Juneteenth: A Framework for True Liberty and Justice for ALL!

June is for Juneteenth , pride month, and men's mental health awareness too! We have been honoring the legacy that is Juneteenth this whole week here in the Capitol of Pennsylvania; commemorating the day soldiers, including many colored troops, journeyed on to Galveston, Tx along with General Gordon Granger to tell the last remaining enslaved African descendants that they had already been emancipated -that their freedom was way overdue!??

Juneteenth is not just about a singular day, it is a framework that reminds us of the importance of not leaving folks behind; to remember the remnants among us, those cast away deemed as forgettable by the powers that be. Juneteenth is a call for true liberation for all; especially those that are most marginalized and oppressed among us. This is why the struggle for liberation must be an intersectional one. This has become more evident even amongst our Kenyan brothers an sisters who rose up to protest the recent finance bill and put aside tribal affiliations to band together for the common civilian's concerns.

Speaking of liberty and Justice for all, Malcolm X said the Palestinian struggle is “not just a cry for justice. It’s a blistering battle for the most fundamental human rights that every living soul on this planet should inherit by birthright. It’s an unyielding resistance against the oppressive suffocating grip of occupation and the callous denial of the most basic human dignity. Just as the civil rights movement in the United States fought against the chains of racial discrimination, so too do the Palestinian people.”?

We cannot advocate for our brothers and sisters in Palestine without acknowledging the many others still unfreed across the globe; victims of proxy wars that fuel the necrocapitalistic greed of the military-industrial complex; while depleting valuable resources in mineral rich nations. Be it in Palestine, Sudan, Tigray, or the Congo, the western hegemony has for far too long destabilized these nations for capitalistic greed and today we come together to say no more to this brutality, especially as it is our hard-earned tax dollars that fuel these violent atrocities?

Over seven million Sudanese people have been internally displaced and over two million more have moved to neighboring countries; including South Sudan , Chad , Egypt , Ethiopia and the Central African Republic. More than a third of Sudan’s 48 million people are acutely hungry, and nearly 230,000 malnourished children could die in the coming months if they don’t get food and health care. Food is nourishment for the body, love is nourishment for the soul, and? both are desperately needed in this season -as many would agree, food is a Love language.

Just as folks across this nation continually ask for God's grace to shine across these stolen indigenous lands 'from sea to shining sea,' many across the globe decree from the Jordan river to the Mediterranean Sea, Palestine must be free; free from the ongoing occupation, colonization, apartheid and genocide. Because, last I checked, these United States were to be rooted and governed in the principle of democracy -power by the people, for the people to the people; that is the only way to achieve true justice. Even as Bell hooks stated, "Justice demands integrity. It’s to have a moral universe — not only know what is right or wrong but to put things in perspective, weigh things. Justice is different from violence and retribution; it requires complex accounting."

Today, we wrap up Juneteenth week 2024 celebrating International Women in Engineering Day -a day dedicated to honouring the achievements of women in engineering and recognizing the powerful bonds and collaborations that drive innovation. Did you know,? Black engineers across the USA make up approximately five percent of our professional industry?! Today, I got to stand in solidarity with fellow activists calling for true liberation and justice at home and across this globe. As a Black engineer, I am ever mindful of the mission of the National Society of Black Engineers which is to is "to increase the number of culturally responsible Black engineers who excel academically, succeed professionally and positively impact the community." To me, this is simply another day of living the mission & centering the human element of engineering. As always, the question remains, how are you moving beyond performative diversity, and the status quo of comfort and complacency?

#BeyondPerformativeDiversity #FreePalestine #EyesOnSudan #FreeCongo #FreeTigray