Today is Juneteenth, a celebration of what many consider to be a “second independence day” for black Americans. And their independence started with President Abraham Lincoln issuing the Emancipation Proclamation.
The National Museum of African American History and Culture describes Juneteenth this way:
“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 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 spreading the news of freedom in 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 [several months after the South surrendered to the North ending the Civil War], 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.”
But on this second independence day, what about the young learners who happen to be African American and are trapped in low performing traditional schools? There are millions of them.
How independent is someone when they cannot read, write, or problem-solve?
How independent is someone who doesn’t understand how to build relationships and networks to support their own learning?
How independent is someone who doesn’t know how to define, plan, execute, and evaluate their own learning?
Some think the freedom to learn is the civil right of the 21st century. If it is, then what does that say about our traditional school system when millions of black, brown, and poor kids do not possess the abilities to become their own independent learners?
When I started teaching in Houston, Texas in the mid-1980’s, there were too many black majority schools identified as low performing. When I retired in 2018 and left Texas, many of those same black schools never showed improvement. Generations of young African Americans were failed by the traditional K-12 system. And sadly, that story continues today, not just in Texas but across the country.
So on this Juneteenth celebratory day, let us commit to inventing a new learning system for those African-American children trapped in bad schools, and others just like them, so they can become life-long learners and finally attain the most important civil right of our lifetime – learning and all the benefits that come with it.
Happy Juneteenth!
Til tomorrow. SVB
A Better Path to Learning 
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