By Paula Penebaker and Darryl Sellers This year, Juneteenth and Father’s Day fall on June 19. Of course, being a Black father in 2022 differs from the experiences of Black dads in 1865. So, let’s take a closer look. During slavery, Black men were viewed as breeders and were prohibited from participating in the traditional […]
Beyond Juneteenth: Breaking the Chains to Access Capital and Achieve Real Freedom
By Vercie Lark, Region 7 Great Plains Administrator and Ted James, Region 6 South Central Administrator, U.S. Small Business Administration Being black and walking away from a person who legally owned you became reality on June 19, 1865, when Texas became the last state to implement the Emancipation Proclamation. The day, now known as Juneteenth, […]
Don’t Let COVID-19 Spoil Your Summer: How to Celebrate Juneteenth and Other Events Safely during the Pandemic
By Paula Penebaker Navigating the new normal, especially when it comes to summer celebrations, can be tricky with COVID-19 still circulating and infections on the rise in some communities. Even after two years, attending summer events like family cookouts, visiting amusement parks and enjoying music and cultural festivals, still comes with challenges thanks to what […]
U.S. Senator Ron Johnson Booed at Juneteenth
By Milwaukee Courier Staff Last weekend’s celebration of Juneteenth in Milwaukee was quite a sight to see. It was the 50th anniversary of one the nation’s longest running Juneteenth celebrations and it was the first time that the event commemorated a federal holiday. This was especially gratifying after the years of work to see this […]
‘We’ve Come a Long Way Since 1971’: Milwaukee Celebrates Juneteenth Day
By Ana Martinez-Ortiz In September of 1862, President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation. The document declared that enslaved people throughout most of the country would now be free people. It wasn’t until three years later on June 19, 1865, that Union soldiers arrived in Galveston, Texas bringing news of the Emancipation Proclamation and declaring […]
Juneteenth Day is a Federal Holiday…Finally
By Alex Lasry All Americans will be celebrating Juneteenth as an official federal holiday this year despite Wisconsin Sen. Ron Johnson’s best efforts to stop that from happening. Last year, Johnson was the only senator who objected a bill that would have established Juneteenth Day as a federal holiday. Johnson’s objection led to other Republican […]
Ain’t Gonna Let No Body Turn Me Round
Legislatively Speaking By Senator Lena C. Taylor Juneteenth Observance Goes National When I was in middle school, a television miniseries based on Alex Haley’s book “Roots” offered me the first visual exploration of the institution of slavery. Like many children, I heard stories that were passed down through generations about how my ancestors had been […]
The First Step Is Admitting You Have a Problem: Why Officially Acknowledging Juneteenth Means Something
By LaKeshia N. Myers Admittedly, I have never struggled with alcohol addiction, but I know individuals who have. When speaking to them, they all told me, “The first step is admitting you have a problem; we admit we were powerless over alcohol—that our lives had become unmanageable.” Utilizing that same logic, I am comfortable in […]
A Proclamation on Juneteenth Day of Observance, 2021
June 18, 2021 JUNETEENTH DAY OF OBSERVANCE, 2021 – – – – – – – BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA A PROCLAMATION On June 19, 1865 — nearly nine decades after our Nation’s founding, and more than 2 years after President Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation — enslaved Americans in Galveston, Texas, finally […]
Juneteenth Becomes a Holiday for County Employees
June 19 will be a floating holiday for Milwaukee County employees to honor and celebrate Black life and attend Juneteenth Day celebrations throughout Milwaukee. Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley and County Board Chairwoman Marcelia Nicholson announced today by way of Executive Order #20-15 that Milwaukee County employees will have a floating holiday on June 19 […]