Shout out to Usher for his bold move at the 2015 Essence Festival by wearing a T-Shirt with the words July Fourth crossed out and Juneteenth under it. It might not seem like much to you, but it is a big deal because we believe it is a signal that even the black entertainment community are awakening.
Just in case you have never studied any black history, Juneteenth is an annual festival celebration held on June 19th by African Americans to commemorate the emancipation of the so called slaves of Texas in 1865.
The so called slaves were freed on September 22nd, 1865 and officially January 1st 1863, but many were not notified of this in the south until months later in June. This is where the celebration of Juneteenth comes from in the deep south and the practice is still around today.
Usher, who is from Dallas, Texas, wore the t-shirt under a jacket when he walked onto the Essence stage to perform for the crowd. The black leather jacket had these words on the back, “Have we truly achieved our independence?
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Usher, who is from Dallas, Texas, wore the t-shirt under a jacket when he walked onto the Essence stage to perform for the crowd. The black leather jacket had these words on the back, “Have we truly achieved our independence?”
When Usher took his jacket off to reveal the Juneteenth t-shirt, the crowd of African-Americans erupted into celebration. Pictures were quickly taken, uploaded to social media outlets and people really embraced the moment.
With all the struggle and strife the black community is experiencing in this country with the church burnings, massacres, police killings of unarmed black men, injustice in the justice system and much more, it is wonderful and refreshing to have a celebrity conscious enough to remember the struggle the rest of us are in today.
My question to you is do you think this will be a signal for a rebirth to consciousness and focus on the black agenda by black people?
There is no such thing as a so called slave….in Dallas in 1865. They were slaves. I always liked Usher and I respect him alot more. And who cares if he is Haitian or of Haitian decent he is a black man in America fully Woke.
Are you?