More than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation was signed, slaves were still being held in Texas. Juneteenth is a remembrance of June 19, 1865, when those last enslaved people were finally told they'd been set free. Yet some Black lawmakers at the Statehouse said there are still challenges to achieving equality.
Rep. Terrence Upchurch (D-Cleveland), the leader of the Ohio Legislative Black Caucus, said the work for equality continues.
“Juneteenth is not just about reflecting on the past. It's about examining where we are today, because for far too long, too many Ohioans freedoms are still out of reach," Upchurch said.
Rep. Latyna Humphrey (D-Columbus) said Juneteenth is a time to remember and reflect but also to look at reality.
"Juneteenth is not just about reflecting on the past. It's about examining where we are today, because for far too long, too many Ohioans freedoms are still out of reach," Humphrey said. "A mother shouldn't have to choose between paying rent and buying groceries. A senior shouldn't have to skip medication because the prescription costs too much. A young person shouldn't have to grow up believing violence is closer than opportunity. Yet these are the realities families are facing every single day."
Humphrey said there is credible data that shows Black Ohioans are more likely to face poverty, lack health care and quality education, and have higher infant mortality rates, and that they're more likely to be incarcerated.
Rep. Darnell Brewer (D-Cleveland) said real freedom cannot be achieved under the current economic conditions.
"What does freedom mean?" Brewer said. "If a family works full time, it still cannot afford rent. What does freedom mean if a mother cannot access quality health care? What does freedom mean? If a child is shaped more by their zip code than their potential and their opportunity? What does freedom mean if returning citizens come home from prison in every work door, housing and dignity is closed?"
"That's why the next chapter of freedom must include economic freedom, because freedom has to reach the kitchen table. It has to reach the paycheck. It has to reach the classroom, the hospital room, the neighborhood. In every Ohioan trying to build a life with dignity," Brewer added.
Rep. Meredith Lawson-Rowe (D-Reynoldsburg) said Black Ohioans are more likely to be disenfranchised from voting under newly passed laws at the Statehouse.
"This should concern everyone," Lawson-Rower said. "A voter should not lose their voice because the mail ran late. A voter should not lose their voice because the rules changed in the middle of the game. A voter should not lose their voice because they live in a community where systems do not move as quickly or as reliably as they should."
The Democrats condemned the recent FBI action against the Ohio Organizing Collaborative last week.
"Let me be clear that the Ohio Legislative Black Caucus stands with the Ohio Organizing Collaborative. We stand with the organizers. We stand with the voters. We stand with every Ohioan who deserves to participate in democracy without fear of intimidation, because democracy cannot function if the people helping communities across the ballot are made to feel like targets," said Upchurch.
Rep. Dontavious Jarrells (D-Columbus) said the fight for freedom is not new and it is ongoing.
"It means understanding that freedom is never finished by one law, one court decision, one election, or one generation," Jarrells said. "Freedom has to be protected. Freedom has to be practiced. Freedom has to be expanded, and freedom has to reach the people who need it the most. Ordinary Ohioans are not asking for political theater. They're asking to live with dignity."
On Thursday, Sen. Hearcel Craig (D-Columbus) led a Juneteenth event at the Statehouse that spoke to some of the same sentiments his colleagues expressed earlier in the week.
"Let us continue to strive forward as an Ohioan, as an America where liberty, justice and opportunity are not aspirations for some, but realities for all," Craig said.
This was the third Juneteenth commemoration at the Ohio Statehouse, which included a raising of the Juneteenth flag. Various Juneteenth celebrations are being held throughout Ohio this weekend.
