On "Juneteenth," the oldest and
most-popular observance of the end of slavery in the United
States, members of the Project 21 black leadership network
call upon their fellow black Americans to use the civil
rights-themed holiday as a tool to assess how they can take
full advantage of the freedoms and opportunities their
predecessors lacked.
They also call upon all Americans to consider how their
liberties must be secured against an ever-expanding
government policies that can limit them.
Juneteenth, now an official holiday or observance in at
least 40 states, is Friday, June 19.
"Because of their attitudes, thoughts and behaviors -- in
addition to corresponding political loyalties -- blacks
today willingly volunteer themselves to an emotional,
intellectual and spiritual form of slavery. Though
physically free, this current bondage has seen blacks
forfeit almost every aspect of their lives to government
control," said Project 21 member Derryck Green, a doctoral
candidate living in the Los Angeles area. "By faithfully
supporting big-government policies that diminish, control
and deliver sub-standard opportunities for blacks as well as
increase the black underclass, destroy families and
encourage dependency, blacks are ceding their freedom to the
same sort of oppressive control that slaves escaped 150
years ago."
Juneteenth commemorates the anniversary of the arrival of
Union troops in Galveston, Texas on June 19, 1865. Those
soldiers informed residents there that the Civil War was
over and that President Abraham Lincoln's Emancipation
Proclamation had already abolished slavery two-and-a-half
years earlier.
In the years that followed, Galveston's former slave
population celebrated their newfound freedom on the
anniversary of this day. The event became known as
Juneteenth. The commemoration became a stabilizing and
motivating presence for black Texans who experienced new
uncertainties associated with their release from bondage and
their integration into American society.
The observance of Juneteenth, and the event's emphasis on
self-improvement and advancement, soon spread from Texas to
be recognized in communities across the United States. While
Juneteenth is often celebrated as a festive event with
picnics and parades, there is still an emphasis on
self-improvement and education that is considered an
integral part of the overall observance.
"As Americans, we relish any opportunity to celebrate
freedom -- and the festivities surrounding Juneteenth are no
exception," said Project 21 member Stacy Washington, a radio
talk show host in St. Louis. "As we gather in fellowship,
let's extend our focus to include fresh ideas and viewpoints
such as school choice and a smaller, less intrusive
government. As a minority group, blacks have made fantastic
achievements. Yet those gains are slipping away as more and
more children are born out of wedlock and present black
fathers are a rare commodity. This Juneteenth, let's resolve
to reverse that trend."
With public attention currently focused on the size and
scope of government and its intrusion into daily life and
peoples' privacy -- be it government surveillance tactics,
expanded police power or regulatory mandates that often
disrupt business and personal affairs -- Project 21 members
are suggesting black Americans pay special attention to how
freedom and opportunity may be at risk because of government
overreach. They should also consider what they can do -- by
themselves or by working with others -- to bring about
reform that will increase and protect freedom.
"After 150 years of freedom from racial oppression,
including 50 years of massive government intervention and
entitlements, this anniversary of Juneteenth might best be
spent in collective discussions among black Americans about
what things continue to retard full participation in the
American way of life," said Project 21 member Joe Hicks
, a former executive director of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and
Los Angeles resident. "The Great Society programs launched by white liberals
produced millions of government checks and amounted to the most ambitious
redistribution of wealth in the nation's history. But what if this and other liberal
efforts such as minimum wage laws and affirmative action actually hurt black
Americans' aspirations? After all these efforts, there is persistent black
joblessness and poverty, a yawning black-white learning gap and shocking
black-on-black homicide levels in cities such as Baltimore and Chicago. This June
19th, given the cultural and political crisis that haunts black communities
nationwide, perhaps Juneteenth discussions should be about the extent of harm caused
by government programs and handouts."
"Blacks must realize our basic freedoms have never been more
under attack in the modern era than they seem to be now,"
said Project 21 member Kevin Martin, a Navy veteran from
suburban Washington, D.C. "Blacks suffered the brunt of the
Great Recession and were left behind by a jobless recovery,
yet it is the progressives who oversaw this debacle who
claim to have our best interests at heart. Black
conservatives must be like those Union soldiers of 150 years
ago in bringing word that blacks no longer need to
unquestionably embrace progressive policies. They need to
teach that, through conservative tenets of self-reliance and
educational choice, we can achieve and maintain our
freedom."
"In the spirit of Juneteenth, I rededicate myself to the one
freedom I've defended my entire life: the freedom to be safe
from private thugs and overreaching government," said
Project 21 member Nadra Enzi, a community policing activist
living in New Orleans. "I rededicate myself to trying to
preserve my small strand of the legacy which sustained
American blacks that now seems all but unraveled in too many
communities. The lesson Juneteenth teaches me is that
freedoms are ours to safeguard or lose. I choose to guard my
freedoms -- starting with safety!"
In 2014 and 2015, Project 21 members have thus far been
interviewed or cited by the media over 2,500 times --
including on TVOne, the Philadelphia Inquirer, Fox News
Channel, Westwood One, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, SiriusXM
satellite radio and 50,000-watt talk radio stations such as
WBZ-Boston and KDKA-Pittsburgh -- on issues that include
civil rights, entitlement programs, the economy, race
preferences, education and corporate social responsibility.
Project 21 has participated in cases before the U.S. Supreme
Court regarding race preferences and voting rights and
defended voter ID laws at the United Nations. Its volunteer
members come from all walks of life and are not salaried
political professionals.
Project 21, a leading voice of black conservatives for over
two decades, is sponsored by the National Center for Public
Policy Research (https://www.nationalcenter.org).
Contributions to the National Center are tax-deductible and
greatly appreciated.
