Today is Juneteenth, the oldest nationally recognized commemoration of the end of slavery in the U.S. Historically, Black Americans have observed this day with their families and communities in many forms, from parades to plays, public readings to museum trips, barbecues to big family meals.
Today, President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris signed into law a bill establishing Juneteenth National Independence Day – a day that represents an opportunity for all Americans to educate themselves on what this day means for our past, present and future.
Juneteenth is a valuable time to ask questions, engage in dialogue and continue to make changes that can drive real impact by reconnecting with our shared history, reconsidering our legacy of systemic injustices and continuing our support of Black people and culture.
At Honest, we continue to prioritize and strive toward diversity and inclusion. While we’ve made progress over the past year, we know there’s much more work to be done. We’ve listened and learned from our employees, especially our BLAC Employee Resource Group, which represents the Black community and our allies for the culture, and are committed to continuing to do so.
Through listening to our team, we know there is a continued desire for education inside (and outside) our walls around systemic racism and allyship. Thanks to the contributions of employees across the organization, we have compiled the below list of resources to read, watch, listen and learn from.
COMING TOGETHER
If you’re in the Los Angeles area, you can check out these events:- Leimert Park: Leimert Park Rising
- Venice: Juneteenth Food Celebration hosted by Food Tribe
- Downtown: Juneteenth Concert
- Virtual (6/15): Juneteenth Celebration
- Altadena: Juneteenth Freedom March and Celebration
- West Hollywood: Juneteenth Comedy Show
- Santa Monica: Juneteenth Blk Gala
- Long Beach: JUNETEENTH CELEBRATION FREEDOM + UNITY
READ
- On Juneteenth X Annette Gordon-Reed
- The Sum of Us: What Racism Costs Everyone and How We Can Prosper Together X Heather McGhee
- The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness X Michelle Alexander
- The Condemnation of Blackness X Khalil Gibran Muhammad
- From Slavery to Freedom X Gerry Spence
- Black Smoke X Adrian Miller
- Invisible No More: Police Violence Against Black Women and Women of Color X Andrea J. Ritchie
WATCH
- Systemic Racism Explained
- Vox: Why All Americans Should Honor Juneteenth
- NPR: Throughline - History of Policing in America
- The Washington Post: Perspective - The Origins of Policing in America
- PBS "Frontline" - Policing the Police
- The Brookings Institution - Reflections on Police Brutality and Racial Violence in America
- The Ugly Earthling - Black Liberation is Feminism: Police Brutality and the Erasure of Black and Trans Women
- High on the Hog: How African American Cuisine Transformed America - Freedom
We aim to provide you with the most honest and credible information possible. This article was reviewed for accuracy by The Honest Team and was written based on trusted sources that are linked at the bottom of the article.
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