Juneteenth | Celebrating Legal Freedom and Reparations
I clearly remember my days in grade school whenever slavery came up. It was very emotional to see old photos of people who look like family members in chains and other forms of bondage. The main information from the lessons amounted to brief summaries of the human rights abuse, followed by Abraham Lincoln swooping in to save the day. While I appreciate the public school system, it left out a lot. One such historical event is Juneteenth. What's the significance of Juneteenth and why should it be nationally observed?
Juneteenth commemorates the day where slaves in Texas were finally told about the Emancipation Proclamation, two years after the fact! Lincoln announced the executive order in September 1862. It didn't go into effect until January 1863. Slaves in the former Confederacy were not officially freed until June 19, 1865! Even when they were legally freed, the government advised former slaves to continue to live and work for their former slave masters. As you can imagine, that smooth transition didn't work out.
Some slave masters furiously murdered and lynched their slaves in protest. There are some accounts of slaves forced to live in bondage despite their new personhood! I understand that legally creating a new protected class of citizens is not simple. Hindsight tends to be the clearest, right? But it feels like Abrahman Lincoln was more concerned with recruiting black people for the military to "earn" their citizenship instead of ensuring the opportunity for life, liberty, and prosperity for the black community! How could anyone sensible expect the abuser to suddenly empathize with their victim?! Wealth and capital that was generated from slave labor were never redistributed back to the slaves. Nor did the federal government compensate former slaves for its involvement in slavery. Even as legal persons, black people were segregated, suffering through the 'separate but not even close to being equal' legal era known as Jim Crow.
Just a quick recap: after providing free labor that stimulated the American economy and generated personal wealth for plantation and business owners, the government abolished slavery. Black people had no capital of their own. How could black people sustain themselves with nowhere to stay but the place where they suffered physical and psychological trauma?! This is why the black community as a whole lacks wealth and assets. When people say that black people are economically disadvantaged compared to their white counterpart, this is the reason why. The Reconstruction Era was the first step in a long process of obtaining civil equality while simultaneously maintaining economic oppression.
Juneteenth is a celebration to remember our legal freedom and the countless struggles that it took to get it. It's a reminder of the slaves who couldn't live to feel their own humanity respected in their country. It's a day to acknowledge that the fight for social equality and economic prosperity is not over.
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Juneteenth commemorates the day where slaves in Texas were finally told about the Emancipation Proclamation, two years after the fact! Lincoln announced the executive order in September 1862. It didn't go into effect until January 1863. Slaves in the former Confederacy were not officially freed until June 19, 1865! Even when they were legally freed, the government advised former slaves to continue to live and work for their former slave masters. As you can imagine, that smooth transition didn't work out.
Some slave masters furiously murdered and lynched their slaves in protest. There are some accounts of slaves forced to live in bondage despite their new personhood! I understand that legally creating a new protected class of citizens is not simple. Hindsight tends to be the clearest, right? But it feels like Abrahman Lincoln was more concerned with recruiting black people for the military to "earn" their citizenship instead of ensuring the opportunity for life, liberty, and prosperity for the black community! How could anyone sensible expect the abuser to suddenly empathize with their victim?! Wealth and capital that was generated from slave labor were never redistributed back to the slaves. Nor did the federal government compensate former slaves for its involvement in slavery. Even as legal persons, black people were segregated, suffering through the 'separate but not even close to being equal' legal era known as Jim Crow.
Just a quick recap: after providing free labor that stimulated the American economy and generated personal wealth for plantation and business owners, the government abolished slavery. Black people had no capital of their own. How could black people sustain themselves with nowhere to stay but the place where they suffered physical and psychological trauma?! This is why the black community as a whole lacks wealth and assets. When people say that black people are economically disadvantaged compared to their white counterpart, this is the reason why. The Reconstruction Era was the first step in a long process of obtaining civil equality while simultaneously maintaining economic oppression.
Juneteenth is a celebration to remember our legal freedom and the countless struggles that it took to get it. It's a reminder of the slaves who couldn't live to feel their own humanity respected in their country. It's a day to acknowledge that the fight for social equality and economic prosperity is not over.
Like, Comment, Share.
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