Dr. Claude Williams,
director of community outreach services in communications and development, welcomed participants and Jannet Marshall, research assistant I in oral and maxillofacial surgery/pharmacology, introduced the speaker.
Jackson presented "The Importance of Juneteenth in Texas History," which chronicled the events surrounding the proclamation's announcement, the impact it had then and the effect it has today. Notably, the proclamation
was first read to slaves in Galveston. From there it moved plantation to plantation – and took several years – as Union soldiers, and later, Northern-controlled government representatives, traveled across the state to
spread the news."The issue is not so much when we (African-Americans) got the word, but that
we got the word," Jackson emphasized. "The veil of ignorance was lifted and that is when we began to recognize our value as human beings again." Jackson, a dynamic speaker, engaged the audience with accounts that are
largely left out of history books. He also related how the changing cultural climate is leading to greater understanding of that time period as well as the significance culture plays today. "Public policy changes
quickly but culture is slow to change," Jackson said. "We must recognize that, but we must not let it keep us from fixing the problems. "What is man? We are all here together on this little speck of dust (the earth)
orbiting a minor sun that is one of billions of stars in our minor galaxy, which is one of billions of galaxies in our great universe," he continued. "We don't have time to hate. We must use what we've learned to
continue to learn, to remove barriers and to soar to the highest heights."
|
