The Facts About Juneteenth

Thu, 01 Jun 2023 05:02:43 GMT

Slave owners continued slavery beyond emancipation to get one more planting season.

On a hot summer day on June 19, 1865, slaves in Galveston, Texas, learned the Civil War had ended and that they were free. It was two years after the Emancipation Proclamation when Major-General Gordon Granger arrived at Galveston Island, Texas, along with 2,000 Union Army troops and officially freed the enslaved with General Orders No. 3 . “The people of Texas are informed that, in accordance with a proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free.” Emancipation Day, otherwise known as Juneteenth, commemorates the date of Texas abolition.

Here are ten other interesting facts you should know about Juneteenth:

1. Because Texas was isolated geographically and not a battleground in the Civil War, slave owners continued slavery beyond emancipation to get one more planting season.

2. Some slaveholders migrated to Texas during the war to escape the fighting, bringing enslaved people with them and vastly increasing the enslaved population by the tens of thousands. Approximately 250,000 enslaved Texans had no idea that their freedom had actually been secured two years before.

3. Part of General Orders No. 3 encouraged newly freed people to stay on plantations and work for wages.

4. The time period after Juneteenth is known as the “scatter,” as the formerly enslaved went in search of lost loved ones or to build a new life in other parts of the country.

5. Texans began celebrating Juneteenth in 1866 by holding parades, cookouts, prayer gatherings, musical performances, and other cultural events.

6. When families left Texas to settle in other parts of the country, they carried their Juneteenth traditions with them.

7. Juneteenth has been known by other names such as Freedom Day, Jubilee Day, Emancipation Day, and even Cel-Liberation Day.

8. In 1872, four formerly enslaved men—Richard Allen, Richard Brock, Jack Yates, and Elias Dibble—raised $800 to purchase a parcel of land for Juneteenth celebrations. They named it Emancipation Park. It is still the site of celebrations in Houston, Texas, to this day.

9. Juneteenth celebrations nearly died out because of Jim Crow laws. Juneteenth was later revived during the civil rights movement.

10. Juneteenth officially became a Texas state holiday on January 1, 1980, making it the first state to grant this type of emancipation celebration. Today, at least 47 other states and D.C. have also formally recognized the day. On Tuesday, the Senate unanimously voted to pass a resolution establishing June 19 as Juneteenth National Independence Day. The measure has also passed the House of Representatives and awaits President Biden’s signature, which would make it an official federal holiday.

The Complex Relationship between Juneteenth and the Fourth of July

Wed, 31 May 2023 18:32:15 GMT

Wait...two back-to-back paid federal Independence Day holidays?

Officially, we call one “Independence Day” and the other “Juneteenth National Independence Day.” America has celebrated the former for 246 years, enjoying ‘paid federal holiday’ status for 81 years; the latter, celebrated by some for as much as 157 years, yet only gaining the same ‘paid’ status last year. With the two holidays hitting America’s conscience within three weeks of each other, some folks need a refresher on “why?”

In a nutshell, the two holidays – like the two victorious wars they celebrate – view “freedom” vastly differently: July 4th is about American freedom from British rule; Juneteenth is about individual freedom from American rule.

On July 2nd (not the fourth), 1776, the Declaration of Independence declared freedom for American colonists – no longer as subjects and subordinates to the Monarch of Britain, King George III, thereby creating America, thirteen united, free, and independent States empowered to govern themselves.

The Revolutionary War that followed also brought freedom to tens of thousands of Africans held in America as slaves, not because of the Declaration, but despite it: King George III issued emancipation proclamations to Africans in America by offering freedom to those siding with Britain. In response, American “patriots” viewed the thousands of Black people accepting King George’s offer as “insurrectionists.” Seven years later in 1783 when the warring nations signed the Treaty of Paris to officially end the War, America demanded Britain return those emancipated Africans. Sadly, after years of litigation thousands were returned and re-enslaved. And despite ratification of the U.S. Constitution five years later in 1788, African enslavement remained constitutional in America for the next 75 years.

Throughout the Civil War, African emancipation happened as distinct areas of the Confederate

South fell to the Union Army. The war ended on May 9, 1865, but not until Union Army troops entered Texas on June 19, 1865, forcing it to abide President Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation of two years earlier, did the remaining Africans in the Confederate South enjoy freedom from slavery. Upon ratification of the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution 6 months later, December 6, 1865, America’s last African slaves, still owned in the “non-aligned” strategic Border States of Delaware and Kentucky, were finally set free, as Americans.

Debating whether Juneteenth is the right day to celebrate the final removal of lawful slavery I leave to others, but surely it is A Day deserving of America’s recognition. So yes, two paid Independence Day holidays exist, and both for good reasons. And while our shared values are best expressed with reverence to both holidays, the Constitution forced upon the defeated South, and not the one ratified by the Founding Fathers, better expresses what my African ancestors and I pray will continue as America’s truest values.

John W. Davis II, JD

Free Agent | Technologist | Ethics, Law, & Policy Expert | Social Intrapreneur.

Rooted in the Soil of the Hampton National Historical Site

Wed, 31 May 2023 18:03:30 GMT

The enduring legacy of Towson's forgotten Black settlement

“Would not recommend…Tour was all about how hard it was to be a slave” went viral after one visitor to a former slave plantation in the South left an online review. It’s a tough but known reality. Many folks know all too well how one group’s discomfort often prevents important stories from being told. In response, on we go looking for a G-rated way to tell a horror story full of rape, murder, and unspeakable violence.

However there may just be the perfect storytelling juxtaposition with a reality-based present day backdrop. It’s a story about Towson, a prosperous unincorporated community just north of Baltimore city that Niche.com rates as “one of the best communities to live in Maryland.” Little known to most and hiding (purposefully) in plain sight at the center of the thriving downtown area lies the forgotten and neglected Black settlement called Historic East Towson - a place that has suffered mightily from the legacy of slavery, the Doctrine of Exclusion (the historic precursor to redlining) and a County government’s blind loyalty to real estate developers at the expense of its Black residents.

But that old story’s been told over and again.

The hook this time? In a word, consanguinity. Historical records prove that the few remaining residents of this settlement are direct living descendants of slaves owned by the family of Maryland’s 15th Governor, Charles Carnan Ridgely on the Hampton plantation, just five miles away. Back then, it was a sprawling 25,000 acre slave plantation. Today, it’s a 62 acre designated National Historic Landmark in Towson, Maryland owned by the US National Park Service. Once it was widely known as the largest, most vicious, yet most prosperous slave plantation in the State. Today, hardly a contiguous neighbor knows anything about it and visitors are hard pressed to find a single placard about its dark past.

The plantation was owned and operated by the Ridgely family for seven generations, from 1745 to 1948, and played a significant role in the economic and social development of Towson. While the Ridgely family is known for their contributions to the development of the region, the plantation's history and Historic East Towson also reflects the difficult legacy of slavery in the United States and in the Baltimore area.

The intentional separation of races was most visible in housing patterns and traces its roots to the “1638 Maryland Edict/Doctrine of Exclusion” which prohibited the sale of wide swaths of property - including prime tracts in Towson including all of the Hampton estate, Goucher College and other locations - to any Black people. This practice, enshrined in public policy, created lasting negative economic and social impacts. “Redlining”, the 20th-century extension of the Doctrine, where banks, finance, and insurance companies intentionally refused to issue Blacks mortgages, while steering them into segregated industrial and less desirable neighborhoods.

Thus the story of Historic East Towson, the dumping ground for things some white folks didn’t want in their own neighborhoods, and easy pickings for new things they did want: One one hand, a massive BGE power substation relocated into the heart of the neighborhood in 1965, erasing eight homes and situated “within spitting distance” from one resident’s bedroom window. On the other hand, when folks wanted the Towson bypass in the 1980s, East Towson homes were destroyed. And when Stanley Black and Decker wanted a parking lot, more Black homes were razed. Indeed, the District Courthouse, the Towson library and four affordable housing projects are also encroached on land that was originally part of the East Towson community.

This year, as we celebrate the 2023 Juneteenth National Independence Day, Ms. Nancy Goldring (left), the hamlet’s “unofficial mayor” and living descendant of Nancy Davis (the slave pictured in the famous portrait with Eliza Ridgley III, the child of the 15th Governor), will host a solemn prayer service on the grounds of the Hampton site on Saturday, June 17th, 2023. It is her hope that the event will bring needed attention to the latest years long encroachment battle, opposing the Red Maple Place “affordable housing” project, despite her limited resources. Now before the Maryland Court of Special Appeals, the community awaits the ruling.

While the Hampton site is known for its beauty and rich history, it's time to recognize it within the proper historical context to Historic East Towson, the impact of property exclusion, and the difficult legacy endured by the living descendants still residing proximate to their ancestral burial grounds on the former plantation. This recognition can help promote healing and reconciliation and contribute to efforts addressing historic wrongs to create a more just and equitable society.

And for those still averse to the discomfort of this slave story, there’s something for you too! Please stop by the celebration beginning after the prayer service. That way, it ain’t so heavy and we can simply be neighbors enjoying live music performed by the Blackbirds, and eating plenty of barbeque, watermelon and red soda!

Still not moved? Here’s one final reason to hang out: I’m told Nancy may have an historic announcement! Fingers crossed, and hope to see you there!

John W. Davis, II, 5/2/23

Jazz Vocalist Michele Bowman featured at our Juneteenth Music Celebration

omari@dips.technology (Omari Bakari) — Wed, 15 Jun 2022 18:32:19 GMT

Michelle Bowman is our Juneteenth Music Celebration Songstress!

This years Juneteenth Music Festival will feature local talent Michelle Bowman.

Michele’s creativity and adventurous spirit has afforded her the opportunity to share the stage with the likes of Jeffrey Osborne, Marvin Hamlisch, Maysa, Take6, Yolanda Adams, David Bach, Rob Zinn and others. In 2016, Michele headlined The African American Cultural Festival (Baltimore) and the Concert Garden Party (Baltimore).

Blues Legend Mark Muleman Massey is Set to Get the Joint Jumpin' for Juneteenth Music Celebration

omari@dips.technology (Omari Bakari) — Wed, 15 Jun 2022 18:32:17 GMT

Mark "Muleman" Massey Brings the Blues to Juneteenth Music Celebration

“Muleman” has played with B.B. King at his homecoming in Indianola, the Howling Wolf festival in West Point, Juke Joint Fest Clarksdale, The Chicago Blues Fest, Market street fest in Columbus, and to a sold out concert in Paris.

His name is on a marker on the world famous Mississippi Blues Trail and he is known as the “Godfather of the Parchman Prison Blues Sound.”

Jazz Trumpeter Brandon Woody Blows for Juneteenth Music Celebration

omari@dips.technology (Omari Bakari) — Wed, 15 Jun 2022 18:32:14 GMT

Local Jazzman will be featured for Juneteenth Music Celebration

Woody is a Baltimore born and raised creator. He attended the Eubie Blake Center, the Baltimore School for the Arts, the Brubeck Institute, and the. Manhattan School of Music. Woody has performed and recorded internationally with artists such as Solange, and Emma Vie.

Our First Collaboration with Towson University's CoLab

Wed, 15 Jun 2022 18:31:55 GMT

East Towson's Critical Confabulation

Performance artist, Sheila Gaskins kicked us off with a TED Talk from an enslaved ancestor addressing Sheila's fascination with the everyday lives of enslaved people. She was much more comedic in her approach than I think anyone was expecting.

Alish Hopper's poem, "When is an Apple Not an Apple" was one I could have read a dozen times.

Jamal Moore took us on a journey with the use of sound and music. While he never said a word during his performance, the rhythm and the pulse of the drum, the kalimba, his use of shells, bells and the saxophone all brought his untold story to life.

Photographer/filmmaker Noor Khan's interpretation of the Carte de Visite of Nancy Davis and Eliza Ridgely overplayed with a map of the Ridgley property as it appears today still has my attention.

The show closed with a short documentary film on East Towson.

The opportunity to work with Towson University professors and students on this project was a collaboration I never saw coming, but I sure am glad it did.

Mapping the Road to Freedom Starts on Juneteenth

omari@dips.technology (Omari Bakari) — Mon, 13 Jun 2022 15:01:33 GMT

This Year's Juneteenth Celebration Promotes the Mapping the Road to Freedom Campaign

The 2022 Juneteenth Music Festival in Historic East Towson will highlight the proposed the Road to Freedom cycling and pedestrian trail as a continued effort to raise awareness and to encourage support.

Nancy Goldring, President of the Northeast Towson Improvement Association, is proud to announce the start of the latest chapter in the renaissance of Historic East Towson, the Road To Freedom ! This is a vision of partnership with nature and area residents in the creation of a trail revealing a history hidden in plain sight. This visionary endeavor will connect the historic places and spaces of East Towson all the way back to the Hampton National Historic Site where the community’s story of freedom, perserverence and resilience began.

The trail brochure outlines the concept and its elements of health, connectivity, environmental, educational and economic benefits. This new pedestrian and cycling route will create an environmentally healthy and peaceful recreational space that improves the lived experience of people of all backgrounds while bridging communities.

For the last three years, Nancy Goldring and the residents of Historic East Towson have worked tirelessly to protect the legacy of one of central Maryland’s oldest African American communities. Last year, the neighborhood was the site of the acclaimed Inaugural Historic East Towson Juneteenth Music Festival. The Road To Freedom trail is the next chapter in the renaissance of this storied community.

Join us for our Juneteenth Music Festival and Road to Freedom Trail campaign. Meet us on Sunday, June 19th from 1pm to 6pm at the Pride of Towson Lodge, 411 East Pennsylvania Ave, Towson, MD 21286 and spend Father’s Day celebrating with Historic East Towson and enjoy food, fun and FANtastic music!

To learn more, visit: www.historiceasttowson.org/juneteenth

www.historiceasttowson.org/freedom-trail

Ten Interesting Facts About Juneteenth

omari@dips.technology (Omari Bakari) — Mon, 13 Jun 2022 15:00:46 GMT

Here are ten other interesting facts you should know about Juneteenth