HomeMy WebLinkAboutPRO-2019-021 400 Years Proclamation ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
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 . pjq���
Penny Rich , Chair
Orange County Board of Commissioners