial injustice, LGBTQIA+ issues, and feminism or by making a donation.
• Campaign Zero: is an online platform & organization that utilizes research-based policy solutions to end police brutality in America.
• Communities United Against Police Brutality: is a Twin-Cities based organization that was created to deal with police brutality on an ongoing basis. It operates a crisis hotline where people can report abuse, offers legal, medical, and psychological resource referrals, and engages in political action against police brutality.
• Fair Fight: is an organization founded by Stacey Abrams that aims to end voter suppression and equalize voting rights and access for fairer elections.
• The Bail Project: is a non-profit organization designed to combat mass incarceration by disrupting the money bail system.
• The Okra Project: is an American grassroots mutual aid collective that provides support to Black trans, non-binary, and gender-nonconforming people. It is a collective that seeks to address the global crisis faced by Black Trans people by bringing home cooked, healthy, and culturally specific meals and resources to Black Trans People. The organization is based in New York City and was founded by Ianne Fields Stewart.

Round your family up for a day of learning and celebration on June 19th to recognize Black liberation & stay in the fight for equity all year long!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

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Dr. Nicole Evans (she/her) is Embracing Equity's Director of Partnerships & Leadership Coaching. She partners with educational leaders in the yearlong Leadership Residency program, which supports deep individual, interpersonal, and institutional change.