A Reliable
Voice in the
Community

Volume 6
Issue 14
June 17 - 23, 2009

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Let freedom ring

Commentary by Michelle Fitzhugh-Craig

When Union soldiers arrived in Galveston, Texas, on June 19, 1865, little did town residents realize how much their lives would soon change.

It only took two and one half years to reach them, but the news the soldiers brought the black residents of Galveston was good: The Civil War had ended and with the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation by President Abraham Lincoln, those enslaved were now free.

No more owners, no more abuse … it was cause for celebration. And the town folks did just that — not only through an annual celebration, but as a people they moved toward a brighter future.

For the most part, African Americans as a whole have fought oppression, stood up for our rights and successfully proven that the color of our skin will not stop us from doing anything. Unfortunately, there continues to be those who don’t understand what the word freedom really means.

Freedom doesn’t mean you can be as loud or rude as you want, thinking you will one day be heard. Your words will fall on deaf ears.

Freedom doesn’t mean you walk around with a “payback” mentality, angry with those who have historically “done you wrong.” This promotes fear and misunderstanding.

And freedom most definitely does not mean you are better than someone else because your ancestors have experienced more hardships and challenges than theirs. The Emancipation Proclamation was about freedom for all, not some.

As African Americans, we continue to move toward a more level playing field, but there are those — mainly our young people — who don’t fully understand what the Juneteenth holiday actually means. My hope is our youth will one day understand that their actions and their anger does nothing but place them back in the shackles their forefathers, and foremothers, worked so hard to escape.

That will only be done when we as a community can make sure our youth truly understand their roots. When our educational system no longer turns a deaf ear on pleas to teach a broader black history focus in our schools. And when we as individuals remember that hard work and persistence is a right, not a privilege.

Michelle Fitzhugh-Craig is an award-winning journalist who resides in Oakland. If you have an individual, organization, issue or other topic that may be of interest to the Globe’s readers, contact her at talk2mfc@yahoo.com. Visit her blog at www.stpminute.blogspot.com.

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