Juneteenth pride, power, prayer
Marking of slaves’ emancipation in Texas takes on political urgency, expands diversity
The trappings of any summertime parade were there: the marching bands, the swivelhipped cheerleaders dancing to a beat, the politicians waving from bunting-clad convertibles.
Yet, this year’s Houston Juneteenth festivities Saturday — in a city at the beginning of the now national celebration to mark the emancipation of slaves — carried a distinct air of urgency.
The crowds were bigger, the skin tones more varied, and the message from those lining the streets of the Acres Home neighborhood was pointed squarely at elected officials both in Texas and in Washington, D.C. They are paying attention.
“This is one Juneteenth that is about making people aware,” said Anita Collins, a Houston nurse who was attending the celebration for the first time in more than 30 years.
“It’s not just a black thing …”
said Michael Martin, her brother, who has been attending for years, carrying on a legacy that began with their parents.
“It’s an American thing,” Collins said, finishing his sentence.
Juneteenth forever is embedded in the history of this corner of Texas. On June 18, 1865, Union forces arrived in Galveston, and the following day Gen. Gordon Granger stood on the balcony of Ashton Villa and read General Order No. 3, a proclamation freeing Texas slaves nearly three years after President Abraham Lincoln issued his Emancipation Proclamation. A spontaneous celebration filled the streets in the port city and spread to Houston as more than 1,000 slaves were suddenly freed. Texas was the first to establish Juneteenth as a state holiday in 1980.
Also Saturday, a separate celebration was held in Houston’s Emancipation Park. It is a park central to the Juneteenth narrative because in 1872 it became the first piece of land to be purchased by African-Americans in Texas. At that time, the Rev. Jack Yates led a group of residents, including former slaves from the Third and Fourth wards, who raised $1,000 to buy the 10-acre property.
Yates’ great-granddaughter Jacqueline W. Bostic spoke from the park’s main stage, reminding those gathered of the important lessons the day carried.
“It’s a great day for freedom,” Bostic said. “It’s important that we remember our history and the history of this city, as well as the state of Texas.”
Last year, Emancipation Park marked a $34 million renovation, which revived the facilities after many years of disrepair.
“You can always dream if you have faith,” said Ray Peavy, who once lived in the neighborhood and returned for the celebration Saturday.
“Anything is possible. I’m enjoying the scenery, thinking about what my ancestors have been through.”
Back along the parade route, Roxanne Werner, who is white and lives in the nearby Oak Forest neighborhood, came with her husband Gabriel Konigsberg, who is Hispanic, and their 4year-old son, Oliver.
“We think its for all of us,” she said. “None of us is free until we’re all free.”
Verda Hawkins, 69, could not agree more. She welcomed the newcomers to not only what traditionally was a black celebration, but also into her neighborhood as a whole. “Acres Homes, every fourth or fifth house is no longer black,” she said.
Edna Griggs, whose grandparents settled in the Acres Homes neighborhood in 1929, expects only good as the old racial dividing lines blur in the city. “It’s long overdue,” she said.
While it was a day for Popsicles and pompons, politics were not far from the surface.
“Lots of things happened because of Juneteenth — votes, jobs, education,” said Collins, who said she senses a renewed activism in her community. “We have 18 women, black women, and one black man running for office I think more of us are going to get out to vote this year.”
Griggs said her great-grandmother had to pay a poll tax to vote in Houston. She said she worries now that rights again are being eroded
Kyla Smith is part of the new generation of voters. The Texas Southern University student is pursuing a master’s degree in history and attended the Emancipation Park festivities to cement an understanding of what came before.
“It’s such a big part of my history and who I am,” Smith said, “As a future historian, I realize that we need to take ownership of our heritage.”
Nearby, Amy Gentry watched as her two children played in the park. When she was little, Juneteenth was an important family event with crawfish boils and barbecues. She wants the tradition to live on.
“The further removed we are from slavery and the Jim Crow era, the easier it is to forget the adversity that our ancestors dealt with,” she said. “They’ll only remember if we show them.”