16 Jun Juneteenth: More Than a Celebration – A Resistance Against Erasure

June 19th marks more than just the emancipation of enslaved people in Texas; it’s a day that symbolizes Black liberation: the freedom of our minds, our consciousness, the honoring of our struggle, and the enduring fight for equality and justice.

However, now in 2025, Juneteenth arrives at a time when Black history is under attack. America was built on the exploitation of Black bodies for the power and greed of white slaveowners. Still, people are increasingly starting to devalue the truths and significance of Black history. 

The Trump administration has made repeated attempts to silence the truth of Black history by framing it as “divisive,” restricting curriculum, and actively removing federal support for programs that uplift our communities. From the erasure of the 1619 Project to the silencing of historical exhibits like Harriet Tubman’s Underground Railroad display, we are witnessing a disturbing and intentional attempt to whitewash American history. America has been failing Black people, our collective struggle, and our humanity. Humanizing Black Americans means recognizing our history in all of its aspects.

In April 2025, the National Park Service limited educational content about the Underground Railroad. And just this year, federal departments began restricting references to DEI, identity months, and the legal framework of critical race theory in universities through downplaying structural inequities and cutting funding that Black Americans receive. 

Nearly 60% of Black students are reliant on the Pell Grant to go into college. Cuts to Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) will greatly harm Black Americans, as 29% of Black Americans count on Medicaid for health insurance. About 40% of Black Americans occupy rental units through the Home Investment Partnership Program, so many Black Americans will be disproportionately affected. These budget cuts don’t just limit our presence in higher education, but they limit our ability to simply survive in America. This is not neutrality. It is a direct attack and blatant erasure.

Let’s not forget the roots of Juneteenth itself: the day commemorates when enslaved people in Galveston, Texas, learned of their freedom, more than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation. Juneteenth exists because the truth was delayed and denied. Today, that same denial continues through censorship, suppression, and silence.

Eliminating funding for Black housing programs, education, and health research is not accidental. It is systemic. It is targeted. And it is an assault on our voice, our visibility, and our value.

Yet, for centuries, Black Americans have proven that we are no strangers to resistance. From the Middle Passage (the forced journey of enslaved Africans across the Atlantic Ocean to the so-called Americas) to Jim Crow, from redlining to police violence, Black people have always risen. We’ve survived, resisted, and rebuilt again and again. Our ancestors fought so we could speak and take up space. Now, it’s our turn to fight, so we, as a people, can be heard.

This Juneteenth, I urge you to reflect on your role. Use your platform. Amplify Black voices and businesses. Educate yourself and others. Speak out on injustice, even when it feels uncomfortable. The fight for liberation isn’t just for Black people; it’s rather a fight for a more humane United States.

While the administration tries to assert that DEI is dead, that our stories lack value, and that they can rewrite history through the lens that they see fit, we are here. We’ve always been here. And on stolen land built with stolen labor, we not only belong, we lead and inspire. So I leave you with this: This is erasure. What will you do about it?

By Alexis Martin (she/her)

If you haven’t yet had the opportunity, make sure to order a copy of Elmer Dixon’s powerful memoir DIE STANDING: From Black Panther Revolutionary to Global Diversity Consultant and check out what others have been saying about Elmer and his story.

Check out these other opportunities to see what folks are saying about Elmer and his continued work.

• See Elmer speak at Stories from the Revolutions’ Front Lines at his keynote at TEDxUTulsa

• Listen to Elmer talk on NPR’s The Jefferson Exchange

• Read about Elmer’s story in a piece featured in The Seattle Times

• Listen to Elmer on The Medium