Coarse voice of perseverance
June 12, 2014
Jewelry, mummies and the Magna Carta
June 12, 2014
Despite a presidential edict, men and women were still enslaved.
The Civil War raged on. Those in power had no motivation to inform their human property they had been granted equality and were free to pursue their own lives, and even if slaves knew they were free, who was going to guarantee that right in the nation’s slave-holding recesses?
For more than two years after President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, black people remained in custody of their owners. But on June 19, 1865, Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger arrived at Galveston, Texas, with the news the Civil War had ended and that slaves were no longer beholden to their owners, an event that prompted national enforcement of Lincoln’s decree.
The day became known as Juneteenth, and its celebration continues as the oldest-known commemoration of the ending of slavery in the United States. Louisiana became the 15th state to designate Juneteenth an official state holiday in 2003; now, 43 states and the District of Columbia officially recognize the day as a holiday.
Terrebonne has held a Juneteenth celebration annually since 2011.
“Just imagine that once the word was given (in Galveston), the people had to break out into this jubilant celebration,” said Wayne Thibodeaux, executive director of the Houma-Terrebonne Housing Authority, saying Juneteenth is a day of fellowship, enjoyment and remembrance. “At the same, it’s about motivating young people and being thankful about the progress and opportunities they have.”
Thibodeaux is co-chair of a coalition organizing the free-admission Terrebonne celebration, held from noon to 5 p.m., June 14, at Southdown Plantation. The event was moved to the grounds surrounding the pink and green museum after three years at the park adjacent to Dumas Auditorium.
“We’re really expecting a much bigger event this year,” Thibodeaux said. “The location does offer, I guess, a more public forum and hopefully it could induce folks of all persuasions – race, creed and color – to show up and celebrate with us.”
Live entertainment includes music, dance, skits and speeches. Partners-N-Crime, a rap group from New Orleans, are joined by several local groups, Thibodeaux said. Children’s activities, including a T-shirt design contest, are also planned.
More than 30 vendors are scheduled to participate, selling food and exhibiting arts and crafts like most events in the area but also offering health screenings and information packets. One booth dishes material on HIV, cursory blood pressure testing is offered from a tent and attendees can test themselves for other health-related issues, Thibodeaux said.
Ultimately, it’s a day of celebration.
“In a way Juneteenth sort of signifies the joining of black folks, obviously their freedom and the strides they have made over the years,” Thibodeaux said. “You talk about the accomplishments and just having a chance to take that day to have family, friends and maybe even meet new people and to just recognize and celebrate how far you’ve come.”
Terrebonne Parish President Michel Claudet presents Juneteenth co-chair Wayne Thibodeaux and parish Councilwoman Arlanda Williams with an official proclamation.
