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Historically, Water Bay already has been impacted by dredging in the 1960s. Haven't we learned yet to find better ways to expand our tourist product without major impact on our environment? | Historically, Water Bay already has been impacted by dredging in the 1960s. Haven't we learned yet to find better ways to expand our tourist product without major impact on our environment? | ||
- Olasee Davis is a Virgin Islands ecologist.</html> | - Olasee Davis is a Virgin Islands ecologist.</html> | ||
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| + | == Juneteenth reminds us of our freedom == | ||
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| + | <html>June 19, 1865 | ||
| + | The temperatures were climbing toward 90 and it wasn't mid-day yet. He just kept his eyes on his hands. He reached the end of the row and took a moment to stretch his back. He stole a glance at the distant horizon and something caught his eye. First, it was just a flash on the horizon. | ||
| + | Something made him look closer and he noticed a figure starting to take shape. He knew he had best not stand there looking too long, but Massa was being nice. Massa got few visitors and hardly no one came unannounced. | ||
| + | He went back to picking but kept glancing sideways to see the shape grow more distinct. Just as he realized it was a man on horseback, he felt the sting of a riding crop slash across his shoulders. He flinched and turned to see the overseer standing next to him. He warned him to stop daydreaming and get back to work. He kept picking and picking,[http://www.jerseys-hearts.com/Nike-Ravens-82-Smith-white-game-youth-2013-Super-Bowl-XLVII-Jersey-29717/ Nike Ravens 82 Smith white game youth 2013 Super Bowl XLVII Jersey], but still catching glances. Soon it was clear it wasn't just one man, but a whole group of them. They were all riding on horses and one of them was holding a flag. | ||
| + | They got closer still and he saw it was a Union flag. | ||
| + | He bent back down, but his hands weren't moving. What were Union soldiers doing here? He could tell the overseer was thinking the same thing. He ran off to the house. He and the other men just stood and watched as the soldiers rode up to the front of the house. He heard the bell that called everyone in from the fields. | ||
| + | When they reached they saw the Union soldiers standing on the porch. A man with a lot of gold braid and shiny buttons took out a paper and read some words. When he was done Missus started crying and a buzz went through those gathered in the yard. He was toward the back and didn't hear all that was said. It took a moment but the buzz reached the back. | ||
| + | Free! Did he hear that right? They were free! | ||
| + | The several of the soldiers followed the man with the paper back inside the house with Massa. The rest stayed on the porch. As the reality sunk in some began to whoop and holler and dance. One field worker dropped his sack and took off running towards the main road. He felt a rumble begin in his chest. It grew until he found himself laughing out loud. He laughed until he couldn't breath. Then he stopped and took a deep breath. He breathed in the fresh air of a free man. | ||
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| + | On that day, Union soldiers under the command of Major General Gordon Granger landed in Galveston,[http://www.jerseys-hearts.com/New-York-Jets-White-Women-s-Logo-T-Shirt-27440/ New York Jets White Women's Logo T-Shirt], Texas,[http://web.kaya.or.jp/cgi-bin/bbs/user05/bbs.cgi?page=0%2520%2520%2520%2520%2520%2520%2520%2520%2520%2520%2520Result:%2520chosen%2520nickname%2520%25 Selecting an SEO Companies Company - Gold Coast, A], and began to spread the word that the Civil War had ended and that all who had been enslaved were free. It stipulated "an absolute equality of rights,[http://www.daijingu.jp/keijiban/bbs/light.cgi?res=74482 What Martial arts Toronto Center Should You Check]," and that from that moment forward, there would be no more slave and master but employer and free laborer. Some left in search of family. Some headed North seeking their more stable idea of freedom. Some went further west in search of opportunity. Some stayed. | ||
| + | There are many theories as to why it took so long for the news to reach. | ||
| + | The holiday Juneteenth grew out of the commemoration of this event and as a chance to gather together with family to reconnect. It has continued through all these generations to become a cultural touchstone. It represents a revelation and a realization. Our freedom became a tangible thing. Our awareness of what that freedom could mean became the foundation on which we built upon to gain the strength we needed to get through Reconstruction, Sam Crowe, the civil rights movement, integration and beyond. | ||
| + | Some of our ancestors seized upon their newfound freedom as a way to strike out in the world. Some, however, stayed mired in the dysfunctional relationship with their now former masters, choosing what they know over what could be. They knew the law said they were free but they didn't know it. | ||
| + | That is a mentality that some of us perpetuate today. There are those who don't know we are free to be whoever we want to be. We are free to exercise the same rights as any other citizen of this country. We are free to demand that we be respected. We are free to think for ourselves and take responsibility for our own decisions. | ||
| + | Juneteenth reminds us that there will always be those who will seek to deny you your due so that they can have more than they deserve. There will always be those who seek to steal from you or to profit from your efforts. | ||
| + | We are free,[http://www.jugendportal-pankow.de/forum/viewtopic.php?p=74#74 Useful Search Engine Optimisation Tips], however, to protect ourselves and stand up for ourselves and be in charge of our own destiny. What we also need to remember is that we are free. Always have been, always will be. No paper can change that. | ||
| + | - Mariel Blake writes a weekly column for The Daily News.</html> | ||
