New York State Assembly Speaker Carl. E. Heastie organized a Juneteenth rally and march in Olinville for Bronx Community Board 12 residents on Friday, Jun. 19. He was joined by approximately 100 people who marched from 213th Street to the junction of Gun Hill Road and White Plains Road, along with New York City Public Advocate Jumanne Williams, City Councilman Andy King, Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr., and Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark.

 

The rally was held in honor of the annual, unofficial Juneteenth holiday, the oldest nationally-celebrated commemoration of the ending of slavery in the United States. This year, the day was even more poignant, and held even more significance in the context of the ongoing calls for racial equality following the death of George Floyd at the hands of police in Minneapolis on May 25.

Earlier on Friday, as reported by Norwood News, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio announced that Juneteenth would become an official City and school holiday. He also announced additional steps the City was taking to address the disparities and structural racism that have been exposed by the COVID-19 pandemic, including the creation of a new commission to understand the effects of structural and institutional racism in New York City.

 

A Racial Justice and Reconciliation Commission (RRC) will be established to promote social learning, collective introspection, and policy action. In addition, the Commission will create a historical record of racial discrimination, with an emphasis on housing, criminal justice, environmental racism and public health.

The aim of the RRC will be to examine how certain forces have shaped the physical and social geography of the City and provide a platform for New Yorkers to share their personal experiences and to participate in policy deliberations. The City will work with the Commission to identify and examine focus areas where discrimination has manifested, including housing, criminal justice, environmental justice, education and place-based disparities.

 

No major U.S. city or state has undergone a comprehensive truth and reconciliation process. New York City will model this process after universities and other nations, such as the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) which was orchestrated by then-President Rolihlahla Mandela and held in the wake of the apartheid era.

 

Kamala Harris, Democratic Senator from California and possible Vice Presidential pick by presumptive Democratic Presidential nominee, Joe Biden, last week called for Juneteenth to become a federally recognized holiday.

In the wake of these and other State and City law reform announcements made last week, Friday evening’s event was a celebratory one, as a DJ played music from a U-Haul truck and people laughed, sang and danced through the streets.

 

Later, there were some speeches by elected officials. Williams was keen to point out that although the Black Lives Matter movement was not solely focused on policing, it was necessary nonetheless to continue to re-define what exactly public safety really means.

 

Earlier the same week, the Office of the Attorney General began holding a series of public video hearings, viewable via the office’s website ag.ny.gov/livestream, to investigate interactions between police and the public during recent Black Lives Matter protests. 

 

Members of the public provided written and oral testimony relevant to the investigation. Attorney General Laetitia James will review all testimony, both written and oral, as part of the investigation including that submitted by the NYPD who also participated in the hearing earlier this week. 

 

At Friday’s event, Williams also took the opportunity to commend Heastie publicly for his previous stance on bail reform, saying that Heastie had been to the left of Williams on that issue, before finishing off his speech saying, “Peace and Blessings Everyone and Happy Juneteenth!”.

 

Also participating in the event was North Central Bronx Hospital Executive Director Cristina Contreras, along with colleagues Alex Hernandez and Gloria Bent.

 

Other notable attendees included Kenny Agosto, Deputy Chief of Staff and District Director to Senator Jamaal T. Bailey, while King was seen handing out Juneteenth t-shirts to the crowd.

 

Participants later took a knee for eight and a half minutes in remembrance of George Floyd, some bowing their heads in a gesture of respect and others raising their fists in the air in a Black Power salute.

Overall, the mood was relaxed and the atmosphere was imbued with a sense of fun, peace and kindness, with everyone seeming to get along. Police officers carried out their duties in a peaceful, kind manner as the crowd marched on one side of the street while police controlled traffic behind them.

 

Police were seen guiding people along with a smile and a kind gesture. When the group reached their destination, there was a table of Chicken and Beef Patty waiting for them.