Let's Talk Cincy: A chat with the granddaughter of the woman behind Juneteenth's national recognition

Let’s Talk Cincy: A chat with the granddaughter of the woman behind Juneteenth’s national recognition

WLWT. THIS IS LET’S TALK CINCY, PRESENTED BY WESTERN AND SOUTHERN FINANCIAL GROUP. PUT OUR FINANCIAL STRENGTH BEHIND YOU. HELLO EVERYONE. I’M COURTIS FULLER AND WELCOME TO LET’S TALK CINCY. FOR THE FIRST TIME IN 15 YEARS, THE NATIONAL UNDERGROUND RAILROAD FREEDOM CENTER IS OPENING A NEW PERMANENT EXHIBIT. IT’S CALLED IN THIS PLACE. THIS EXHIBIT EXPLORES THE HISTORIC SIGNIFICANCE OF THE FREEDOM CENTER’S LOCATION ON THE BANKS OF THE OHIO RIVER. THE NEW EXHIBIT IS A TRIBUTE TO ALL OF THE FREEDOM SEEKERS WHO CROSSED THE OHIO RIVER. IT FEATURES HISTORIC PHOTOS, FOOTAGE AND ARTIFACTS. IN THIS PLACE IS PART OF AN OVERALL UPDATE OF EXISTING EXHIBITS AND PERMANENT EXPERIENCES. CURRENTLY UNDER DEVELOPMENT IS A GROUNDBREAKING SOCIAL JUSTICE EXHIBIT FOCUSING ON LOCAL AND NATIONAL SOCIAL JUSTICE MOVEMENTS FROM THE LATE 1800S TO THE PRESENT. THIS YEAR ALSO MARKS THE 30TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE FREEDOM CENTER FOR PEOPLE ARE BEING HONORED WITH THE INTERNATIONAL FREEDOM CONDUCTOR AWARD, WHICH RECOGNIZES THE CONTRIBUTIONS OF CONTEMPORARY INDIVIDUALS WHO REFLECT THE SPIRIT AND COURAGEOUS ACTIONS OF CONDUCTORS OF THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD. PREVIOUS HONOREES HAVE INCLUDED ROSA PARKS, NELSON MANDELA, PRESIDENTS BILL CLINTON AND GEORGE H.W. BUSH, FRED SHUTTLESWORTH, AND JUDGE NATHANIEL R JONES. THIS YEAR, ONE OF THE HONOREES IS KNOWN AS THE GRANDMOTHER OF JUNETEENTH, OPAL LEE. YOU CANNOT IMAGINE HOW JOYFUL HER HUMBLE, HOW MAGNIFICENT THE WHOLE THING HAS BEEN. THERE MAY BE SOME OF YOU WHO DON’T KNOW WHAT JUNETEENTH IS. THE ENSLAVED IN TEXAS WERE TOLD THEY WERE FREE FOR TWO AND A HALF YEARS AFTER THE EMANCIPATION PROCLAMATION FREED THEM. THEY’D WATCH IN THEIR CHURCHES AND THEY’D PRAY FOR FREEDOM TO COME. AND IT FINALLY DID. WHEN GENERAL GORDON GRANGER AND 7000 COLORED TROOPS FROM NEW JERSEY AND NEW YORK MADE THEIR WAY TO GALVESTON, TEXAS, AND HE READ GENERAL ORDER NUMBER THREE THAT SAID, ALL SLAVES ARE FREE. WHEN THOSE PEOPLE CAME IN FROM THEIR LABOR AND SOMEBODY READ THAT TO THEM, WE STARTED CELEBRATING. AND WE’VE BEEN CELEBRATING EVER SINCE. JUNETEENTH IS NOT A TEXAS THING. IT’S NOT A BLACK THING. WE’RE TALKING ABOUT FREEDOM FOR EVERYONE. UP NEXT, A CONVERSATION WITH THE GRANDDAUGHTER OF OPAL LEE ABOUT THEIR JUNETEENTH NATIONAL HOLIDAY JOURNEY. WHEN LET’S TALK CINCY CONTINUES. SO OPAL LEE IS A UNIQUE SO OPAL LEE IS A UNIQUE INDIVIDUAL. I’VE LEARNED A LOT FROM MY GRANDMOTHER. NOT IN THE GRANDMOTHERLY FASHION. THE ONE THAT COOKED FOR YOU AND TOOK CARE OF YOU WHEN YOU WERE SICK, AND THAT’S WHERE YOU STAYED. WHEN WHEN YOU GOT SICK FROM SCHOOL. THAT WASN’T THE GRANDMOTHER, ALL RIGHT. BUT MY GRANDMOTHER WAS ONE OF SERVICE. SHE AND I, AND I GET IT FROM HER. OUR LOVE LANGUAGE IS SERVICE. YOU KNOW I LOVE YOU BECAUSE I DO, YOU KNOW, AND I DON’T REQUIRE IT TO BE. AND I THINK THAT IS THE GRANDMOTHER. I KNOW. IT WAS ALWAYS SERVICE. YOU KNEW SHE LOVED YOU BECAUSE SHE WAS THERE, RIGHT? AND TO THAT END, WHEN YOU SEE HOW MUCH SHE LOVES HER COMMUNITY, HOW MUCH SHE LOVES PEOPLE, IT’S ALWAYS STILL BEEN ABOUT HOW SHE CAN HELP THEM. AND SO THAT’S THE GRANDMOTHER THAT I KNOW. SO I WANT FOLKS TO KNOW THAT SHE’S MORE THAN THE GRANDMOTHER OF JUNETEENTH. SHE’S A GREAT HUMANITARIAN. THE FIRST TIME I MET HER WAS PROBABLY ABOUT SEVEN YEARS AGO, AND I WAS AMAZED AT HER ENERGY THAT SHE HAD. THEN SHE WILL TURN 99TH OCTOBER, 7TH OCTOBER AND AND SHE STILL HAS A LOT OF THAT ENERGY. YES, SHE DOES WHAT MOTIVATES HER. WHEN YOU ASK MY GRANDMOTHER, YOU KNOW WHAT KEEPS HER GOING? SHE’LL TELL YOU, I HAVE A LIST AND I HAVEN’T COMPLETED MY LIST. I KEEP ADDING TO MY LIST EVERY DAY. SO AS LONG AS THERE’S SOMETHING ON THIS LIST FOR ME TO DO, I’LL GET IT DONE. ALL RIGHT? I MIGHT NOT GET IT ALL DONE TODAY. SO SHE JUST ROLLS IT OVER AND STARTS IT TOMORROW AND JUST ADDS SOME MORE STUFF, SHE SAYS. AS LONG AS YOU HAVE SOMETHING TO DO FOR SOMEBODY, YOU KNOW, YOU, YOU HAVE A REASON TO EXIST. AND I REALLY DO THINK IT’S WHAT REALLY KEEPS HER YOUNG. SHE THINKS ABOUT WHAT SHE HAS TO DO TO HELP SOMEBODY AND WHAT RESOURCES, WHAT CONNECTIONS, WHAT YOU KNOW, WHO CAN HELP THIS PERSON AND THAT KEEPS HER SHARP. AND SHE CAN RECALL PEOPLE’S NAMES AND THINGS IN WHICH SHE CAN’T. YOU CAN FIND IT WRITTEN DOWN SOMEWHERE, BUT THAT I THINK IF SHE HAD TO SIT DOWN AND JUST, YOU KNOW, TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF, YOU KNOW, THAT SHE WOULD WASTE AWAY QUICKER THAN IF SHE WAS BUSY DOING FOR PEOPLE. SHE TOLD ME ABOUT WHAT INSPIRED HER AND MOTIVATED HER. FOR THIS JOURNEY TO JUNETEENTH, A NATIONAL HOLIDAY, THIS WASN’T JUST SOMETHING SHE THOUGHT ABOUT ONE DAY AND SAID THAT WOULD BE A GOOD IDEA. I MEAN, THIS WAS OBVIOUS THAT THIS WAS ROOTED IN HER AND THIS WAS PART OF HER PURPOSE TO MAKE THIS A NATIONAL TO GET THIS TO BECOME A NATIONAL HOLIDAY. THE FIRST ONE IN OVER 40 YEARS. TELL THAT STORY. ONE THAT I KNOW THAT YOU’VE TOLD MANY TIMES ABOUT WHAT DROVE HER ON THIS JOURNEY OF JUNETEENTH. WELL, IT DEPENDS. ALL RIGHT. SOME SAY THERE WAS A SUBCONSCIOUSNESS IN HER BECAUSE OF WHAT HAPPENED IN 1939 TO HER FAMILY BEING PUT OUT OF THEIR HOME ON JUNETEENTH. BUT I REMEMBER WHEN THE STORY CAME TO BEAR, CAME TO LIGHT. IT WAS BECAUSE IN 2015, SHE HAD PETITIONED THE STATE LEGISLATOR LEGISLATURE TO COMMISSION A JUNETEENTH LICENSE PLATE FOR THE 150TH CELEBRATION OF JUNETEENTH IN TEXAS AND SHE HAD ASKED A GOOD FRIEND, BUD KENNEDY OF THE STAR-TELEGRAM, TO DO A STORY SO PEOPLE COULD KNOW TO PURCHASE A LICENSE PLATE. AND SO BUD, DOING HIS, YOU KNOW, RESEARCH ON EVERYTHING, CALLED ME UP. AND HE SAID DEON WAS GREENE YOUR GRANDMOTHER’S FATHER NAMED OTIS FLAKE. I SAID, YEAH, DO YOU KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT THEM BEING PUT OUT OF THEIR HOUSE ON JUNETEENTH? I SAID, NO, SHE’S NEVER TALKED ABOUT IT. AND SO I ASKED GRANDIERE. I SAID, GRANDIER WERE Y’ALL, YOU KNOW, PUT OUT OF YOUR HOUSE? WAS THERE A FIRE? WAS YOUR HOUSE DESTROYED? SHE SAYS, YEAH, I REMEMBER SOMETHING ABOUT THAT. YEAH. I SAID, DID YOU REMEMBER IT BEING ON JUNETEENTH? NOT PARTICULARLY. I JUST REMEMBERED THE COMMOTION. I REMEMBER THE PEOPLE I REMEMBER, YOU KNOW, THEM TELLING MY DAD, YOU KNOW, IF BECAUSE HE CAME FROM WORK, BECAUSE FOLKS HAD TOLD HIM WHAT WAS HAPPENING TO HIS FAMILY AND HE HAD A SHOTGUN AND TOLD HIM, IF YOU KNOW, YOU BUST A CAP AT ALL, I’M GONNA LET THIS MOB HAVE YOU, SHE SAID. I REMEMBER THAT HAPPENING. IT WAS ON JUNETEENTH. I SAID, YEAH, HERE’S THE NEWS ARTICLES. RIGHT? AND SO, SO TO SAY THAT THAT WAS THE CATALYST FOR HER IS NOT NECESSARILY TRUE BECAUSE IT DID HAPPEN, BUT HER FAMILY NEVER DWELLED ON IT. SO A SEED OF BITTERNESS WASN’T PUT IN HER IN THE DATE WASN’T MARKED. BUT WHEN YOU TAKE A LOOK AT HOW GOD ORCHESTRATES ONE’S LIFE, AND IF YOU SEE YOUR LIFE AS A TAPESTRY, SHE REMEMBERS CELEBRATING JUNETEENTH IN MARSHALL AS A CHILD, ALL RIGHT. AND THE FUN, THE FAIRGROUNDS OF IT ALL MOVING TO FORT WORTH. WE’RE NOT SO MUCH. THEY DIDN’T DO IT, YOU KNOW, YOU MIGHT CELEBRATE IT WITH YOUR FAMILY AND YOUR HOLMES AND STUFF THAT DIDN’T DO BIG JUNETEENTH. BUT WHEN YOU SEE THE THREAD OF HER LIFE BEING WOVEN TO COME FULL BOARD 85 YEARS LATER TO BE POSITIONED SO SOMEBODY’S GETTING GIVING YOU THAT LAND BECAUSE HABITAT FINALLY GOT POSSESSION OF IT, THEY DIDN’T KNOW IT IN THEIR INVENTORY. AND WHEN WE FOUND OUT THAT THEY HAD THE LAND AND WE SHE ASKED TO BUY IT, YOU KNOW, BACK, THEY SAID, NO, WE’RE GOING TO GIVE IT TO YOU. MATTER OF FACT, WE’RE GOING TO GIVE IT TO YOU AND BUILD YOU A HOUSE ON IT. SO THAT FULL CIRCLE, HER FAMILY WAS RESTORED TO PROPERTY THAT THEY WOULD RUN OFF ON ON JUNETEENTH 85 YEARS LATER, ON JUNETEENTH ISH, WE DID A LITTLE EARLY. SHE’S MOVING BACK INTO THAT HOUSE ON THAT PROPERTY. SO AGAIN, AS GOD’S WEAVING THIS STORY OF HER LIFE AND JUNETEENTH BEING A PROMINENT PART OF IT. YOU JUST HAVE TO TO WONDER, YOU KNOW, HE HAD HER EARMARKED FOR THIS JOURNEY, FOR THIS KNOWN, THIS MONIKER OF THE GRANDMOTHER OF JUNETEENTH, BECAUSE SHE HAD A LIVED EXPERIENCE IN IT. AND BUT IT DID NOT DRIVE HER, YOU KNOW, FOR WHAT PEOPLE WOULD SAY. THAT’S THE PASSION YOU HAVE. IT WAS JUST THERE, BAKED INTO HER TO BE THERE. SHE WALKED HERE IN CINCINNATI. SHE WALKED HERE IN CINCINNATI. SHE WALKED IN MILWAUKEE’S CITY AFTER CITY. SHE WAS WALKING. WHEN THE DAY FINALLY CAME. SHE’S IN WASHINGTON. SHE SEES THEM. PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN SIGNED THIS PAPER MAKING JUNETEENTH A NATIONAL HOLIDAY. WHAT? WHAT WAS HER FEELINGS AT THAT TIME? WELL, I KNOW MY CHEEKS WERE HURTING BECAUSE I WAS ALLOWED TO BE WITH HER IN THE ROOM IN THE IN THE WEST WING. I MEAN, NOT THE WEST WING IN THE ROWS. WHERE WERE WE? WHICH ROOM WAS THAT? THAT WE WERE IN? BUT WHEN PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN BOWED HIS KNEE TO TALK TO MY GRANDMOTHER, ALL RIGHT. AND SHE STILL WON’T TELL US WHAT HE WHISPERED IN HER EAR TODAY, SHE SAID, SHE SAYS, I’M TAKING THAT TO MY GRAVE. NO, I CAN HAVE SOMETHING. BUT THAT DAY, BECAUSE YOU HAVE TO UNDERSTAND, IN FEBRUARY WE DID A NATIONAL AT THE NATIONAL PRESS CLUB. WE DID A NATIONAL PRESS CONFERENCE, AND SHEILA JACKSON LEE CALLED US AND SAID, WE JUST PUT IT IN THE HOPPER, MISS OPAL. AND THAT MORNING THE SENATORS MARKEY, CORNYN AND TINA SMITH AND SAID, MISS OPAL, WE HAVE REINTRODUCED THE BILL ON THE SENATE FOR JUNETEENTH NATIONAL HOLIDAY. WE DID THE PRESS CONFERENCE, AND THAT WAS FEBRUARY. OKAY. TO GET A PHONE CALL FROM TINA SMITH ON THE 15TH OF JUNE THAT THEY HAD UNANIMOUSLY VOTED TO MAKE JUNETEENTH A NATIONAL HOLIDAY BECAUSE REMEMBER THE YEAR BEFORE, RON JOHNSON IN JULY OF 2020, HE WAS THE LONE NO VOTE. AND I HAVE TO TELL YOU, THIS THING, MY HUSBAND OKAY, SO WE DELIVERED OUR 1.5 MILLION SIGNATURES TO CONGRESS IN SEPTEMBER OF 2020. AND BECAUSE RON JOHNSON SAID NO, AND IT BASICALLY KILLED IT RIGHT WHEN WE DELIVERED, WE WERE GOING TO GIVE THOSE PETITIONS AND SIGNATURES TO THE VARIOUS STATE REPRESENTATIVES AND THINGS. WE SENT ALL 120, ALL THOSE BOXES OF SIGNATURES, 1.5 MILLION SIGNATURES TO RON JOHNSON’S DISTRICT OFFICE. MY HUSBAND AND I. BOXED STUFF UP AT FEDEX AND SENT IT RIGHT BEFORE WE LEFT DC. SO FOR HIM TO NOT TO GIVE UP HIS ONE NO VOTE, YOU KNOW, IN 2021, ON THE 15TH. AND FOLKS WERE CALLING US CONGRATULATIONS. I SAID, Y’ALL, WAIT A MINUTE. THAT’S JUST PART A, THAT’S ONE CHAMBER. WE STILL GOT TO GET THE HOUSE. AND I REMEMBER THE NEXT DAY, JOURNALISTS FROM PHOTOJOURNALISTS FROM CBS CAME AND SAID, HEY, I JUST WANT TO SIT OUTSIDE AND GET MISS OPAL’S INITIAL REACTION WHEN IT BE THE LAW PASSES. I SAID, YOU THINK IT’S GOING TO BE TODAY? HE SAYS, OH YEAH, IT’S UP. IT’S UP ON THE THING. AND SO HE SAYS, SO HE CAME IN THE HOUSE AT ABOUT 6:00. HE SAT OUT THERE FROM THREE UNTIL SIX, AND HE CAME IN AND WE PUT IT UP ON THE TELEVISION. I SAID, GRANDDAD, THE VOTE IS HAPPENING. AND BEFORE THE YEAS AND NAYS COUNTED ALL, I’M GETTING A CALL FROM THE WHITE HOUSE TO HAVE MISS OPAL THERE. THE NEXT DAY ON THE 17TH. AND SO AS SHE’S, YOU KNOW, PREPARING, YOU KNOW, TO GO BECAUSE I HAD TOLD HER WHEN WE STARTED THE WALK IN 2016, WHEN THIS BECOMES A NATIONAL HOLIDAY, YOU ARE GOING TO BE THERE, YOU’RE GOING TO BE THERE FOR THE SIGNING AND I FOR ALL OF THAT. PROPHETIC, YOU KNOW, STUFF. AGAIN, THAT TAPESTRY, YOU KNOW, LIKE THE BEAUTIFUL QUILT HERE BEHIND US. YOU KNOW, THE THOSE THINGS, YOU KNOW, IN HER LIFE LINING UP FOR HER TO BE THERE WHEN PRESIDENT BIDEN SIGNS IT TO GET THAT PIN HER OWN SELF. SHE’S ALWAYS SAID SHE’S HUMBLED. SHE WAS HUMBLED TO HAVE HAD THAT EXPERIENCE AND TO BE, YOU KNOW, ELEVATED, YOU KNOW, TO BE ASKED BECAUSE EVERYBODY WASN’T ASKED TO BE IN THE ROOM. MY GRANDMOTHER, THE BIBLE TELLS YOU NOT TO THINK MORE HIGHLY OF YOURSELF THAN YOU OUGHT. I DON’T THINK SHE THINKS HIGHLY ENOUGH OF HERSELF. AND AND SO TO THE HONOR ITSELF IS ONE THAT SHE REALLY WORKED TO GET HERE TO, TO BE A PART OF AND TO RECEIVE. AND, YOU KNOW, WE HAD HER MEDICAL SITUATION THAT HAPPENED. AND SO AND SHE SAYS, WELL, NOW YOU GO FOR ME, ALL RIGHT. AND YOU AND YOU TELL THEM I’M THANK YOU. YOU KNOW, THAT SHE WAS EVEN CONSIDERED BECAUSE THIS WAS A LONG TIME IN THE MAKING, YOU KNOW, NOT JUST THE FREEDOM CENTER ITSELF, BUT THE CALIBER OF PEOPLE THAT THEY HONOR. FOR HER TO BE A PART OF THAT HALL OF FAME, OF THOSE NAMES, FOR THE SIGNIFICANCE THAT THEY BROUGHT TO HUMANITY, NOT BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, THEY WERE, YOU KNOW, PATTED ON THE BACK OR, YOU KNOW, WANTED OR SEEKED OUT, YOU KNOW, TO BE HONORED OR LIFTED UP. BUT BECAUSE OF THEIR LIFE’S EXPERIENCE, WHAT THEY LIVED. AND SHE FITS THAT BILL, YOU KNOW, TO A TEE AS, AS A PRE-REQ IF THEY WERE TO DEFINE THE PREREQUISITES FOR CHOOSING SOMEONE FOR THE INTERNATIONAL FREEDOM CENTER AWARDS. SHE’S SHE’S, YOU KNOW, KIND OF BEEN ABLE TO CHECK ALL THOSE BOXES OFF JUST BY LIVING, JUST BY BEING PRESENT AND DOING WHAT SHE HAD TO DO TO TO BETTER THE LIVES OF OTHERS. SO I THINK IT’S BEFITTING. OF ALL HER GRANDCHILDREN, I’M OF ALL HER GRANDCHILDREN, I’M THE ONE I THINK THAT IS MOST LIKE HER AT HEART. AND SO WHEN WE STARTED THIS JOURNEY, AND WHEN I ASKED HER TO ALLOW ME TO HELP HER TO DO JUNETEENTH IN FORT WORTH IN 2014, 2015, BECAUSE WE WERE GETTING READY TO DO THE 150, I DIDN’T KNOW WHAT I WAS GETTING MYSELF INTO. QUITE HONESTLY, BUT THE LOVE OF THE CONCEPTS OF UNITY AND STRENGTH AND THE POWER OF THE INDIVIDUAL NATURALLY RESONATED WITHIN ME. AND I DIDN’T KNOW THAT WE WERE SO LIKE IN KINSHIP AND SPIRIT OF ABOUT HUMANITY UNTIL I GOT TO SPEND THESE LAST TEN YEARS OR SO WITH HER AND SEEING, YOU KNOW WHAT JUNETEENTH COULD BE, RIGHT? AND HER DESIRE FOR IT TO BE A UNIFIER, TO BE A HEALER OF HUMAN SPIRIT. THAT I WAS LIKE, YEAH, I CAN GET WITH THAT. I CAN GET WITH THAT. SO YEAH, IT’S IT’S A, IT’S A MANTLE THAT I WEAR PROUDLY. BUT IT, IT CAN BE HEAVY AND TIME CONSUMING BECAUSE YOU ARE NOT JUST THINKING ABOUT AN EVENT. ALL RIGHT? BECAUSE JUNETEENTH IS MORE THAN JUST RED SODA WATER AND BARBECUE AND CONCERTS. ALL RIGHT. WE HAVE TO SEE IT FOR WHERE IT’S GOING TO TAKE US. IT IS A TOOL FOR OUR FUTURE BECAUSE IT ALLOWS US TO NOW HAVE CONVERSATIONS ABOUT WHAT HAPPENED, TRUTHFUL CONVERSATIONS, AND ALLOWS US TO LET THAT DROP OF THAT ROCK THAT SLAVERY PUT INTO THE POOL OF LIFE, AND THE RIPPLE EFFECTS THAT ARE STILL REVERBERATING EVEN TODAY. YOU KNOW, TO BE ACKNOWLEDGED. AND SO WHAT DO WE DO ABOUT THAT? YOU KNOW, IT’S NOT ABOUT LIFTING THE ROCK BACK UP AS IF IT NEVER HAPPENED. CAN’T DO THAT. BUT THOSE RIPPLE EFFECTS THAT HAVE AFFECTED LIFE SINCE STILL NEED TO BE ACKNOWLEDGED. AND NOW WE GOT TO THINK ABOUT HOW DO WE REPAIR, WHICH IS WHEN WE GET INTO REPARATIONS, HOW DO WE REPAIR THE HUMAN SPIRIT, THE THE TEAR. RIGHT. SO BUT THAT’S WHAT JUNETEENTH IS. IT’S AN ACKNOWLEDGMENT BECAUSE YOU CAN’T ACKNOWLEDGE WHAT YOU DIDN’T. YOU CAN’T FIX WHAT YOU NEVER ACKNOWLEDGED. AND JUNETEENTH IS THAT ACKNOWLEDGMENT. SO NOW WE CAN TALK ABOUT THE EFFECTS AND THE REPAIRING OF THAT. SO UNITY UNLIMITED WAS OFFICIALLY FORMED IN 2000, AUGUST OF 2000, OUT OF A NEED THAT I SAW OF PREJUDICE AND DIVISION RE SURFACING IN YOUNG PEOPLE IS WHERE IT STARTED FOR ME AS A YOUTH MINISTER. AND SO I WANTED TO BUILD AND I DID BUILD A, A ACTIVITY, A SUMMER ACTIVITY THAT BROUGHT DIFFERENT RACES AND DENOMINATIONS TOGETHER SO THAT THEY COULD SING. MUSIC WAS THE MEDIUM. AND THEN IT BECAME NOT JUST CHOIR, BUT DRAMA AND DANCE. AND SO IT WAS A FINE ARTS WORKSHOP THAT BROUGHT DIFFERENT RACES AND CULTURES TOGETHER. AND SO WE DID THAT FOR TEN YEARS. AND SO IN 2014, WHEN I REACHED OUT TO MY GRANDMOTHER TO TO HELP HER WITH JUNETEENTH, I SAW THAT HER DESIRE FOR UNITY WAS WHAT PERMEATED SO THAT MELDED JUST FINE WITH THE MISSION OF UNITY UNLIMITED. AND SO AS WE BUILT TOGETHER THE TAKEN JUNETEENTH TO THAT NEXT LEVEL OF IT, STILL NOT JUST BEING A TEXAS THING, RIGHT? BECAUSE WE WERE PART OF THE NATIONAL JUNETEENTH OBSERVANCE FOUNDATION THAT HAD THE MOVEMENT TO MAKE IT A NATIONAL HOLIDAY. UNITY UNLIMITED ITSELF TAKING OVER THE LEGACY OF JUNETEENTH AND FORT WORTH. WHEN SHE ISSUED THE WALK AS HER CALL TO ACTION IN 2016, ELEVATING IT FROM JUST WALKING TO DC. WHEN WE GOT THE HOLIDAY, IT WAS FOR JUNETEENTH, BUT THAT DIDN’T SEEM LIKE THAT WAS ENOUGH. THERE WAS SOMETHING BROADER, SO NOW IT’S A OPAL’S WALK FOR FREEDOM, BECAUSE FREEDOM IS MORE THAN JUST JUNETEENTH. IT’S MORE THAN JUST A DAY IN THE SUMMER. IT FREEDOM IS 365, SO WE NEED TO WALK AND MAKE SURE FREEDOM PERVADES OUR EXISTENCE. AND WE HAVE TO DO ALL THAT WE CAN TO PROTECT IT. RIGHT. SO OPAL’S WALK FOR FREEDOM IS IS WHY IT’S NOT JUST FOR JUNETEENTH, FOLKS HAVE ASKED US TO DO WALKS IN THE UK BECAUSE THEY’RE BLACK. HISTORY MONTH IS IN OCTOBER, RIGHT? SO WHEN YOU THINK OF WALKING FOR FREEDOM, WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT WALKING FOR DEMONSTRATION, HEY, WE NEED TO DO AN OPAL’S WALK. YES YOU DO, YES YOU DO. SO THAT’S WHERE I’M HOPING THAT THIS LEGACY OF ADVOCACY GOES AND THAT WE ANNUALLY WALK EVEN WHEN MY GRANDMOTHER TRANSITIONS THIS EXISTENCE, WE WILL HAVE AN OPAL’S WALK ON JUNETEENTH FOR. AND SO THE VIRTUAL COMPONENT IS TO ALLOW PEOPLE TO WALK WHEREVER THEY ARE. IT’S NOT CONFINED TO JUST WALKING PHYSICALLY IN DFW, WHERE WE’RE GOING TO BE, OR IN 26 WHEN WE WALK IN DC FOR THE NATION’S 250TH BIRTHDAY, WE’RE GOING TO THAT’S WHERE SHE’S GOING TO DO THE WALK IN 26. BUT YOU CAN DO TWO AND A HALF MILES, AND IT HAS TO BE TWO AND A HALF MILES BECAUSE IT WAS TWO AND A HALF YEARS FOR ENFORCEMENT CAME TO TO GALVESTON FOR JUNETEENTH. BUT TEN TIMES AROUND THE HIGH SCHOOL TRACK, TWO AND A HALF MILES, YOU CAN SET YOUR GYM’S TREADMILL TO YOUR FIRST, EVEN IF YOU DO FIVE MILES A DAY. LET YOUR FIRST TWO AND A HALF ON THE 19TH OF JUNE BE FOR JUNETEENTH. ALL RIGHT, AND THEN POST IT. WE HAVE A HASHTAG STRATEGY, A VIRTUAL REGISTRATION. THEY CAN GET THEIR COMMEMORATIVE T SHIRT, DON THAT T SHIRT. DO YOUR POST ALL RIGHT. AND GO LIVE ON THE 19TH OF JUNE TO SHOW THAT THE NATIONAL HOLIDAY HAS THE SUPPORT OF THE NATION. GREAT STORY. WELL, THAT DOES IT FOR THE PROGRAM TODAY. THANKS FOR JOINING US. I’LL SEE YOU NEXT TIME FOR ANOTHER EDITION OF LET’S TALK CINCY. UNTIL THEN, HAVE A GOOD DAY AND A BETTER DAY TOMORROW.

Let’s Talk Cincy: A chat with the granddaughter of the woman behind Juneteenth’s national recognition

A conversation with the granddaughter of the woman whose advocacy is credited with making Juneteenth a national holiday.

CINCINNATI —

A conversation with the granddaughter of the woman whose advocacy is credited with making Juneteenth a national holiday.