Barron Brings ‘Hood to Hall To Celebrate Juneteenth

or the forth year in a row, Council Member and future Congressman Charles Barron "brought the hood to the hall" to commemorate Juneteenth, the oldest known celebration in the United States of the ending of slavery. It stands for June 19, 1865 – two and a half years after the Emancipation Proclamation – when Union forces sailed into Galveston, established control of Texas, and finally brought word to Blacks enslaved there that they were free.

As Barron said, his aim that evening was to feed his guests physically, spiritually and intellectually. He certainly achieved that goal, beginning with the generous repast served in the rotunda; continuing with the history lesson on slavery with a special focus on Texas delivered by the keynote speaker, activist and writer Rosemari Mealy; and ending with the inspiring words of Minister Kevin Muhammad, East Coast representative of the Honorable Louis Farrakhan, who spoke of the solidarity of all African people in the US and Caribbean. "It doesn’t matter where we were dropped off at, it only matters where we were picked up from," Muhammad stated.

The formal part of the evening began with a processional led by the Djoul’e African drummers. Viola Plummer, Barron’s Chief of Staff, welcomed everyone, and the renowned singer and activist Camille Yarborough poured the libation. Performing the duties of MC was Paul Washington, director of community outreach and re-entry with the Male-Development Empowerment Center at Medgar Evers College.

The first speaker of the evening was Mark Morial, former Mayor of New Orleans and current National Urban League President. He spoke about the insane situation in New Orleans and said that people should use Juneteenth as a rallying day to recommit to the cause of freedom, justice and equality. Also speaking was A.T. Mitchell, founder of Man Up!, who addressed the need to engage with the youth and bridge the gap between the generations.

To his surprise Charles Barron was awarded a plaque by Cassandra Williams, from East New York at Work, and Sammy Jackson, from East New York Kid Power. Stepping up to the podium to accept the honor, Barron brought with him his wife Inez, who he proudly calls "the love of my life," so everyone could see what a beautiful Black woman looks like.

Speaking of love, Barron’s often hilarious but always deep and meaningful remarks that evening can only be called a love letter to his Black brothers and sisters. He said that despite all the oppression they’ve suffered, they are cute, brilliant, intelligent, creative, energetic and high-spirited. "I thank God for making me Black!" Barron declared.

Throughout the evening there were several remarkable artistic performances. Praise dancer Latoya Malcolm was up first, followed by the drumming and dance troupe A NeNe Wolfa. Their drumming was so eloquent and reached the audience so profoundly that people threw dollar bills onto the stage, and two women were impelled to come forward and dance, one still in her high heels.

Topping it off was Sduduzo Ka-Mbili’s JUXTAPOWER, who really wowed the crowd with their breathtaking fusion of South African Zulu dance and classical technique.

During the evening, proclamations were awarded to seven recipients who have contributed greatly to the community over the years.

Four proclamations went to jazz musicians: 1) Ahmed Abdullah, a trumpeter, composer, arranger, educator, organizer and bandleader who has led his own ensembles since 1972; 2) "Bassist Extraordinaire" Larry Ridley who began performing professionally while still in high school and toured, recorded and performed with many of the historical legends of Jazz; 3) the exceptional saxophonist and flutist, James Spaulding, who established his reputation as a masterful soloist for ensemble performances and was, for many years, among the busiest sidemen at Blue Note Records; and 4) Reggie Workman, an internationally acclaimed bassist, composer, arranger, record/concert producer, and educator.

Also honored were two men of the cloth known for their activism: the Rev. Orlando Findlayter of the New Hope Christian Fellowship who was born in Panama and began preaching at the age of nine; and Pastor Donald Hudson of Common Ground Ministries, whose many good works includes traveling to the areas devastated by Hurricane Katrina to help those affected by the storm.

Maria Ortega, Principal of the once troubled George Gershwin Intermediate School 166 received a proclamation as well for her outstanding leadership that has brought the school off the probationary list and enabled it to house a state of the art multimedia center.

The event was sponsored by Speaker Christine Quinn and the City Council’s Black, Latino and Asian Caucus. Council Members Kendall Stewart and Simcha Felder joined Barron in representing the council.