Reclaiming Juneteenth

Words by Brea Baker

One hundred and sixty years ago, Black people across the state of Texas got dressed in their finest clothing, carefully styled their hair, and made their way to Jubilee Day celebrations. Each event was unique and tailored to the respective communities represented but there were some commonalities. After often opening with prayer, the formerly enslaved people present took the time to recite the Emancipation Proclamation as a meditation on their newfound, hard-fought, and precarious freedom. Stories were shared, money was often pooled, and people made plans for a freedom true to its name. Jubilee Day was full of happiness and aspiration. In a few years time, those annual festivities would be renamed “Juneteenth” but the underlying spirit of the holiday remained the same. Honor the past, reflect on what freedom means to Black America, and mobilize towards it.

One hundred and sixty years later and we are still chasing liberation and celebrating Juneteenth in a country hell-bent on keeping us from it. No, that’s inaccurate. Juneteenth has never been about chasing anything but rather remembering and reclaiming who we once were. In an every-man-for-themselves society, Black people used early Juneteenth celebrations to draw closer to one another. They released their pain, healed through laughter, and nourished one another through feasts and BBQs. Most importantly, they used the day to dream of freer Black futures and took action to inch closer to those visions.

You’ve heard it said countless times: this year we are celebrating the nation’s 250th birthday. The White House website is counting down the days, minutes, and seconds to their “salute” to America. Since we’re counting, I say we reflect on the ninety years when white America celebrated Independence Day as the only people with access to any sense of autonomy on these shores. For 90 years, white men sang songs of the American quest for freedom as they lorded over enslaved Black people, snatched Native land, and decimated nations that existed long before their colonial project. And even when the chains of chattel slavery fell to the hard ground, Black people were not, have not been, and are not “free.” So what exactly are they celebrating?

I can’t speak for anyone else, but I will say that I only feel patriotic when thinking of the Black people who worked towards a future they had no reference for. Nothing except a feeling in their bones that more was possible. People born into chains who passed down stories, roadmaps, and traditions. They snatched the yearning from their hearts and turned it into movements. The Abolitionist movement. The Reconstruction movement. The Anti-Lynching Movement. The Labor movement. The Civil Rights Movement. The Black Power movement. The Black Lives Matter Movement. The Reparations movement. They all exist on the same plane, inching us closer to who we once were.

This coming Juneteenth weekend, we are teaming up with our fellow collective members at BLIS (Black Liberation Indigenous Sovereignty) for a direct counter-commemoration of America’s 250th called Reclamation Day. Reclamation Day is our experiment in how art and culture can shift public memory, deepen solidarity, and move people from reflection into participation. Through art installations, documentaries, live murals, panels, and musical performances, attendees will move through zones designed around three keywords: reclaim, repair, and reimagine. What might the next 160 years look like as a result of our joint efforts? What is our agenda? And above all, can we fight for our freedom while also sharing in joy and shaking some ass?

If you’re a fan of Joey Bada$$, Reclamation Day is for you. If you believe in reaching back to go forward and bringing our ancestors with us into the present, you should absolutely be there on June 20th. If you’re tired of business as usual and want to get serious about reparations and land back in a we-all-win-with-accountability kind of way, then Reclamation Day is definitely for you. Step into something bigger than yourself, a movement to repair what’s been broken and build the solidarity needed to shape what comes next.

Come as strangers. Leave as kin. Pull up to the reunion. We’ll see you June 20th in NYC. Don’t forget to RSVP!