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Juneteenth in South Florida is marked by poetry, music and peaceful protests

Miami Herald - 6/20/2020

Jun. 20--Black Lives Matter protests in Miami-Dade and Broward took on a tone of celebration Friday as protesters connected the themes of liberation and justice with calls for an end of police brutality.

Peaceful rallies in South Florida gathered hundreds of mostly young protesters who used the Juneteenth holiday to express their hopes of a better future for Black people, after more than two weeks of daily protests in the aftermath of George Floyd's death at the hands of Minneapolis police last month.

At a "Defund the Police" rally that began in Fort Lauderdale'sHuizenga Park, around 300 hundred people gathered Friday to call for a reallocation of funds. Organizers said that Juneteenth represents how America has failed to live up to its constitutional promises.

"We want to not define safety by just thinking that it starts and ends with policing," said Quayneshia Smith, a community organizer with the Broward Dream Defenders.

"It starts and ends with more resources in our education system, more counselors, more social workers, more community gardens and free after-school programs," she added.

Citing the origins of law enforcement, Smith, 25, said that Black Americans will never be free as long as police exist. "They were founded from slave catchers and protecting property; that's their role," she added.

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Juneteenth celebrates the end of slavery in the United States. It traces its origin to June 19, 1865, when slaves in Galveston, Texas were informed by Union forces that they had been freed. The message came more than two and a half years after President Abraham Lincoln abolished slavery through his Emancipation Proclamation and two months after Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee surrendered at Appomattox, Virginia.

In Fort Lauderdale, the march snaked around the downtown area before briefly pausing at the Broward County Main Jail. Cries of "Let them go" and "We love y'all" ricocheted off the walls of the detention center. Inmates knocked on windows and held up signs to show solidarity.

"They're not treated like they are human inside of there," said Marq Mitchell, the CEO and founder of Chainless Change, an organization that works to reduce recidivism rates. "We wanted to ensure that we're fighting for their best interests too, because their lives are important just like everybody else's."

Towards the end of the march, the crowd turned at the intersection of Broward Boulevard and Andrews Avenue to observe a moment of silence for those hurt or killed in interactions with police.

Poetry on the streets

Organizers reiterated their mission as the crowd cheered while one marcher shared poetry over the beeping of the pedestrian crossing sign.

"Spread the word, spread the word, we are strong beautiful Black people and God and the devil ain't never been equal," Nina "Nina Jai" Wright, 30, recited. "So take this noose from around my neck, I give you nothing but permission to only respect."

Companies like Twitter, Nike, the NBA and NFL, and even the state of New York have recently recognized the holiday as a paid day off for workers.

Outrage over the death of 46-year-old Floyd under the knee of a police officer on May 25 has powered nearly four weeks of demonstrations across the country. Protests in Miami began on May 30 and have been mostly peaceful apart from initial clashes between demonstrators and law enforcement during the first few nights. Police cars were set on fire, protesters hurled rocks and bottles at police, and officers used tear gas and rubber bullets against the crowd.

Apart from their calls for justice in Floyd's case, protesters have also invoked the names of other Black Americans whose deaths have sparked similar calls for more police accountability and an end to systemic racism. Among the most high-profile cases protesters have highlighted is the March 13 killing of 26-year-old Breonna Taylor by police in Louisville, Kentucky during a raid at her home.

In Miami-Dade County, conservative counter-protesters have held rallies pledging support for the police and President Donald Trump, who has called some anti-racism protesters "thugs."

Tree planting in Miami Beach

The day began with a Juneteenth ceremony in Miami Beach, where city officials shoveled soil at the base of a newly planted rainbow eucalyptus tree meant to celebrate diversity and the strengthening of the Black community. Friday was the first time the city formally celebrated Juneteenth, said Mayor Dan Gelber, who also announced the creation of an African-American Affairs Committee.

"This time is the right time, absolutely, when so many of the existing racial fault lines of our society have been laid bare, sparked by the murder of George Floyd, when so many people and institutions seem to be listening, engaging their own self evaluations," he said, adding "you can actually smell and almost feel the change in the air."

Gelber was joined by Miami Shores Mayor Crystal Wagar, who said most Americans are not taught about Juneteenth at school. Wager, who is black, said she lost family members in the 1921 Tulsa Massacre, during which white rioters killed scores of Black residents and burned down the affluent Black business district known locally as Black Wall Street.

"Both of these events, in addition to many others, are taught to African American children as a cautionary tale," Wagar said. "As a mother, I think about how only two to three generations ago -- 155 years ago -- most people in our country would have been able to take my children from me. We are simply devalued without consequence and we have been for far too long."

The ceremony, spearheaded by Commissioner Ricky Arriola, featured a rendition of "Lift Every Voice and Sing" -- often called the Black National Anthem -- performed by Miami Beach resident and singer Nicole Henry.

In Miami Beach, where just 4 percent of residents are Black, commemorating Juneteenth was "not on our radar" politically, Arriola said.

"We have to do more, and we will do more," he said.

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