On Juneteenth, There is Still a Lot of Work to be Done
Visiting Paul Quinn College earlier this month, I had the incredible opportunity to meet with President Michael Sorrell and address the incoming class of their Summer Bridge Program. The ceremony concluded with each student touching the Heritage Bell, which was originally used on the Garrison Plantation to call slaves to the fields. Today, it calls students to the classroom and they’ll touch it once again on their graduation day.
Like the Heritage Bell, Juneteenth is a stark reminder of our history — of hard fought progress and work unfinished. We must acknowledge that the fight for true freedom goes on. That this is a moment whose promise is not yet realized. That there is still a lot of work to be done. We know that the legacy of slavery is institutionalized in our country. It leads to structural racism and inequity in every aspect of our society — too often holding back black women and black men in our communities, state, and country.
Education offers a clear example. While we know that it is the surest path to individual success and our collective success, persistent student achievement gaps, funding shortfalls, and unequal access to quality schooling prevent too many black students from realizing that success. Black students are nearly four times as likely to be suspended as white students. We can track this trend as early as preschool. And we see the outcome in a high school and college graduation rate that finds white students far more likely to receive a diploma. That’s why we need to increase public school funding for low income and underserved communities and guarantee the equitable distribution of resources. On top of that, we must expand access to pre-K and higher education — including increasing Pell Grants and helping students pay back their loans.
We see the fight for freedom continue in healthcare too. We have a crisis in maternal mortality that impacts black women more than any other population. Pregnant black women are dying at two times the rate of white women. We also know that black patients are three times more likely to die from common ailments compared to white patients. Perhaps this shouldn’t come as a surprise when we have black men and black women living with a higher uninsured rate than white men and white women. Disparities are particularly bad in states like Texas that have not expanded Medicaid. It’s why we must eliminate the stark disparity in health outcomes experienced by communities of color and continue to push for a more equitable healthcare system. We should start by ensuring our country has universal, guaranteed healthcare so every single one of us can see a doctor, get the care we need, afford our prescriptions, and live to our full potential.
The fight for freedom also continues in the justice system. Our country incarcerates more of our citizens than any other country in the world. Black Americans are being imprisoned at more than five times the rate of whites. We must end the war on drugs, which has long been a war on people. On top of that, we must end the federal prohibition on marijuana, mandatory minimums, private prisons, and the current system of cash bail that punishes the poor. And if we ever hope to offer any real sense of rehabilitation for those who have served their time, we must restore their constitutional right to vote, ban the box, and return driver’s licenses.
Finally, we know that all of these institutionalized barriers to equity and justice add up to create significant economic disparities. Freedom cannot be fully realized when white families have 10 times more wealth than black families. When unemployment is two times higher for blacks than whites in Texas. When we see black boys from wealthy homes still more likely to become poor than white boys from middle class homes. We’ve got to invest in black communities, ensure every person can get a job that pays above a living wage, and that the economy finally works for all.
As a Congressman and candidate for the Senate, it’s not enough for me to say the right things. It’s not enough for me to march in Mayor Turner’s Annual Acres Home Juneteenth Parade. It’s not enough to hold town halls like the ones we’ve held in Greenspoint and at HBCUs. I am committing to listening, learning, taking your lead, and elevating your voice. Working together, we will do all we can to continue the march for civil rights, equal rights, and a more just Texas.
Ultimately, this all comes back to those students I met at Paul Quinn. I want to work with you and every one of the 28 million Texans to ensure that by the time those students touch the Heritage Bell on their graduation day, they’ll be walking into a state and country that is more equitable, and one where they can be treated with dignity, fairness, and respect. It won’t just be good for them, it’ll be great for our state and country as they’re able to break through institutionalized barriers, overcome systemic inequities, and live to their God-given potential.
