Emancipation: Is Juneteenth really a cause for celebration?

Emancipate – To free from bondage, oppression or restraint; liberate.

American Heritage College Dictionary

Hotep,

Juneteenth is the celebration of the abolishment of slavery that started with the state of Texas and has spread to approximately 37 states.  As an African American, I understand why some people may consider this a day of celebration.  As a death row prisoner in this country, I refuse to acknowledge the day our oppressors decided that that particular form of slavery was no longer a humane practice.  Bear with me people.  My explanation is quite simple.

Now, I’m in total agreement with celebrating the lives of the many martyrs who dedicated their lives to the betterment of race relations in this country, but Juneteenth is celebrating an executive decision, a decision that was made when the inevitable was near.  Slaves were uprising throughout the south and migrating north.

As a people, we need to put more emphasis on how we can learn from the mistakes of our forefathers and exhibit an undying sense of accountability for our choices of today.  It could easily be the difference between failure or success, when pertaining to the critical choices our offspring will have to make in the future.  We also must be accountable for our decisions to go with the flow of injustice.  As well as being accountable for the choice to go against the grain and speak out against the injustices.  Word is bond!

The celebration of President Abraham Lincoln’s signature is not a priority for me.  When a judge decides to commute a death sentence to life without parole, I see no cause for celebration.  The prisoner has not been liberated.  The oppression and bondage continues to exist.  The 13^th Amendment states that prison was a deterrent for the emancipation of slaves and an unjust system keeps the prisons full.  Ya heard?

Recognize.  The oppression and bondage hasn’t gone anywhere people.  Be diligent about going against the grain of injustice.  Strive to instill a strong sense of confidence in our youth.  Be accountable for washing away the mire of ignorance that slavery has cast upon us.  Teaching the truth may sanitize the polluted perceptions of inevitable failure amongst our people.  Na mean?

If a District Attorney can stand proud when winning a conviction in a capital case, then the state should be held accountable when a defendant is falsely accused and wrongfully convicted.  Right? Denying the accountability of injustice only makes President Abraham Lincoln’s signature that much more irrelevant to me.  Ya heard?

Keep it 100,

MannofStat

Copyright © 2011 by Leroy Elwood Mann