July 7, 2021
Page 9
O PINION
Letter to the Editor
Mixed Emotions in Making of Holiday
Vancouver
NAACP on
progress;
challenges
ahead
Editor’s
note:
Vancouver
NAACP President Jasmine Tolbert
shares the following message
about making Juneteenth a new
federal holiday and the need
to continue efforts to dismantle
systemic racism.
My Dear Community,
For many Black citizens,
this past Juneeteenth stirred up
mixed feelings. The signing of
Juneteenth becoming a federal
holiday, brought on frustration
that other items like reparations,
voting rights, or the restructuring
of policing have not been passed.
Folks want to celebrate our
true Independence Day, but they
also want to be liberated from
the things that keep them from
freedom.
Please know that a holiday
being passed does not stop your
leaders at the NAACP from
continuing to fight for change
and dismantle systemic racism.
We will still celebrate for a day
that many of our ancestors could
only dream of celebrating.
For long-time NAACP mem-
ber Carol Collier, the Juneteenth
holiday is the first step towards
reparations.
A former Vancouver NAACP
treasurer and Juneteenth Com-
mittee chairperson, Collier said
the signing of the legislation last
Thursday making Juneteenth a
federal holiday marked the first
step of a long held dream and
vision.
Collier served on the June-
teenth Committee since its in-
ception 10 years ago, nine of
them as chair. Growing up in
Lake Charles, La., about an hour
and 45 minutes from Galverston,
Texas, Juneteenth was a day that
her family celebrated as tradi-
tionally as the Fourth of July.
The celebration always in-
volved oral and recorded ac-
countings of the story behind
it and included the mantra that
Juneteenth should be known
and recognized throughout the
nation. Collier was excited to
help bring the history and cul-
ture of Juneteenth to Vancou-
ver.
For her, formalizing the hol-
iday was just the first step to-
wards America coming to terms
with the need to make repara-
tions for slavery.
“Juneteenth is now a holiday
as a result of education and truth
in education helping people un-
derstand this nation’s history and
come to terms with recognizing
and memorializing that truth,”
Collier said. “For me this is the
real first step towards reparations
for descendants of slaves in this
country. I carry that hope and
will continue to work towards
that goal. It may not happen in
my lifetime, but maybe it will
happen for my grandchild.”
Collier advises us to all ex-
plore our family history and doc-
ument and pass that information
on to future generations because
she believe that one day, we’ll
need proof that we are descen-
dants of slaves in order to qualify
for reparation payments.
“Our long overdue forty acres
and a mule,” she said.
Warmly,
Jasmine Tolbert,
president of NAACP
Vancouver Branch 9
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