JUNETEENTH: CELEBRATION VS. EXPLOITATION

So, Juneteenth is coming up this weekend…and we've got a lot to talk about.  

A lot of Juneteenth themed products and promotions have gone viral lately and have been met with outrage, most notably this Juneteenth themed ice cream pint sold at Walmart. I've had a few of my friends ask me why everyone's so upset. "Shouldn't we be happy that this holiday is finally being acknowledged and introduced to the general public?" "Isn't representation and mainstream recognition a GOOD thing?"   My answer … yes, celebrating Juneteenth as a federal holiday while recognizing and respecting the significance of this day is a step in the right direction. However, companies and mainstream media rarely manage to accomplish this without looking exploitative and tone deaf.  This holiday represents Black liberation; therefore, the focus of celebrations should be nested in this concept.  When the focus is big signs and an influx of commercialization, significant components of Black history and our continued fight towards equality gets watered down or downplayed. Additionally, our country has established a precedent of using our celebrations of historical progress as an excuse to not address the systemic issues the Black community still faces today.  To understand the current opposition to Juneteenth “celebrations”, it is important to understand the historical lens that has shaped our current skepticism.

40 years ago, the Black community was fighting to commemorate another important milestone in the fight for Black liberation: Martin Luther King Jr's birthday. Over 6 million Americans had signed a petition to make January 17th Martin Luther King Day, a movement that was opposed strongly by most members of Congress and the sitting president Ronald Reagan. Senators publicly spat on the bill proposing to honor a man they saw as a “violent tyrant that tore this country apart”. However, after 2 decades of lobbying, a famous Stevie Wonder song commemorating King’s birthday, and a smear campaign accusing King of being a communist, the holiday was signed into law. The impact and backlash were immediate. In opposition to this federal holiday, states created a new holiday, Robert E. Lee Day, to celebrate the confederate general on the same day as MLK Day.

Despite the opposition, Black Americans were excited to embrace a national holiday celebrating one of our leaders.  Every year, we see commercial signs and celebrations honoring Dr. King.  At the same time, we have also seen coordinated attempts to completely re-shape historical facts that fueled the civil rights movement that Martin Luther King helped lead.  At this very moment, debates and lawsuits are raging around the country about banning certain textbooks and creating new ones, significantly minimizing the impact of slavery and resulting systemic plights Black Americans still face today.

In addition to re-writing U.S. history, textbooks and documentaries have completely revised King’s image, cherry-picking elements of his identity and movement that are considered more acceptable to our country’s leaders.  Today, Martin Luther King is used as an example of what Black protests “should look like”. In other words, “if he could accomplish what he did without hostile resistance, why can’t you?”.  King masterfully used passive resistance as one method of enacting change; however, he also used stronger, more assertive language that urged direct action to bring about change.   He made it clear that rebellions have a place in America. Multiple leaders, initiatives, and approaches (both peaceful and hostile) took place which collectively led to us gaining crucial civil rights.  However, King’s “peace-only” image is the one that is vividly highlighted and often used to gaslight communities fighting for change today.

So, when it comes to MLK Day, yes, Black Americans are pleased to have a holiday honoring one of our iconic leaders. However, it’s impossible to ignore how his image over time has been tokenized and weaponized against our own people.  How can this country genuinely honor a man that gave his life to help us gain basic human rights, while minimizing the incredible hurdles we have fought to overcome? These two actions are contradictory.  When honoring Dr. King, we should acknowledge who he was, the incredible coalition of efforts that led to Black Americans gaining fundamental freedoms, and the continued goal to push America to treat all citizens equally.  An MLK “celebration” that lacks these components is simply a performative action that lacks substance.

Up until the pandemic, Juneteenth was celebrated as a niche holiday amongst Black Americans. People that celebrated the holiday understood the emotional gravity of celebrating the official end of slavery.  We understood that on July 4, 1776, our ancestors were not free.  We understood that although the Emancipation Proclamation technically freed some slaves on January 1, 1863, without the existence of 24-hour news stations and social media, many were unaware that slavery had been outlawed.  We understood that June 19, 1865, was a significant turning point in African American history and marked the beginning of a long fight towards equality in the U.S. – a fight we are still waging today.

With Juneteenth now recognized as a federal holiday, many are skeptical and hesitant to accept this olive branch. Is this another performative action to appease the Black community without coupling the symbolism with actions that push the needle forward? Who will benefit from this holiday, the Black community, or corporate entities? Many people reading this blog post are probably wondering if there IS a respectful way for businesses to commemorate Juneteenth. The answer is yes … however, corporate entities like Walmart using this holiday to make a profit while doing little to truly honor and respect the significance of this day is definitely not the way to do so. 

The meaning of Juneteenth is rooted in freedom and black liberation.  Thus, institutions honoring Juneteenth can start by donating to Black causes and/or openly addressing issues impacting Black people in their institutional structure.  Businesses that want to display products promoting Juneteenth should partner with Black-owned businesses to sell Juneteenth products or donate a pre-announced percentage of profits to causes that empower the Black community. If individuals want to join in on the festivities, do so by participating in actions that help and directly benefits our community - support Black businesses, speak out on issues effecting Black people, and/or support Black causes ...

If we are going to celebrate a holiday that signifies a step towards the goal of Black prosperity in America, we should do so by first understanding the significance of this day, and then honor it with actions that help to uplift our community.