JCPenney’s Post

Here are five things you may not know about Juneteenth:1. Juneteenth commemorates June 19, 1865 when thousands of enslaved people in Texas were finally ordered free – nearly two and a half years after the Emancipation Proclamation abolished slavery in the U.S.2.  In 1979, Texas became the first state to officially recognize Juneteenth as a day of observance. The day was recognized nationally in 2021.3.  Juneteenth celebrations include community gatherings, educational events, music and parades that take place across the country, with the longest history of celebrations taking place in Texas and other states in the Southwest and Midwest.4.  The Juneteenth Flag of Freedom features a half red and half blue design with a white bursting star in the middle, representing freedom from slavery. Every year, a Juneteenth flag raising ceremony takes place in Galveston, where the news of emancipation was first delivered in Texas.5.  Juneteenth has also been known as Jubilee Day, Emancipation Day and Independence Day. The first celebrations took place in Texas 1866, before spreading to other states(Excerpt from about.ups.com)

Read about it and learn about the importance of freedom for all.

Today is the 180th anniversary of Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol” first being published in 1843. The timeless story has played an instrumental role in shaping and influencing many of the Christmas traditions we still enjoy today. To celebrate, we explore some of the archival items related to Dickens held by Senate House Library, including rare first edition copies of “A Christmas Carol” and miniature novelty gift book editions of his Christmas stories. These collections let us delve into the cultural impact Dickens had on modern conceptions of Christmas ideals. From notions of charity and goodwill, to redemptive transformation, to imagined figures like Scrooge and Tiny Tim are now all cemented in our festive consciousness. The books also show us how Dickens' writings spotlighted the harsh contrasts between impoverished Britons and a rising middle class newly able to celebrate Christmas as we idealise it today. For those interested in 19th century literature, book history, or Charles Dickens, read the post here: https://lnkd.in/eRfexq53

Excited about my latest piece which launches The Movement for Black Lives economic justice series co-produced by Nonprofit Quarterly called: “The Vision for Black Lives: An Economic Policy Agenda.” 🙌🏾 All month long, we explore the ways in which our people are addressing economic policy challenges that lie at the intersection of the struggle for racial and economic justice. Check it out 👇🏾: https://lnkd.in/gUbNJiTg "Community control is a critical component of economic justice. After all, the hallmark of the history of enslavement and racial capitalism, colonialism, neocolonialism, and neoliberalism has been to remove control from the equation and ensure that our existence was contingent on the whims and agenda of exploiters. As a result, many of our demands around economic justice center on how Black people can have more agency over their economic conditions while freeing themselves from the policies and practices that impede agency and access to economic opportunity. This necessitates the development of alternatives that circumvent harmful systems and frameworks." #economicjustice #economicpolicy #communitycontrol #solidarityeconomy #workerrights Institute on Race, Power and Political Economy

“M4BL demands economic reconstruction to ensure Black communities have collective ownership of resources, not merely access, and to ensure that we can achieve a high quality of life. Economic justice ensures we can not only meet our basic needs but also thrive.” Dive in as Dr. Amara Enyia, JD, PhD, Director for Policy and Research at the Movement for Black Lives, lays the groundwork for The Vision for Black Lives: An Economic Policy Agenda in the first piece of this series via Nonprofit Quarterly + The Movement for Black Lives. They set the stage for how we can and must move to community control, reparations, thriving communities and ultimately #Black liberation. #Participatorydemocracy is a powerful tool in this movement! Read it now and follow for additional articles in the series: https://lnkd.in/gPMNcWPY

A quarter century ago, American political scientist Robert D. Putnam diagnosed our country's failing civic health. In his book, Bowling Alone, he recorded the major decline of social clubs and social engagement, the growth of isolation, and divides of all kinds. In a conversation with Eric Liu, CEO of Citizen University, and fellow graduate school scholar, Robert D. Putnam, they discussed Robert's explorations of a civic revival, examples of civic emergences in the past, and what we can learn to help restore faith in our democracy and each other. Read The Chronicle of Philanthropy article by Drew Lindsay or listen to Eric and Robert's conversation in full: https://lnkd.in/eGbiDKuz

THIS IS OUR 1776 MOMENT We are going to unify this country, from the overwhelming majority of us who love this country to the fringe minority who is hellbent on putting America last, by being uncompromising on who we are as Americans. No state left behind. No city left behind. No American left behind. Free speech and open debate can no longer be a radical idea. Our national identity and pride are not too far gone. Our future generations need to see that their leaders are not partisan hacks but believers in the foundations of this country and what makes America the example of freedom worldwide. Today, with you on my side, the Establishment can’t stop us. Today, faith, patriotism, and hard-work won’t be kept in the chokehold of the secular religions of race, sex, and climatism. The Declaration of Independence of today is our declaration of independence from Communist China. If Thomas Jefferson were alive today, that is the Declaration of Independence he would sign. That is the Declaration of Independence I will sign if I am elected as your next president. Today is the day we declare there are three branches of government, not four. Their rampant administrative bureaucracy is a formula for corruption. Today is the day our revolution will march on and show the Establishment we won’t bow to their culture of fear. Please consider a contribution today and shock the system with me! Vivek Ramaswamy Republican Presidential Candidate 2024 https://lnkd.in/dMP7uKAU

On “Freedom’s Eve,” or the eve of January 1, 1863, the first Watch Night services took place. On that night, enslaved and free African Americans gathered in churches and private homes all across the country awaiting news that the Emancipation Proclamation had taken effect. At the stroke of midnight, prayers were answered as all enslaved people in the Confederate States were declared legally free. Union soldiers, many of whom were black, marched onto plantations and across cities in the South reading small copies of the Emancipation Proclamation and spreading the news of freedom in the Confederate States. Only through the Thirteenth Amendment did emancipation end slavery throughout the United States. But not everyone in Confederate territory would immediately be free. Even though the Emancipation Proclamation was made effective in 1863, it could not be implemented in places still under Confederate control. As a result, in the westernmost Confederate state of Texas, enslaved people would not be free until much later. Freedom finally came on June 19, 1865, when some 2,000 Union troops arrived in Galveston Bay, Texas. The army announced that the more than 250,000 enslaved black people in the state, were free by executive decree. This day came to be known as "Juneteenth," by the newly freed people in Texas. The post-emancipation period known as Reconstruction (1865-1877) marked an era of great hope, uncertainty, and struggle for the nation as a whole. Formerly enslaved people immediately sought to reunify families, establish schools, run for political office, push radical legislation, and even sue slaveholders for compensation. Given the 200+ years of enslavement, such changes were nothing short of amazing. Not even a generation out of slavery, African Americans were inspired and empowered to transform their lives and their country. Juneteenth marks our country’s second independence day. Although it has long been celebrated in the African American community, this monumental event remains largely unknown to most Americans. The historical legacy of Juneteenth shows the value of never giving up hope in uncertain times.

Today is Juneteenth. It is also known as Emancipation Day or Freedom Day. Federal and Massachusetts employees have the day off. Banks are closed. There is no mail. Juneteenth only became a federal holiday in 2021. When President Biden signed the law making Juneteenth a federal holiday, he stated: "Juneteenth marks both the long, hard night of slavery and subjugation, and a promise of a brighter morning to come. This is a day of profound — in my view — profound weight and profound power. A day in which we remember the moral stain, the terrible toll that slavery took on the country and continues to take — what I’ve long called “America’s original sin.” At the same time, I also remember the extraordinary capacity to heal, and to hope, and to emerge from the most painful moments and a bitter, bitter version of ourselves, but to make a better version of ourselves." Do you know about the history of Juneteenth? “Juneteenth is the oldest nationally celebrated commemoration of the ending of slavery in the United States. Dating back to 1865, it was on June 19th that the Union soldiers, led by Major General Gordon Granger, landed at Galveston, Texas with news that the war had ended and that the enslaved were now free. Note that this was two and a half years after President Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation.” General Granger read General Order No. 3 to the people of Texas, which began with: "The people of Texas are informed that in accordance with a Proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free. This involves an absolute equality of rights and rights of property between former masters and slaves, and the connection heretofore existing between them becomes that between employer and hired laborer." “The celebrations that followed the reading of the proclamation … began a tradition that has lasted for [more than] one hundred and fifty five years, and today is hosted in cities across America and beyond.” All states and D.C. recognize Juneteenth in some manner, but it is not a paid holiday in many states. What are you doing to commemorate this important day? #LauraHasItCovered

Sharing some data points about wealth disparity, and precedent for organizing and policy proposals that drive economic transformation. Forthcoming research from the Institute on Race, Power and Political Economy further highlights the realities of wealth disparity in U.S. cities like Chicago, Boston and elsewhere. For now, check out this Nonprofit Quarterly / M4BL webinar clip where I break down some facts and figures. #economicjustice #economicpolicy #wealthgap #wealthdisparity #publicpolicy