Juneteenth in ATHENS Athens-Clarke County Mayor Kelly Girtz speaks about the local Juneteenth celebration being planned for this national holiday and the impact it will have on Athens. STORY BY AUDREY ST. ONGE Variety Staffer LAYOUT BY AUDREY ENGHAUSER Print Editor-in-Chief
Variety Staffer Audrey St. Onge: Why does Juneteenth matter?
Athens-Clarke County Mayor Kelly Girtz: In the United States, like in so many societies, you had people who were not just marginalized or under-resourced, but people who were enslaved, who were treated as subhuman. In today's language, there were severe human rights violations occurring on a daily basis. So if we pride ourselves on being open-minded and honest people, if we'd be honest about these past traumas, that leads to the opportunity to be open about today's traumas and for us to seek solutions to that.
AS: Why does Juneteenth matter specifically to the people in Athens? KG: While we're really excited about having made some strides in Athens and in the nation, we also have to recognize that we still have strides to make around uniform availability of employment, uniform availability of housing, creation of wealth or deterrence from incarceration. There are a lot of elements of our community and society where we still see disparities between Black and white Americans and other minorities (and) people of color and so, by celebrating Juneteenth, what we're also doing is recognizing that we've made changes in the past that have been positive. If changes have been made in the past, we can continue to make changes for (the) mutual benefit of all in society.
Above: RECOGNIZING IMPACTS: Athens-Clarke County Mayor Kelly Girtz stands in front of the bus loop at Clarke Central High School on March 25. Girtz wants to recognized the importance of Juneteenth and highlight its impact. "I recognize that Juneteenth was probably an under-recognized celebration until recent years, when there's been a sort of burgeoning and broadcasting desire to highlight and recognize every step in our social and legal evolution. So, I'm glad that Juneteenth is becoming a much more recognized and much more celebrated date," Girtz said. Photo by Lucas Donnelly
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