Juneteenth/Watch Night revisited 2022 in memory of Leonia Robinson.
Where is our Juneteenth?
Where is our Watch Night?
Are we still truly free?
Free from fear.
Free from retaliation.
Free to fulfill life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
Free to have our aspirations realized and enjoyed.
Think of the complexities of any system.
Do you really think that Emancipation Proclamation was able to reach all those enslaved or that there were other complex systems at work?
Do you really think that on June 15 all Texan slaves knew they were free and that there were not deep pockets of holdouts or resistance?
The difference today ...
We know what Juneteenth means because we have seen the cost to our physical well-being, economic well-being and cost to our ancestors.
What does Juneteenth/Watch Night revisited mean today?
The ability to cross a bridge.
The ability to congregate and to demonstrate.
The ability to serve our country in all capacities and be treated like any other returning veteran.
The ability to vote unencumbered.
The ability to congregate.
The ability to hold any job.
The ability to have fair sentencing laws and an equitable justice system.
The ability to have discourse with any child, man or woman without threat to life or limb.
The ability to live anywhere.
The ability to travel anywhere.
The ability to move without surveillance.
The ability to get a loan, start a business.
The ability to have clean water, clean air and a modern waste disposal system.
The ability to have access to gifts of nature.
The ability to have good healthcare.
The ability not to fear the police.
The ability to get a good education from fair teachers.
The ability to know our history and our contributions to this nation and, if we want, the ability to have a white picket fence and a chicken in every pot.
So where is my Juneteenth?
-
A letter to the editor expresses a reader's opinion and, as such, is not reflective of the editorial opinions of this newspaper.
To submit a letter to the editor for publishing, send an email to newsroom@capegazette.com. Letters must be signed and include a telephone number and address for verification. Please keep letters to 500 words or fewer. We reserve the right to edit for content and length. Letters should be responsive to issues addressed in the Cape Gazette rather than content from other publications or media. Only one letter per author will be published every 30 days. Letters restating information and opinions already offered by the same author will not be used. Letters must focus on issues of general, local concern, not personalities or specific businesses.
