Acknowledgment of the past to make way for a brighter future

The sound of children’s laughter and screams of delight emanating from multicolored bounce houses. The smell of jerk chicken tantalizing your taste buds. Jubilant music playing throughout the day as you walk through the streets of downtown.

The joy of Juneteenth Neighbors Day in Des Moines is palpable and infectious.

But the origin of holiday nods to the emergence from darker days in America. “We know there are some things we have to reconcile,” says Dwana Bradley, general chairperson of Iowa Juneteenth. She says the holiday, “tells the story that people don’t always hear but it is something that we need to hear in order to move forward.”

Juneteenth offers a unique opportunity for Iowans to learn about the history of our country, history that in some ways is no longer allowed to be taught in our state. History about the enslavement and brutal violence against millions of Americans is naturally going to be divisive, and therefore, no longer permissible in Iowa public institutions. The day of Juneteenth itself comes from news finally reaching the last enslaved people in Galveston, Texas on Jun. 19, 1865 — a year and a half after the Emancipation Proclamation was made. Juneteenth represents the end of slavery. But it also allows us to celebrate significant contributions that have been made. “I want people to get that Juneteenth is for everyone.” Bradley expresses that she wants to ensure that all feel welcome so they can learn about the past and make a better future together. “The idea that human beings were treated worse than animals — to come together and celebrate a group of people that came out of that. We should all be able to celebrate that together because we are all human beings.”

Some have expressed sentiments that there is only room for one celebration of freedom and independence. “While more Americans became aware of the significance in more recent years, there still seems to be a divide about the relevance or the difference between Juneteenth and the Fourth of July,” explained LaNisha Cassell, Executive Director of the African American Museum of Iowa. “The independence of the United States of America in 1776 did not include all people since slavery was still intact until 1865, almost 100 years later. There's still a lot of education to be learned and taught.”

Along with bans on teaching certain parts of American history, or limiting teachers’ time and curriculum by legislating an emphasis on teaching “ Western Civilization,” the road to equity has been littered with other obstacles in the past few years. The Supreme Court’s decision to end Affirmative Action came even though we have not made enough progress to ensure removal of barriers to equal educational and employment opportunities. The Iowa Legislature passed SF 2095 to make it easier to discriminate against marginalized groups.

Cassell hopes her organization’s event and others like it can help promote awareness of the challenges faced and successes achieved by Black Americans. “Juneteenth is a commemoration and can serve to unlock a passion and conviction to be intentional about acknowledging the significance of what freedom for all Americans looks like, acknowledging the atrocities of slavery, and present-day oppression, and the impact still felt today to gain a better understanding and appreciation of Black struggle and contribution to our country.”

The theme of Iowa Juneteenth this year is Remembering our history, Releasing the past, and Reshaping our future. Bradley explains the inspiration behind the theme, “On my heart with some of the laws that have taken place, for example HF 802, (there is) a collective of people who are trying to stop history from being told.” She stresses her objective is more about creating a safe space for people to have conversations and learn. “None of us were there when these things took place 300 or 400 years ago. But if we have perspective of that past, we have an opportunity to create a future for ourselves that can be way better than we ever dreamed.”

Bradley has big dreams for Juneteenth in Iowa, from developing a curriculum to expanded reach across the state. “I would also love to see celebrations in every city across the state of Iowa. Not just the cities that are heavily populated with people of color.” She is very passionate about education, and she would like “to visit every city across the state of Iowa — for people to hear my story about why this is so important and hopefully that will open their hearts and see things in a different way.”

She also encourages action, and there are many ways to participate. “Educate yourselves — know what it is about. Libraries can highlight books, local banks can put up information about Juneteenth, organizations can display the Juneteenth flag. When others walk by, they can see that they care. Large scale or small scale are both important. Do what you can do, even if it is not a large celebration.”

In what has been a dark time in Iowa for civil rights and education, Juneteenth is a rare, bright, and triumphant light, and an opportunity to simultaneously learn and celebrate.

If you missed yesterday’s festivals in Des Moines and Cedar Rapids, the museum still has opportunities to learn. The entire commemorative events schedule can be found at https://blackiowa.org/events/juneteenth/. Upcoming fall events in Des Moines will be posted at https://www.iowajuneteenth.org/events.html.

Chris Espersen is a Gazette editorial fellow. chris.espersen@thegazette.com