How should corporations recognize Juneteenth?

I’m so glad that the Black leaders at Audible raised this insightful question. I had an awesome time speaking to BEN@audible this afternoon.

I shared a bit about my background as a Black Texan and my experience with the holiday before it became nationally recognized, and it may surprise you that my family never celebrated, but we definitely acknowledged it.

Perhaps it had more to do with my family’s close proximity to slavery. My Big Mama was born on a plantation. So word of mouth informed much of what we knew to be the nuances of the holiday.

Here are some highlights:

👏🏽 Go deep in the history of Juneteenth, it’s meaning and nuances

👏🏽Fill the knowledge gap. Take this opportunity to be a thought leader in your own corporate spaces while the national holiday is still new

👏🏽Connect the historic dots to now so that your commemorations are organic and authentic to the true meaning of the day

👏🏽Slow down… if we throw Koolaid at the wall, it will show, and likely show up in the headlines

👏🏽Leave space for the varied Black experiences and thoughts about the holiday. Not everyone may head to the cookout, and that’s ok.

Nothing has been written on how corporations should recognize the day until now… so there are no books, just experts pontificating in media.

This offers an opportunity to fill the knowledge gap and make the holiday into the commemoration that it should be–appropriately culturally nuanced, informed and not appropriated.

Thank you to the leaders of this insightful group for engaging me in this discussion, and I look forward to working with you again in the future!