On Juneteenth, the BLIS Collective proudly hosted activists, artists and community leaders in the first ever Juneteenth Reclamation Day celebration, transforming the neighborhood of Williamsburg and parts of Brooklyn into a vibrant expression of Black and Indigenous liberation, resilience, creativity, and joy.
Organizers particularly focused on encouraging attendees to remember that we are all equal and of the real, harsh history of how America came to be:
“Your neighbor is not the reason your water is poisoned, that your healthcare is unaffordable, or that your families are buried in debt,” said Trevor Smith, Co-Founder and Executive Director of the BLIS Collective. “The people sitting beside you right now, the people struggling beside you right now are not your enemies. Regardless if they are cis or trans or gay or black or straight or Mexican or religious or atheist.”
Throughout the Juneteenth day, guests experienced an engaging lineup of live performances, local Black-owned businesses and vendors, as well as educational programming: community conversations, cultural exhibitions, and family-friendly activities. From film screenings to major panels, attendees had several ways to engage with a palpable energy. One in particular focused on the life of Juan Rodriguez, the first documented non-indigenous resident to live in Manhattan.
Joey
Around the corner, the Wythe Hotel Screening Room showed the film IINNIIWA: The Blackfeet Buffalo Story, an official selection of the Sante Fe International Film Festival. The film told the moving story of the rewilding of buffalo to the last intact grasslands in North America, proving that the only way to course correct our history is by taking action.
The Juneteenth Celebration in Brooklyn featured a performance by Joey Bada$$, was the co-headliner for “Reclamation Day,” where he delivered the closing performance of song selects from his acclaimed 2017 album, All Amerikkkan Bada$$. Joining Joey was Mato Wayuhi, a rising Native American artist and BLIS Collective member. This marked the first-time collaboration between BLIS Collective and Joey Bada$$.
An attitude that no one could deny was that media reparations and spreading awareness about the reparations knowledge gap (the perception of people who think we can win reparations vs those who support it) played a major role throughout the event.
“This is the work,” said Anshantia Oso, executive director of Media 2070, the movement behind Media Reparations. “It is joyful, but it’s also work and being in community with others is critical so that we can achieve this dream together.”
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