The Juneteenth holiday is approaching, which commemorates a notable day that seems to be growing in the public eye.
The holiday references June 19, 1865, which commemorates the end of slavery in the United States. The Juneteenth word references the date of the holiday, combining the words “June” and “nineteenth.”
President Joe Biden signed a bill in June 2021 that made it the eleventh American federal holiday.
For this edition of What’s The Frequency, two guests discuss Juneteenth and some celebrations of it that will be happening in Iowa, including in Sioux City and Ottumwa.
We also hear about some other pieces of Black history from noted Iowa author and columnist Rachelle Chase, who has written two illuminating books on Buxton, Iowa. Buxton was a coal mining town in the early 1900s where Black people were the majority of the residents and owners of many businesses.
The other guest is Monique Scarlett, of Sioux City, who is an activist in the city, with roles a a leader in both the Sioux City NAACP chapter and Unity in the Community, and formerly was a Sioux City School Board member.
According to an explanation on the website of the African-American Museum of Iowa museum in Cedar Rapids, “After the Emancipation Proclamation was issued on January 1, 1863, owners in many isolated areas kept word from the people they had enslaved so that they would not flee.
On June 19, 1865, some of the last enslaved people in America were freed when the news, at last, reached Confederate Galveston, Texas. Since that day, Juneteenth has been celebrated to honor the African Americans who built this nation.”
The Sioux City event will be held from 5 to 8 p.m. June 19, at the downtown Sioux City Public Museum grounds. It is titled, Resilience and Renewal: Commemorating Juneteenth with art, cultural foods, entertainment, education and more.
Additionally, a small group in the eastern Iowa town of West Branch is organizing the city’s first Juneteenth celebration. That event includes a history of the area’s connection to the Underground Railroad.
The group Humans for Racial Justice is holding a concert, film screenings and tours of Traveler’s Rest, a safe house where the abolitionist John Brown stayed for two winters in West Branch.
*Click on the audio link above to hear the entire show.
What's The Frequency, Episode 67.
