Juneteenth brings message of hope, optimism for Wilmington community

June 19 isn't marked as a holiday on most calendars, but for the African-American community, the date holds as much significance as July 4.

The Rev. Lawrence Livingston stressed to those gathered in the pews of Wilmington's Mother African Union Church Monday night that this lack of knowledge about June 19, 1865 — the day Union soldiers landed in Galveston, Texas, to tell slaves they were now free — often leads to people overlooking it completely. Partly due to lack of technology, the news didn't reach those in Texas until nearly 2½ years after the war ended.

"When July 4th was started, so called Independence Day, our people were still suffering in the Holocaust of enslavement," Livingston preached. "Don't be destroyed for lack of knowledge."

Again and again, Livingston repeated this mantra. And one by one, fellow pastors and speakers shared similar experiences: that they, too, didn't know the meaning of Juneteenth or Jubilee Day until a family member or friend shared the day's importance.

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Bernie Wilkins, who founded Delaware Juneteenth, admitted that when he was younger, he asked the same question about June 19. Now, more than 20 years after he founded the Juneteenth Observance in the First State, Wilkins hopes more young people know the answer.

Next year, he hopes to pack the church with so many people, they need to bring out extra chairs for the celebration.

"Tell somebody else about Juneteenth," he encouraged attendees. "So I won't ever have to hear, 'What is Juneteenth?'"

The celebration, which includes a festival, church service and other activities, also features the the annual Miss Juneteenth Pageant, which brings together young women under the Delaware Juneteenth Association to "develop and implement strategic prevention programming that addresses the problems facing our communities" like substance abuse, gang-related violence and teen pregnancy, according to the website.

Joslyn Walker, who was named this year's Miss Juneteenth earlier this month, spoke Monday about how black women are objectified and often face unrealistic expectations in today's media culture and society.

"I am a 17-year-old female growing up in a world where I am constantly asked to change who I am," she said, her tiara sparkling as she moved in front of the church. 

When she finished her speech, encouraging young women to stop questioning themselves and start believing in themselves, her words were met with a standing ovation. 

Those are the words and the attitude more young people must be taking, Livingston stressed, especially as the city's gun violence continues to rise and issues like poverty and drug addiction continue to plague the community.

Delaware Juneteenth Association - DEJA

Sunday afternoon's double-shooting marked victims 102 and 103 injured by gunfire in the city this year. Twenty people have been killed by bullets in Wilmington. 

"And it's not even the end of June," Livingston said. "Don't you know that if you're shooting someone else, you're shooting someone created in the name of God?" 

But underneath the violence, others found hope in Juneteenth and the meaning of this Monday.

"We need to teach our children, teach our families, teach our community," said Brother Mark Smith, from Simpson United Methodist Church near Newport, "that it's OK to be a proud black American."

Contact Brittany Horn at (302) 324-2771 or bhorn@delawareonline.com. Follow her on Twitter at @brittanyhorn.