On a day filled with music, dance, prayers and praise, residents united for a Freedom Day Celebration at the Gifford Historical Museum & Cultural Center to commemorate Florida’s Emancipation Day.
Juneteenth is now a national holiday, commemorating that on June 19, 1865, slaves in Texas finally learned that on Jan. 1, 1863, two and a half years earlier, the Emancipation Proclamation ending slavery had become effective.
Less known, however, is that Florida had also withheld news of the proclamation.
The Gifford Freedom Day Celebration featured a reenactment of the May 20, 1865, day, when Union Brig. Gen. Edward M. McCook accepted the surrender of Florida’s Confederate troops in Tallahassee and read the proclamation declaring that enslaved people were free.
Event emcee Kevin Browning, radio host at 104.5 The Flame, pointed out numerous Gifford community leaders in attendance. Among them, Joe Idlette, the first Black elected to the Indian River County school board, where he served 20 years; Anthony Brown, president of the NAACP; A. Ronald Hudson, GYAC co-founder; and NFL players Kenny Holmes and Dale Dawkins. Two spry centenarians were also in attendance – Lenora Williams, 102 and Willie Mae Darrisaw, 101.
“To my knowledge, we have the only celebration on the Treasure Coast to recognize and celebrate this date, simply because people are not familiar with Florida’s enslaved history,” said Jonnie Mae Perry, event organizer and CEO of the Gifford Historical Museum and Cultural Center.
“We are here today to remember, to celebrate our ancestors. Because of who they were, we are,” said Perry.
Prior to the playing of Amazing Grace by Gifford Middle School student Jevon Grier, Perry noted that it had been written by John Newton, a former slave trader, ship captain and slave owner who later became an abolitionist.
“John Newton shows everybody how one can, with God’s help, make a change in their lives,” said Perry.
Browning said that despite advancements, issues regarding equality, education and social justice continue, with Black employees and students often denied access to the opportunities and equal pay needed to succeed.
“There’s still a lot of work to do,” said Browning. “The struggle is real. It’s Emancipation Day but we still have work to do.”
He stressed the importance of education, citing the need for children to be enrolled in voluntary Pre-K so that they are not behind when entering kindergarten.
On the subject of education, Eric Seymour, School District of Indian River County assistant superintendent, introduced David Moore, SDIRC superintendent, saying Moore had solidified a framework of change through the development and implementation of the district’s strategic plan.
Moore acknowledged the “living history” among the attendees that day, citing the need for a call to action to honor and respect those who paved the way.
“We cannot be complacent. We cannot stand still,” said Moore. “This sense of community that we feel here today should be everywhere, all throughout Indian River County. And that requires a solid public education system that teaches our children. We have to fight to make sure that all means all.”
Commenting that May 20 is a somber, reflective occasion, Anthony Brown, NAACP president, stated: “Ladies and gentlemen, stop this fantasy about standing on the shoulders; we’re standing on the graves of some great people who sacrificed for us to be afforded this partial freedom that we have.”
Brown questioned whether Black people are really free at a time when voting has been made more difficult and educators are now banned from talking about the history of slavery, or anything else related to race.
“A man that does not know his past cannot have a future,” said Brown paraphrasing Fredrick Douglass.
For additional information, visit GiffordHistoricalMuseumAndCulturalCenter.org.
Photos by Mary Schenkel
