BRYAN, Texas — The Brazos Valley African American Museum opened their doors to the public today to showcase the community's history on Juneteenth.
Attendees were able to watch a documentary and get insight on what makes the holiday significant through Carnegie Library, and many residents took this as a time to reflect on how the past has impacted their present.
"Juneteenth was called Freedom Day one time, it was called Jubilee Day, but basically, word arrived to Galveston, Texas, June 19 1865, that slavery had been abolished,” said Barry Davis, a board member of Brazos Valley African American Museum.
However for some residents, it’s a day that hit close to home.
“It’s the date my ancestors found our they were finally free because my great, great, great grandfather, Robert Jenkins, was from the Ocala plantation in Fort Bend County which people now call the Sienna plantation, that was the plantation where my family were slaves," explained local resident, Willie Blackmon.
This is a piece of history that community members want future generations to be aware of.
“To get that freedom, to come and go, to read, to be educated, sometimes I guess we can take that for granted because we’ve never had that denied to us,” said Davis.
A day like Juneteenth brings history to the present, and reminds residents to never forget the past thanks to places like the Brazos Valley African American Museum.
“It's to celebrate the fact that you are now free and you can go about your livelihood and do whatever you wanna do and carry forth your dreams and my dream became manifested in going to Texas A&M and becoming a distinguished alumnus and hall of fame athlete,” Blackmon said.
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