This Friday, June 19th and throughout the weekend people of color and their allies will be celebrating Juneteenth – a holiday that was first celebrated in Texas, where on that date in 1865, in the aftermath of the Civil War, slaves were declared free under the terms of the 1862 Emancipation Proclamation.

I always thought it was odd that blacks would celebrate that date – which seemed to me to be just one more example of the discrimination and bad treatment that slaves were subjected to – having the news of their emancipation withheld from them for three years. But now I understand that they celebrate Juneteenth because it was the formal end of slavery in the United States. Unless we count sharecropping, Jim Crow laws, sub-minimum wages and mass incarceration as forms of slavery.

Those of us who are not black are graciously being invited to join in and speak out for justice:

• Caffé Lena and MLK Saratoga are hosting an online Juneteenth event this Friday (the 19th) at 7 pm

• 1st Annual Juneteenth Festival NAACP Troy, NY Chapter This Friday at 6 PM · Troy Riverfront Park in Troy, New York ·

• Juneteenth! Online event hosted by The Hamilton Hill Arts Center’s Annual Juneteenth Celebration, Saturday the 20th, 1-8 pm

• An Update of MLK’s Poor People’s March on Washington: Saturday, June 20th, Rev. William Barber and the Poor People’s Campaign will mobilize the Mass Poor People’s Assembly and Moral March on Washington -- a digital justice gathering to lift up the stories, demands, and solutions of poor and low-wealth people. This is an online-only event. Learn more and get involved here at june2020.org

Barbara Thomas June 17, 2020