Juneteenth reflection: Much work remains for ‘We the people’ to apply to all

June 24, 2021  |  By Maroni Minter 

Waterbury resident Maroni Minter, a founder with the Waterbury Area Anti-Racism Coalition and campaign director with the American Civil Liberties Union of Vermont, speaks at the Juneteenth celebration at the Vermont State House in Montpelier on June 19. Photo by Jesse McDougall.

Editor’s note: The following were remarks delivered at the Juneteenth celebration at the Vermont State House in Montpelier on June 19. 

My name is Maroni Minter, and I am the campaign director for the American Civil Liberties Union, or ACLU, of Vermont. The ACLU of Vermont is dedicated to advancing the civil rights and civil liberties of everyone who calls Vermont home.
I am also the co-founder of the Waterbury Area Anti-Racism Coalition, which is committed to challenging racism in the Waterbury community at all levels, including systemic racism in our local institutions and policies.

We are gathered here today to recognize June 19, 1865, or Juneteenth — the day the news about enslaved Black people being freed from slavery made it to Galveston, Texas — two years after the Emancipation Proclamation. 

It is a day in the Black community that is marked with joy, celebration, and togetherness. It is a time of reflection and pride for Black people in America. It is also a time to pause and acknowledge that there is a lot of work still to be done in order to have those three little words “We the People” in our Constitution actually apply to ALL of us.

We know that there is more work to be done to recognize that Black Lives Matter. That there is more work to be done, yes here in Vermont, to ensure that our Black and Brown communities are treated with the respect they deserve. And there is more work to be done to create more moments of Black joy and celebration.

In cities across the country, people of all races, nationalities and religions are joining hands to honestly acknowledge a period in our history that shaped and continues to influence our society today. With Juneteenth now recognized as a federal holiday, my hope is that more Americans will acknowledge and understand this stain on our history and will want to do the work to ensure that Black Lives Matter. 

We must not forget that after being forced to work for the enrichment of America, newly liberated Black Americans continued to suffer violent exploitation under Jim Crow laws, black codes in the South, and de facto segregation across the nation — long after Juneteenth. 

During the 1990s and early 2000s, racism entered America in the form of so-called “tough-on-crime policies.” The failed War on Drugs targeted the Black community and inflated sentencing laws to draconian levels. The result was and still is, the vast majority of Black men being kept in prison for decades. Their bodies are still under the control of others, but with a different justification: law and order.
Still today, our systems of justice are far more willing to treat police officers as innocent until proven guilty than they are members of the Black community. 

For many, Vermont may feel a world away from Minneapolis and the sites of so many uprisings. As a Black man living in Vermont, I’m here to tell you that we are not. The data continues to show that Black people are stopped and searched by Vermont police at higher rates, and Vermont still imprisons Black men at one of the highest rates in the nation.
If Vermont wants to eradicate systemic racism, it cannot ignore the role the criminal legal system plays in harming Black and Brown communities. We must commit to divesting resources away from our prison system and reinvesting them in our communities. Everyone deserves to be treated with dignity and respect no matter who they are or where they live, which is why I am proud of the work the ACLU is doing to reform the criminal legal system here in Vermont.

We are fighting for a new era of smarter justice: a system that is substantially smaller, free of bias or discrimination, and committed to the personal safety, health, and dignity of every individual and community. We have both the opportunity and a responsibility to eliminate our overreliance on incarceration and address racial disparities at every point in the system – from someone's first interaction with law enforcement to when they return to their community.

The Juneteenth celebration in Montpelier at the State House featured speakers, performers, food trucks and vendors on a sunny Saturday afternoon, June 19. Photo by Jesse McDougall

What does that mean?
It means that we need you to join us in this campaign and help us fight to reform our sentencing laws, eliminate cash bail, and decriminalize poverty, mental health conditions, and substance misuse. It also means we need to hold prosecutors accountable, collect comprehensive data on where racial disparities show up in our system, and so much more.

Together, we can address systemic racism in our prisons, in our communities, and across this country. If you want to learn more about how you can join the ACLU and take action here in Vermont, go online to acluvt.org and click on that red image that says “sign our Smart Justice petition.” That way, when we need you to help us advocate for smarter criminal justice policies, we can connect with you. Also, don’t forget to follow ACLU of Vermont on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

We all know that what makes Vermont unique is our connection to each other – so let’s come together and do the work to ensure that all of our communities are strong, vibrant, inclusive and show that Black Lives Matter. 

Maroni Minter lives in Waterbury.