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The first of two McMinn County Juneteenth events took place at Tennessee Wesleyan University Friday evening with guest speaker Clifton Taulbert.

Juneteenth is now a federal holiday in the United States that commemorates the emancipation of enslaved African-Americans.

Though the holiday has only recently been recognized nationally, Juneteenth has been celebrated annually in African-American communities throughout the United States since the first event that took place in Galveston, Texas on June 19, 1865.

Taulbert initiated his presentation by sharing a few memories, one in particular was about how change occurred in his life at a young age.

“Surrounded by cotton, I thought that these fields would be the only world that I would ever know,” Taulbert said. “But my reality was interrupted and because my reality was interrupted, more than 60 years ago, I am your guest speaker tonight. Because somebody else thought that I mattered.”

Taulbert expressed his belief to the crowd that every person is capable of making a powerful impact in the lives of others for the better.

“We are the elders now. We often look back and we remember our elders, we remember their names and what they have done with our lives but where are those people now,” Taulbert questioned the crowd. “Oftentimes we forget that we are those people. Their message is gone but their resilience and the lessons that they have reside in us.”

Taulbert stated that Juneteenth wasn’t a new holiday but a continued celebration of their family, friends and how their world changed in 1865.

“After 1865, the power of kinship erupted in gathering of family and friends,” he stated. “Names were chosen, last names because slaves didn’t have last names. They were given first names but no last names, but the last name represented the plantation where they worked and had children.”

He noted that by adopting the last name of the plantations it was easier for people to find their family and friends.

“It was a strategic decision — that way they could find their family and everyone knew who they were,” he noted.

Taulbert also addressed his belief in the ability people have to work together.

“Nobody accomplishes anything in life on their own,” Taulbert said. “When you think about that, that means that all of us gathered here has a job to do because somebody needs us to walk into their lives and make a change.”

Taulbert informed the crowd that the celebration of Juneteenth was about more than just a day.

“Juneteenth isn’t about the celebration of a day. It is about the celebration of life,” he expressed. “Life shared together, family finding family, friends finding friends. It’s all of that. It has been my pleasure speaking to you.”

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