Lawson highlights Juneteenth’s meaning
Joe Lawson reflected on the meaning of Juneteenth and the ongoing work toward racial justice during a special program at the Sussex Family YMCA June 12.
The presentation by the executive director of the Southern Delaware Alliance for Racial Justice was followed by a question-and-answer session and light refreshments.
Juneteenth, celebrated each June 19, marks the day in 1865 when enslaved people in Texas were informed of their freedom. This was more than two months after the Civil War ended. With that being said, Delaware was the only Union state that did not ratify the 13th Amendment during the war, meaning the state’s enslaved people remained in bondage until December 1865.
This history of resistance resonates deeply with Lawson, whose great-grandparents were born into slavery in Georgia and later gained their freedom. Their journey from enslavement to land ownership, followed by forced migration due to racial violence, carries special significance with Lawson.
“These are my great-grandparents,” said Lawson. “That's not great-great-grandparents; it's not great-great-great-great-great-grandparents; it's great-grandparents, so it wasn't that long ago.”
Lawson also shared his personal connection to the YMCA, where he first learned to swim as a child growing up in Los Angeles. Reflecting on those early experiences, Lawson credited the staff and programming with instilling a sense of confidence and community that helped shape his path.
“The first place I ever took swimming lessons was the YMCA,” said Lawson. “Woo! Indoor pool. I walked around as a little kid like, ‘Wow! This is really cool!’ We had lots of activities; people taught us stuff and they set a good example for us.”
Today, as SDARJ executive director, Lawson channels that legacy into a broad range of community-focused programs. SDARJ is a nonprofit volunteer organization founded in June 2015. Its racial justice seminars, now in their sixth year, bring together residents of all backgrounds to confront bias and build mutual understanding. The group also supports local students through scholarships and academic recognition programs in both the Indian River and Cape Henlopen school districts. SDARJ engages in legislative advocacy and hosts public town halls on urgent social issues.
SDARJ marked Juneteenth by continuing its mission of education, advocacy and community empowerment across all of Sussex County.
“All this is connected all the way back to Juneteenth because ... we're still struggling as a country with the racial issue,” said Lawson. “We're way ahead of where we were June 19, 1865, but not where we should be.”
SDARJ also publishes a quarterly magazine, titled Black Voices. It is the only regularly published periodical in the region dedicated to racial equity, created by and for the local community.
“As we celebrate the physical freedom and liberation of African Americans 142 years or so ago, we have [worked] and have to continue to work to free us from this harmful, terrible ideology that divides us, that creates strife, division, hate, misery that unfortunately, some of us, not all of us, are still laboring under,” said Lawson.
For more information, go to sdarj.org.
