Did you know that there are two Emancipation Parks that I know of? In Houston, Texas and Kingston, Jamaica.

EMANCIPATION PARK, Houston, Texas

June 19, 1872, was the day that the enslaved people of Texas learned they were free legally- long after (2 years!) the Emancipation Proclamation was signed by President Abraham Lincoln: The holiday became known as Juneteenth in the US.

"Black people freed themselves"

"According to Britt Hawthorne "Enslaved Black folks did fight back. They resisted captivity through various actions such as escape, organized rebellions, planned revolts, abolition, self-education and more.

The first official Juneteenth celebrations were held on June 19, 1866, in Galveston Bay Texas.

Black Americans espeically in Texas, often celebrate with community festivals, but education and civic engagement -- like registering to vote -- are also central to Juneteenth's commemoration."

+ Britt Hawthorne, Best selling author and speaker.

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This episode was inspired by the following book about Emancipation Park in Houston, Texas

They Built Me For Freedom: The Story of Juneteenth and Houston's Emancipation Park by Tonya Duncan Ellis and Jenin Mohammed, illustrator.

Thank you so much Ashley Causey-Golden for reading I Am a Park. Check out Ashley, aka Afrocentric Montessori - HERE

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ANOTHER EMANCIPATION PARK - Kingston, Jamaica

The Park was created to be a symbol of Freedom to Hope, to Excel and to Be.

The Emancipation Act was passed on July 31, 1834 in the British West Indies at midnight.

However, full freedom to over 300,000 enslaved Africans was not granted until four years later by Queen Victoria of England on August 1, 1838. 

The opening of Emancipation Park in July 2002 is a significant milestone in the journey of the nation.

Thank you so much, for reading and for tuning into me and your baby!