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June 25, 2014Issues linger as TPSB election nears
June 25, 2014
Quiet history was made this month at a place in Terrebonne Parish already known for history.
And with that, for some, came a peaceful resolution of discords born in the past.
Houma’s festival marking Juneteenth – the national celebration of freedom for slaves – was held on the grounds of Southdown Plantation, a place where slave rolls exceeded 300 at any given time prior to emancipation. The pink landmark plantation house and its family’s business of sugar planting, on cane fields stretching as far as the eye could see, were the products of slave labor. June 14th marked the first time a celebration so linked to the less noble plantation’s own past was held there.
The choice of Southdown, for some attendees, added special significance to an event at which community leaders black and white gave short speeches that honored the contributions made by so many that are so unsung. The past – slavery’s existence in Terrebonne Parish – as well as the present and future were all important aspects of the event, said organizers, who want to see Juneteenth grow as a multi-cultural, multi-racial celebration.
“The message to the community as a whole is how we should stand together as one,” Williams said, mindful as well of Juneteenth’s role in marking the start of a long walk to freedom in this nation for black people.
The celebration has its roots in the announcement to slaves in Galveston that they were free, which occurred in 1865, two years after Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation made freedom official.
Wayne Thibodeaux, chairman of the Houma event, said the jubilation those people just have felt was very much on his mind, as well as the overall significance of recognizing slavery, its end, and a people’s new beginnings.
“For me the significance is not losing sight of the past, not losing sight of the fact that it took two years for those folks in Galveston to learn of their freedom. I am hoping we can resurrect the remembrances of the past for young people, so that they don’t lost the connection. We wish to celebrate the freedom but also celebrate how far we have come. I believe that right now the connection is in jeopardy. Continuing to recognize the fight and the sacrifices and the legacy are in jeopardy.”
In many ways the celebration resembled other festivals held at Southdown and downtown Houma. More than 30 booths sold crafts and food.
But there were some unique touches.
Mark Goudy of Houma and Troy Percle of Thibodaux were among the drummers who presented a program on how African drums were used historically for communication.
For the drummers, Afro-Cuban beats offered a continuum of history at the event, a way for the ancestral messages to be received and for ancestors to know of the joy being marked on that day.
Many people who attended used the opportunity to take self-guided tours of the Southdown mansion; Some said they had never thought before to do so but glad they did.
Rachel Cherry, director of the Terrebonne Historic and Cultural Society, said she was pleased the museum could tell the story to a whole new group of listeners.
Slavery is not often discussed in Terrebonne parish these days, by whites or blacks, although it clearly helped shape aspects of the region’s economy.
New exhibits slated for the museum will more extensively tell the story of the people who built Southdown and its fortune, having in the past focused more on those who enjoyed them.
Williams and other community leaders said they hope a renewed focus on history will move people today to take on greater roles in the community. Toward that end volunteers were present at the celebration, registering new voters.
“The crabs are in the pot,” Williams said. “Now we have to get to work and boil them.”
Drummers Mark Goudy of Houma (left) and Troy Percle of Thibodaux (right) demonstrate Afro-Cuban drumming at the Juneteenth celebration, held at Southdown in Houma June 14th.
