CELEBRATING JUNETEENTH

Celebrating Freedom and Recognizing Black History in the Rio Grande Valley

by Jillian Cameron | photos provided

Slavery officially ended in the United States on June 19, 1865. Federal troops came to Texas to deliver the important message of the Emancipation Proclamation, occurring two years prior. This news meant freedom for all slaves. That day became known as “Freedom Day,” “Emancipation Day,” and most commonly, “Juneteenth.”

The goal of Village in the Valley is to connect people across the Rio Grande Valley. Village in the Valley was created in 2019 by Dr. Theresa Gatling, physical therapist and co-pastor, her husband Pastor Alphonzo Gatling, Masha Terry, RN, and her husband Dr. Onuwa Terry, a physical therapist.

“I believe that it is very important that we remember, as Black Americans, what our ancestors have done and gone through so that we can see how far we've come, we can see our progress, and we can also see what we need to work towards,” Dr. Gatling said.

Sabrina Walker Hernandez, President and CEO of Supporting World Hope and bestselling author of “SuccessOnomics,” serves on the boards of directors for Village in Valley and is part of the Juneteenth celebration planning committee.

“You definitely will get educated,” Hernandez said about the Village in the Valley Juneteenth celebration.

Hernandez added that the keynote speaker for this year’s celebration would be Dr. Natasha McNeely, Assistant Professor of Political Science at The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV).

“Her specialty is in civil rights and voting,” Hernandez explained. “She also specializes in how politics affect women.”

Hernandez described the celebration as a “gala with a purpose.” She added that there will be scholarship opportunities for graduating seniors, and different programs offered by the local school district.

“I’m from Canada and moved to the United States in the late 1990s,” said Marsha Terry, Co-Founder of Village in the Valley and Administrator of Terry Physical Therapy. Terry discussed her Juneteenth experience and why she is passionate about educating others about the holiday.

“I heard about Juneteenth two years after moving here,” Terry said.

“I think it’s important for all Black people, regardless of where you come from in the world, to understand the impact of the holiday in Texas. Blacks in Texas received their freedom two and a half years later, June 19, 1865, after the Emancipation Proclamation which was issued on Jan. 1, 1863. This impacted their ability to work, get a fair education, and access to suitable housing.”

Texas has a rich history of slaves gaining freedom. That freedom happened here in the Rio Grande Valley through the Underground Railroad.

“The Underground Railroad came through South Texas into Mexico because Mexico abolished slavery in 1829,” said Dr. Francisco Guajardo, Museum of South Texas History CEO and last year’s Juneteenth celebration keynote speaker.

“In the 1830s, slaves in Texas and slaves in Louisiana went South instead of going North,” he said.

Dr. Guajardo explained how thousands of slaves ran to Mexico to find freedom and passed through the Rio Grande Valley, where local landowners helped them.

John Webber was one of those landowners and one of the very few who owned a ferry. He married and bought the freedom of Silvia Hector, an enslaved Black American, and adopted her children. He then used the ferry to transport slaves to Mexico to find freedom. The Jackson Ranch played a similar role.

“Nathaniel Jackson [was] a slave owner's son, [and his wife] Matilda was owned by his dad. He fell in love with her. He married her and moved to get away. He gave her her papers [to be free],” Dr. Guajardo said, and added that they helped ferry people across the border.

The Rio Grande Valley has a rich Black history. To learn more, attend the Village in the Valley’s Juneteenth Perfecting Unity Celebration on Saturday, June 10, from 6 to 11:30 p.m., at the Edinburg Conference Center at Renaissance.