The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Activism take spotlight at Juneteenth events
Commemoration focuses on advocacy amid unrest.
For metro Atlantans observing Juneteenth, this year’s holiday commemorating the freedom of the country’s last enslaved African Americans took on added urgency.
It had to.
Friday’s events were more activism and advocacy than celebration, as protests against racial injustice and police
brutality continue across the country. Thousands marched, protested and prayed Friday, the 155th anniversary of the 1865 date when a Union major general arrived in Galveston, Texas, to announce that enslaved people were free. It had already been more than two years since the Emancipation Procla
mation was issued.
On the eve of the holiday Thursday night, crowds watched the removal of a Confederate monument in downtown Decatur. On the day of, major employers, including the Atlanta Hawks and Atlanta Public Schools, told workers to take the day off with pay.
A state lawmaker invoked Juneteenth when asking colleagues to consider the implications of cutting funding to areas such as education and health care. Demonstrations scattered throughout the region referenced the historic date.
“Every generation, freedom has to be fought and earned and won. We still are dealing with masses of people in economic shackles. We are still dealing with economic disparity,” said the Rev. Darryl Winston, pastor of Greater Works Assembly in Atlanta.
He was among local faith and civic leaders who held a Juneteenth news conference at the Wendy’s restaurant where, one week ago, Rayshard Brooks was fatally shot by Atlanta police. The group called for political leaders to address the concerns of young people, from police brutality to poverty.
In Marietta, hundreds attended a Juneteenth event organized by the Cobb County branch of the NAACP. They marched down Roswell Street, led by a giant yellow “Juneteenth Celebration” banner. The group chanted: “What do we want? Justice. When do we want it? Now.”
The event reflected both the historical significance of Juneteenth and today’s pressing issues. Protesters held candles during a moment of silence to honor enslaved ancestors and those who, in recent times, have lost their lives unjustly.
Cobb Commission Chairman Mike Boyce expressed support for making Juneteenth a national holiday, momentum for which has been building across the country. And Cobb Public Safety Director Randy Crider said he’s committed to “bridging that gap between law enforcement and the community.”
James Ford of Acworth, a member of Zion Baptist Church in Marietta, said the last three weeks have been trying. But he said he couldn’t pass up coming to the Marietta Square with his friend, Willie Robinson, for a unifying event. Ford said it’s been difficult to explain how he has been feeling about the events of the last few weeks to his co-workers, but he makes sure he regularly checks on his friends.
“We are black men, and we are taking the time to check on the young black men around us,” he said.
At one of the day’s biggest events in Atlanta, thousands gathered inside Centennial Olympic Park to worship and march. In its announcement, organizers from the faith-based OneRace Movement, pledged to remember “the historic emancipation, while calling for liberty and justice for all in our present times.”
Josh Clemons, the organization’s co-executive director, said the group held the event because of everything that’s happened over the past month — from COVID-19 disproportionately affecting black people to the killings of Ahmad Arbery, Breonna Taylor, George Floyd and Brooks.
“They are all the reasons that we felt like the church needed to speak on this most crucial issue, that black lives matter to Jesus and they should matter to us and our legislators,” Clemons said.
Former police officer Erica Bolden, 30, attended and said she wants to see changes in policing.
“I’m tired of seeing the systematic racism that we have. I’m a former police officer, but I’m also black ... . I’m here to make a statement on both ends that something needs to change,” said Bolden, who left law enforcement in 2018.
Fellowship Bible Church pastor Crawford Loritts, who spoke at the event, noted that one difference between protests in the 1960s and now is the diversity of the crowds.
“Although I’m not declaring victory, I’m saying this is a start. The cross, the cause, and the church are coming together,” he said.
But Loritts said he worries the church will miss the opportunity to continue to lead during a period of social unrest.
“As we decry the sins of racism and injustice, let’s be careful that as we denounce we don’t decry more than we’re willing to deliver,” he said. “The truth of this day will take place 5, 10, 15 years from now. Will you speak up for justice then? Will you speak up in the privacy of your homes then? Will you model it in your churches then?”