HomeMy WebLinkAboutAgenda 09-03-19 Item 4-c - 400 Years Proclamation 1
ORANGE COUNTY
BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
ACTION AGENDA ITEM ABSTRACT
Meeting Date: September 3, 2019
Action Agenda
Item No. 4-c
SUBJECT: 400 Years Proclamation
DEPARTMENT: Board of Commissioners
ATTACHMENT(S): INFORMATION CONTACT:
Proclamation Annette Moore, Director, Human Rights
and Relations, 919-245-2317
PURPOSE: To consider a proclamation declaring August 1, 2019 through July 31, 2020 as a
year of remembrance to commemorate the 400th anniversary of unfree Africans first arriving in
English North America.
BACKGROUND: In 1619 unfree Africans, "some 20. and odd Negroes," arrived in the English
settlement that would become Virginia. This marked the beginning of the period in America
where people of Africa were forcibly taken from their homeland, transported to the American
colonies, and committed to lifelong slavery.
The Human Relation Commission (HRC) requests that the Board of County Commissioners
recognize the harrowing experience of the Africans who first came to the shores of English
North America and the plight and burden of their descendants with this Proclamation.
Organizations throughout Orange County have had events to commemorate the 400th year
anniversary since January 2019, either as an underlying theme or as the backdrop to events.
Some events include:
• Inaugural Reception of the Orange County Community Remembrance Coalition [HRC is
a member]
• OCCRC Symposium: Confronting the Legacy of Lynching
• 110th Anniversary of the Founding of the NAACP
• 400 Years: Sounds of Freedom Music Festival by Free Spirit Freedom
• 154th Juneteenth Celebration
• Screening of "The Long Shadow"
• Symposium: Reconstruction, Redemption and the On-Going Struggle for Freedom
There are more to events planned through to August 2020. The Human Relations Commission
will keep you informed as those event dates become available.
FINANCIAL IMPACT: There is no financial impact associated with consideration of the
proclamation.
2
SOCIAL JUSTICE IMPACT: The following Orange County Social Justice Goals are applicable
to this item:
• GOAL: FOSTER A COMMUNITY CULTURE THAT REJECTS OPPRESSION AND
INEQUITY
The fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race or color;
religious or philosophical beliefs; sex, gender or sexual orientation; national origin or
ethnic background; age; military service; disability; and familial, residential or economic
status.
• GOAL: ENABLE FULL CIVIC PARTICIPATION
Ensure that Orange County residents are able to engage government through voting and
volunteering by eliminating disparities in participation and barriers to participation.
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT: There is no Orange County Environmental Responsibility Goal
impact associated with this item.
RECOMMENDATION(S): The Manager recommends that the Board approve the proclamation
and authorize the Chair to sign the proclamation on behalf of the Board.
ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS 3
400 Years Proclamation
WHEREAS, in 1619 unfree Africans, "some 20. and odd Negroes," arrived in the English settlement
that would become Virginia; and
WHEREAS, this historic arrival marked the beginning of the period in America where people of Africa
were forcibly taken from their homeland, transported to the American colonies and later the United
States, and committed to lifelong slavery and racial discrimination; and
WHEREAS, after the Civil War, the Thirteenth, Fourteenth, and Fifteenth Amendments to the U.S.
Constitution were ratified, ending slavery in the U.S. and granting the newly freed slaves freedom,
citizenship, the equal protection of law, and the right to vote; but despite these Amendments, Blacks
were quickly subjected to Jim Crow, a legally sanctioned institutionalized system of racial segregation
and subordination, as well as white resistance and violence; and
WHEREAS, despite efforts such as the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s, anti-racism advocacy,
progressive legislation, and the election of President Barack Obama, Blacks continue to face oppression
and inequities across systems and institutions; and
WHEREAS, Orange County is home to Black citizens who are descendants of Africans who were
kidnapped and enslaved 400 years ago; and
WHEREAS, Blacks are diverse, respected residents who have worked to transcend the continuing
impacts of slavery and racial segregation and contribute to our community's economic, political, social,
and spiritual well-being; and
WHEREAS, Blacks, whose experiences, generational wisdom, and work to triumph over racial
oppression, connect us to the past and help us meet the challenges of the future; and
WHEREAS, our community must strive to understand and address the history and legacy of racism, its
impacts, and the evolving challenges and needs of all its residents as a result of those impacts, and
WHEREAS, today, and every day, let us remember the harrowing experience of the Africans who first
came to the shores of English North America and the plight and burden of their descendants;
NOW, THEREFORE, we, the Orange County Board of Commissioners, do hereby proclaim August 1,
2019 through July 31, 2020 as a year of remembrance to commemorate the 400th anniversary of unfree
Africans first arriving in English North America by working towards racial healing and justice through
revisiting the past and learning about efforts to win freedom and equality, and encourage the Orange
County Human Relations Commission to, over this anniversary year and beyond, to:
• plan programs to acknowledge the impact that slavery and laws that enforced racial
discrimination and inequity had on the United States; and
• encourage civic, patriotic, historical, educational, artistic, religious, and economic organizations
to organize and participate in anniversary activities.
This 3rd day of September 2019.
Penny Rich, Chair
Orange County Board of Commissioners