Dear MDECOE Community,
The 4th of July holiday has allowed us to have some needed self-care and relaxation with family and friends. However, this holiday takes on deeper meaning as our country and our college contemplate just what the Constitution of America stands for, as well as the ongoing press to change toward equal social justice for all in the face of anti-black racism. Andrea Martin states in her blog from the Peace and Justice Center What the 4th of July Really Means “On July 5th, 1852, Fredrick Douglass presented The Meaning of July Fourth for the Negro that not only addressed the crowd present at the time of the speech, but also continued to confront and inspire reflection in millions of Americans even 162 years to come. As the hotdog rolls and ketchup move to the front of the grocery isles, I reflect on Douglass’ call for racial equality at a time when our nation both sought freedom and endorsed slavery.” She goes on to encourage us to “reconsider the meaning of freedom and racial justice through a historical lens in a reading of Fredrick Douglass’ speech ‘The Meaning of the Fourth of July for the Negro’. Better yet, we need to think of how to move forward to truly promote what the meaning of July 4th should be.” Does this mean calling upon the “better angels” of all Americans? Dr. Pauli Murray, co-founder of the National Organization for Women and the first person to teach African-American Studies and Women's Studies at Brandeis University, describes her approach in this way “I intend to destroy segregation by positive and embracing methods. When my brothers try to draw a circle to exclude me, I shall draw a larger circle to include them,” (May 21, 2018). The Martin article and the speech by Fredrick Douglass can be read at the links below.
https://www.pjcvt.org/freedom-for-all-what-the-fourth-of-july-really-means/
https://masshumanities.org/files/programs/douglass/speech_complete.pdf
.For a list of other self-care options, please see our COE self-care website for resources for faculty, staff, students, and the community at: https://www.csun.edu/eisner-education/self-care/articles-information-self-care
May we find have a time to contemplate what the 4th of July really means and how we can move forward with understanding and action in promoting equity and self-care for all.
Warmly,
Shari