41. Juneteenth!

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Welcome back to Spend Donate Invest. We vote, we protest, but what about our money? Is there a way we can line up our personal values and our money? This is what I’m exploring on this show. Thank you so much for all of your emails and DMs with all of the questions you’re wondering about.
Here’s this week’s letter:
I got the day off for Juneteenth and I’m trying to think about ways to honor the holiday and incorporate it into my family’s annual traditions. We have a nice tradition in my family of volunteering on Thanksgiving, we love it, it’s fun, it brings the family together, it reminds us to practice gratitude. We usually spend some time that weekend learning more about Native American history as a family and that has felt right for my family. What can we do for Juneteenth to honor the magnitude of this day?
Thanks for your letter. Before I offer some thoughts on honoring the day, I’ll encourage you to do your own research to understand the history and meaning of the day. And really look around at multiple sources. There’s a tendency to gloss over some of our ugliest aspects of our country and an inability to hold painful truths alongside gratitude for our progress. Our best self is one where we can acknowledge where we started, work to improve, and continually check for successes and failures as we evolve. I think your family’s participation in Juneteenth can be a part of how your family does this.
Let’s start with education. When I think about the potential of Juneteenth, the first thing I think of is the potential for education. I’d encourage you to think about your family’s specific relationship to the enslavement of Africans in this country. Were your family members enslaved? Were they enslavers? Do you live on a former forced labor camp? I guess they call those plantations in a lot of places. What’s the truth behind your family’s relationship to the enslavement of kidnapped Africans in America? Are you recent Americans like my family? Maybe you showed up here after the Emancipation Proclamation in the 1800s. Did your family benefit from the anti-Black policies that lingered after slavery? Did your family work in careers where Black people were not allowed the same government protections or benefits? Did your family work in agriculture for example? Did your family buy a home in a redlined area? Has your family benefited from anti-blackness? Exploring your family’s relationship to slavery in America could be one way that you honor Juneteenth in your family.
Let’s talk about celebration. Depending on your relationship to slavery in America, you can be thoughtful about how to celebrate? Are you celebrating your ancestors' survival? Are you celebrating Black joy? Are you celebrating African American culture and history?
And finally, let’s talk about activism. What can you do to be on the side of progress? There’s so much! Find out what the Black activists in your neighborhood are talking about. What do they need? How can you help? Can you advocate for truthful teaching of our history? Can you advocate for reparations? This is a money show, so there’s the first recommendation which is to look for your role in advancing reparations! Other potential areas for advocacy that you might consider include include voting rights and police and criminal justice reform. There are so many advocacy areas, pick the ones that make sense for your family.
In fact, you might put your advocacy efforts towards really ending slavery in America. The 13th Amendment didn’t end enslavement for all Americans. The law very specifically carves out an exception to continue slavery and involuntary servitude for people who have been convicited of a crime. And so today, there is a very quie

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