Juneteenth Hopes

 


The 170th Day of 2021 is the first time that Juneteenth is an official, Federal Holiday.  And, on 6/19/21, this gives me hope.  Yes, I have Juneteenth Hopes tonight.  Hope that this new consciousness and official recognition brings an increased understanding and awareness of the "end" of slavery and a new telling of the history of that time.  I hope that it leads to a more inclusive teaching of American History in our classrooms, including ALL peoples and ALL issues, not just those that seemed important to the majority at the time the history texts were written.  I have to admit, before last year, I had very little understanding of what Juneteenth is and why it is important.  But, it is one thing of which I have become much more aware in this past year of Covid and political unrest and discussion.  Some really horrible things have happened in the past 12-18 months.  Let's hope that we, as a society and we, as individuals, actually learn from this and become more understanding, more aware, and, most of all, more empathetic to others.  I hope that we all take a pause and look inside and consider what we can do differently to promote justice and quality for ALL.  Not just on June 19th, but every day, all day.

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