Juneteenth: Free At Last
June is often a time of celebration. From graduations, to summer vacations and weddings; June is also the month in which we commemorate Juneteenth and Black Music Month.
History class often informs us that all enslaved people were freed in the U.S on January 1, 1863, as a result of the Emancipation Proclamation; however, many of us through home history lessons, have learned all enslaved Black people were actually freed on June 19th, 1865. Juneteenth is an official Texas state holiday, known as Emancipation Day, and an unofficial U.S. holiday in which Black people across the nation commemorate, honor, and hold space for the ending of slavery.
Black Music Month is a time to celebrate and appreciate the countless contributions made by Black singers, composers, songwriters, and musicians. We celebrate Black music because as the Mother of Black Music Month, Dyana Williams, put it, “Black music is indigenous to the United States of America. So, it is one of America’s greatest creations that has come from the wellspring of the black experience and, it’s music for the world, for everybody, but it was created by black people. Gospel, blues, jazz you name it, rock2.”
As protests to stop the violence against Black lives continue and as we seek to hold our representatives accountable it’s necessary for all people, especially non-Black folk, to acknowledge and step up into their role in creating a more antiracist society.
Black Music Month: Songs For Change, Freedom & Equality
Part of the work in creating a more antiracist society is to learn, share and discuss the parts of history that are less talked about, make people uncomfortable and uplift the stories of those least heard from. Music has a way of capturing a moment in time, a history lesson, while still being timeless. With just the right melody, lyrics, and timing, music can create change, inspire, and sustain revolutions and movements. Consider just a few of the many songs centering movements and Black liberation:
- “Mother, mother there’s too many of you crying. Brother, brother, brother. There’s far too many of you dying.”
What’s Going On (1971) by Marvin Gaye discussing the impact of the war and violence against Black communities,
- “You will not be able to stay home, brother. You will not be able to plugin, turn on and cop out” The Revolution Will Not Be Televised (1971) by Gil Scott-Heron highlighting nationwide complacency with the status quo during the Civil Rights movement,
- “To revolutionize make a change nothing’s strange. People, people we are the same. No, we’re not the same”
Fight the Power (1989) by Public Enemy, recorded for the Do The Right Thing soundtrack a Spike Lee film exploring racial tension in Brooklyn;
- “Freedom, where are you? ‘Cause I need freedom, too. I break chains all by myself. Won’t let my freedom rot in hell.”
Freedom (2016) by Beyoncé and Kendrick Lamar, heard and sung at countless recent Black Lives Matter protest, including a viral rendition by Glee star Amber Riley;
This Juneteenth, Black Music Month and beyond, consider the vital role you must take in creating a more antiracist society. Examine how you have consumed and viewed both history and music. Below are a few initial pointers; however, this is not an exhaustive list. The work to be anti-racist goes beyond reading a single blog post.
- How has Black music transformed, informed, and/or challenged your way of thinking, or understanding experiences similar or different from yours?
- How are you using Black music and your knowledge of history to start and continue the conversation of being an anti-racist?
- As a non-Black person, how are you consuming Black music? Are the lyrics relatable? Why? Why not? What assumptions are you making about the Black people simply based on the music? Why? How can you challenge your assumptions?
As Gil Scott-Heron told us in 1971, the revolution will not be televised.
By Veronica Whitehead, Ntarupt Sex Educator & Director of Programs
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References
- The National Museum of African American Music. (June 13, 2019). A Look at How Black Music Month Started.
- The National Museum of African American Music. (June 1, 2016). The Birth of Black Music Month: Interview with Dyanna Williams
- Juneteenth. (n.d.). History of Juneteenth.
