Happy Juneteenth everyone. Celebrate emancipation of slaves and freedom for their descendants. Keep working though, because racism remains entrenched in the exploiting capitalist system.
Please tell us about any Juneteenth events you care to share in the comments. Orlando, FL, for one, is home to several Juneteenth events, including the city’s Inaugural Juneteenth Celebration. Attending that would have cost us expensive amusement park tickets, so there are no first-hand accounts here.
On June 18th, we did have the pleasure of visiting the seventh annual Juneteenth festivities at Hannibal Square in Winter Park, Fl. a free breakfast for all was followed by a proclamation from the mayor and a series of discussions, chats and presentations to inform and build community.
It is fun to celebrate emancipation, but much more work remains to reach equality. The celebration at the Hannibal Square Heritage Center was balanced with information on existing disparities, mental health impacts, and the creative and entrepreneurial solutions springing up throughout the black community.
Black communities have a long history in Central Florida. Nearby Winter Park, Eatonville, FL was perhaps the first black majority self governing community in the US. The Hannibal Square Heritage Center itself is well worth the visit to learn about the trials and victories of individuals throughout their local history. Two particularly hard fought victories have been asserting the right to vote and simply being able to walk in nearby communities. A mural on an outside wall of the center commemorates historic organized action to fight for these rights back in 1887.
We could not attend all of the day’s activities, but we were able to learn and share with too many people to mention here. Thanks to all of the staff and residents who kindly told this ignorant tourist about the region. Much of it is relevant nationally, as well. One interesting exchange occurred between Hank Van Putten and Dr. Issa Muhammad (Vibert White), in which they place disparities in pandemic treatment in the context of 400 years of trauma for black families in the United States, along with cautions to be wary of aggregated data for all populations when treatment of blacks often makes their situations much worse than aggregated averages. The points are driven home by introducing the topic in terms of with Juneteenth co-occuring with Father’s day, with too many black families torn apart from fathers on down from the days of slavery up through racist criminal justice of today. Though my recording equipment and skills are lacking, Here is a youtube video of that exchange.
For those who cannot view the video, blacks received worse treatment in the pandemic, as they have throughout US history, while the government often overlooks their plight in the midst of rosy aggregated data for all races. Please listen if you can.
Be sure to visit the Hannibal Square Heritage Center when you are visiting the Orlando area. It doesn’t take long to get there from resort and amusement park destinations. The mural above and the statue of Tuskagee Airman Richard Hall, Jr make the trip worthwhile. While you’re there, step inside and learn about people of the community.
For activists everywhere, our best chance to overcome the domination of modern technofeudal overlords is to work together. Justice, equality and labor standards are for all races, genders and nationalities. Celebrate the end of slavery, and be inclusive in fights for fair wages and decent living standards.