WHILE WE CELEBRATE FREEDOM, OUR FREEDOM IS CONDITIONAL

There have been many steps taken to ensure that we, blacks, obtained freedom. Yet, in 2020, we are still not free. Our lack of freedom is evident in American culture and has been for the last 400 years. While we know of some names of individuals who have been murdered as a result of inequality, racism, injustice, wrongful convictions, excessive sentencing, police brutality, and other forms of police misconduct, there are many names we will never know. Technology has allowed these tragedies to be revealed worldwide and has caused the justice system and those entrusted to uphold the justice system to face scrutiny. While lives have been lost, and years of time have been stolen, we never truly receive justice, equality, and/or reparations. While we have made significant strides, I’m not sure that we will ever receive what we truly deserve, or what our ancestors fought, bled and died for. This is not to discount the courageous and resilient efforts that have been made and will continue to be made towards equality. I am forever grateful for the freedoms I have been able to experience due to the work of my ancestors and living black crusaders. Their work hasn’t been in vain. While their work has not been in vain, there is still much more work to do.

We fought for our civil rights via marches, boycotts, sit-ins, protests, and riots. Some of the milestones against racism and inequality have been the Underground Railroad, the Montgomery Bus Boycott, and the Selma to Montgomery march, and the Million Man March. Some of the groups who have been instrumental in our efforts are the NAACP, UNIA, Black Panther Party, and Black Lives Matter. Our efforts have been somewhat dismantled by the majority via bombings, lynchings, murders, water hoses, attacks by dogs, vote tampering, imprisonment, etc. Despite the advancements we have made, we still face many racial disparities on every level which impacts both our livelihood and future generations’.

I recently watched Just Mercy as Warner Brothers made it free for the month of June. It broke my heart as all movies of its nature do. I watch them because I want to be aware of the systemic racism that has poisoned and still is poisoning America, yet the reality is painful and difficult to watch. We are guilty from birth simply for the color of our skin. It highlights the lack of integrity of our justice system and those who are entrusted to uphold the law. I remember my mother telling me at an early age that I have a double strike against me as a black woman. I didn’t know what she meant until I became an adult.

Photo Credit: Warner Bro’s Pictures/YouTube

The acting in the film was phenomenal and the honesty was brutal. I couldn’t help feeling emotional. The film highlighted Bryan Stevenson of the Equal Justice Initiative, the civil rights defense attorney who represented wrongly convicted death row prisoner, Walter McMillian. According to www.eji.org, McMillian had no criminal history and was self-employed, a husband, father, and an integral part of his community. He was placed on death row before his trial even though he had yet to be convicted of the crime of killing an 18-year-old white woman, Ronda Morrison in 1986 (34 years ago). He spent 15 months on Alabama’s death row prior to his trial, which only lasted for 1.5 days. McMillian had multiple people who could corroborate his alibi that he was 11 miles away from the crime at a church fish fry. He was convicted of capital murder and sentenced to life in prison without parole by an all-white jury. The elected trial judge overruled the jury’s verdict and imposed the death sentence by electrocution. McMillian spent 6 years on death row. Bryan Stevenson and the Equal Justice Initiative received death threats in the process of setting McMillian free. However, McMillian was released from death row as a free man in March 1993.

McMillan’s wrongful conviction gained national attention as it was a segment on 60 minutes. To date, Bryan and the EJI are responsible for assisting 160 individuals prove their innocence and get released from death row. Post-release, Walter went on to educate people about the death penalty and shared his experiences with students, community groups, and elected officials around the nation. McMillian once said, “Justice is forever shattered when we kill an innocent man”. Sherriff Tate, the lead on the case, was never removed from office even after Walter’s release; he went on to retire in 2019. Police, prosecutors, and judges are immune from judgments that require them to make restitution to people victimized by abuse of authority.

In regards to his experience on death row, McMillian stated, “I have suffered pain, agony, loss, and fear in degrees that I never imagined possible. The smell of someone you know burning to death is the most painful and nauseating experience on this earth.” His traumatic death row experience led to precious time lost with family and friends, freedom stolen, loss of his business, and an early onset of dementia, which stopped him from doing the things he loved 2 years prior to his death. Walter McMillian died on September 11, 2013.

Whites’ knees have always been on our necks, but unfortunately, it isn’t only whites; there are some blacks that go along with the whites’ knees on our necks also. George Floyd’s murder is a perfect example of this. As a black woman I have been a victim of racism, yet I cannot even begin to imagine the type of racism our beautiful and brilliant black men face because they are inherently dangerous criminals, violent thugs, and a forceful threat according to America. On June 19th, we will celebrate Juneteenth. It saddens me to say that I have known about Juneteenth for only 4 years and I am 31 years old. I purchased the book entitled Juneteenth for Mazie written by Floyd Cooper for my daughter from Amazon.com. As soon as it arrived, I read it to her with enthusiasm. I will ensure I read it to her periodically so she never forgets the freedoms we have and still are fighting for. I also purchased the Black History Flash Cards Volume 1 and 2 from Urban Intellectuals. I plan to add all of the volumes to my collection in the near future.

Photo Credit: Tieshka Smith for the Johnson House Historic Site, Philadelphia, PA

The freedoms we currently have are worth the fight, yet we cannot be equipped properly for battle without education and intentional action. We will not only celebrate our African American history and heritage in the month of February but every day of the year. It is my responsibility as a black woman, black mother, and black blogger to educate, empower, and engage regarding black culture past, present, and future. I am an avid black business supporter, and I will continue to support black business as long as there is breath in my body.

We have come a long way from June 19, 1865 when the soldiers proclaimed the end of the Civil War, slavery, and the emancipation of African American citizens throughout America. All but 4 out of the 50 states currently celebrate Juneteenth. This Juneteenth, without a doubt, will go down in history as blacks are utilizing their voice, power, and taking a stand against racism with intensity. As we celebrate the freedoms that we currently have, we must remember to continue the fight because our work is far from done. I cannot tell you how to fight, yet I can tell you to fight in a manner that will invoke change for blacks throughout America. While we celebrate freedom, our freedom as blacks is based on the conditions in which the white people (majority) want to give it to us. We are not free to jog, run, breathe, sleep, speak, listen to music, walk down the sidewalk, buy a pack of skittles, know our rights, reach for our driver’s license and registration, walk our dogs, deliver packages, kneel peacefully, protect our homes/businesses, etc. We must continue to press on towards the mark with hope, making it a better place for future black boys and girls who will grow up to become black men and women as our ancestors paved the way for the freedoms we currently have today.