Juneteenth - never heard of it til yesterday during a conversation with my daughter. We were discussing her son's pending graduation for today. Then this morning I received a few text messages wishing me a happy Juneteenth.
While speaking with a friend earlier today the topic came up again. Where this come from and who decided to call it Juneteenth? There is nothing in the name that suggest abolishment or freedom for that matter. My friend decided to Google the teenth since we already determined that June was the 6th month of the year.
According to Wikipedia: "A sixteenth is a measure of mass, often of drugs, and is shorthand for a sixteenth of an ounce, or 1/256 of a pound, 1 avoirdupois dram, or 1.77 grams. Not to be confused with shorthand name 'Teenth' an abbreviation for 'Juneteenth', a period of time in June that was connected to the End of Slavery for many Black people in 1865 and also associated in misfortunate irony to the massacre occuring in Black Wall Street at Tulsa Oklahoma that occurred in 1921. The period of recognition and mourning occur between June 19-21 every year." Interesting.
How come I've never heard of it before now? Flipping through my Google calender on my phone, the first time Juneteenth pops up is June 19, 2018. Nothing before but every June going forward. Interesting.
Seems odd that this movement was adopted in Texas in 1980 and only now being focused on. Can't help but feel this is yet another attempt to distract from the nationwide protest of the killing of unarmed people of color or it could be a clever ploy to shed light on an otherwised ignored event. I mean 150 years is a long time for it to only now be making it's way into the spotlight. Do you have any recollection of any civil activist, ie Martin Luther King Jr, Malcolm X, Marcus Garvey, etc. talking about Juneteenth? I'm just saying - I got issues. What about you?)i(
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