Rector’s Note: Won’t You Celebrate with me?-6.19.25

Today is Juneteenth, the national holiday that commemorates the oldest celebration of the end of slavery in the United States, marking the final declaration of the Emancipation Proclamation in Texas after the Civil War in 1865. For African Americans it has long been a day of celebration with barbecues that featured red foods such as ice cream and strawberry soda to symbolize joy and resilience. Yesterday at Lunch Club, we anticipated the day with red desserts and a prayer to continue to work for justice for people of color.

Today it’s worth reflecting on what this day means for us all, at a time when nationally sanctioned racism pervades the president’s executive orders and runs through the dismantling of diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility initiatives throughout the country. “I’ve sat on this bench now for 40 years and I’ve never seen government racial discrimination like this. Is it true of our society as a whole, have we fallen so low? Have we no shame?” Judge William Young of the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts said in a speech after ruling to reverse the National Institute of Health’s termination of grants in areas such as racial health disparities and transgender health on Monday. (Source: Science Advisor, June 16, 2025)

Juneteenth reminds us of the power of celebrating the “now and the not yet” of justice – the wins along the way and the painful determination to push against injustices that are still in place. For White people, to celebrate this day with African Americans requires some cultural humility, curiosity and commitment to be in solidarity with ongoing change.

The National Museum of African American History and Culture describes the history of Juneteenth this way:

On June 19, 1865, nearly two years after President Abraham Lincoln emancipated enslaved Africans in America, Union troops arrived in Galveston Bay, Texas, with news of freedom. More than 250,000 African Americans embraced freedom by executive decree in what became known as Juneteenth or Freedom Day. With the principles of self-determination, citizenship and democracy magnifying their hopes and dreams, those Texans held fast to the promise of true liberty for all.

Juneteenth celebrations began the next year, with people returning to Galveston for commemorations that eventually spread throughout the country. But the celebrations were ever bittersweet, because they always occurred against the oppression and discrimination that continued even after the end of the Civil War and the passing of the 13th Amendment, which ended slavery for non-incarcerated people. Celebrations continued during Jim Crow and during the Civil Rights Movement. The day was named a national holiday in 2021.

How might we mark the day?

Learn: Learn more about Juneteenth and what it represents. Historian Heather Cox Richardson has put together a concise little YouTube video about the day. It might be nice to watch it with family members and talk about how the day talks back to the news cycle.

Pray: The Episcopal Diocese of Michigan has created this downloadable Private Devotion that echoes morning and evening prayer.

Act: Engage with policy issues that flow from the Episcopal Church’s racial justice and repair work. Learn more here.

Finally, make some time to listen closely to the voices of those whose day this is, and who have done the difficult work of remaining hopeful and resistant through centuries of racial oppression. The poem “Won’t You Celebrate with Me,” by Lucille Clifton is worth reading tonight by candlelight, in a spirit of prayerful solidarity, witnessing a dream for better days.

Won’t You Celebrate with Me

Won’t you celebrate with me

what i have shaped into

a kind of life? i had no model.

born in babylon

both nonwhite and woman

what did i see to be except myself?

i made it up

here on this bridge between

starshine and clay,

my one hand holding tight

my other hand; come celebrate

with me that everyday

something has tried to kill me and has failed.