Athens-Clarke County Mayor Kelly Girtz stands in front of the bus loop at Clarke Central High School on March 25. Girtz wants to recognized the importance of Juneteenth and highlight its impact. “I recognize that Juneteenth was probably an under-recognized celebration until recent years, when there’s been a sort of burgeoning and broadcasting desire to highlight and recognize every step in our social and legal evolution. So I’m glad that Juneteenth is becoming a much more recognized and much more celebrated date,” Girtz said. Photo by Lucas Donnelly
Athens-Clarke County Mayor Kelly Girtz speaks about the local Juneteenth celebration being planned for this national holiday and the impact it will have on Athens.
Variety Staffer Audrey St. Onge: Why does Juneteenth matter?
Athens-Clarke County Mayor Kelly Girtz: In the United States, like in so many societies, you had people who were not just marginalized or under-resourced, but people who were enslaved, who were treated as subhuman. In today’s language, there were severe human rights violations occurring on a daily basis. So if we pride ourselves on being open-minded and honest people, if we’d be honest about these past traumas, that leads to the opportunity to be open about today’s traumas and for us to seek solutions to that.
AS: Why does Juneteenth matter specifically to the people in Athens?
KG: While we’re really excited about having made some strides in Athens and in the nation, we also have to recognize that we still have strides to make around uniform availability of employment, uniform availability of housing, creation of wealth or deterrence from incarceration. There are a lot of elements of our community and society where we still see disparities between Black and white Americans and other minorities (and) people of color and so, by celebrating Juneteenth, what we’re also doing is recognizing that we’ve made changes in the past that have been positive. If changes have been made in the past, we can continue to make changes for (the) mutual benefit of all in society.
“By celebrating Juneteenth, what we’re also doing is recognizing that we’ve made changes in the past that have been positive. If changes have been made in the past, we can continue to make changes for (the) mutual benefit of all in society.”
— Kelly Girtz,
Athens-Clarke County Mayor
AS: What can you tell me about the past Juneteenth celebrations in Athens?
KG: There has been a celebration for a couple of years, on Katherwood Drive in the Rolling Ridge community that I’ve been part of. Last year, there was a Juneteenth celebration in the East Athens community, in Vine and (the) Nellie B area. There also has been a celebration that involved a parade that (ran from) Ebenezer West Baptist Church off West Broad Street to City Hall (in Downtown Athens), and so my wife, sons and I marched in that.
AS: How do you want this to reach the Athens community?
KG: Well, you hope that this, like any big, important event, is going to hit students, young people, working professionals, longtime Athenians and seniors. The goal of an event like this is to have everybody recognize its importance and have everybody recognize how, as I referenced earlier, we’ve made great strides in American life and we can use similar energy now to continue to make strides in terms of improvement for people’s circumstances.
A graphic shows an enslaved person gaining freedom. According to History.com, the national holiday Juneteenth commemorates the last wave of the liberation of enslaved peoples since the Emancipation Proclamation was signed two and half years earlier. Graphic by Audrey Enghauser
AS: What do you think bringing attention to these marginalized groups will help achieve in the future?
KG: Obviously, attention is just a piece of the puzzle. What you hope to see grow from attention are tangible gains in wealth creation, tangible group gains in viability of businesses, tangible gains in terms of people’s access to health care, food resources or housing or other things.
AS: How do you see this affecting people of color specifically in the Athens community?
KG: It’s no secret that people of color have been under-recognized. By being overt and explicit in recognizing the accomplishments and needs of people of color, we create the foundation to take the steps necessary to greater homeownership, greater business ownership, greater educational success, fewer disparities in public (education) or in the criminal justice system and so many other things.
“By being overt and explicit in recognizing the accomplishments and needs of people of color, we create the foundation to take the steps necessary to greater homeownership, greater business ownership, greater educational success, fewer disparities in public (education) or in the criminal justice system and so many other things.”
— Kelly Girtz,
Athens-Clarke County Mayor
AS: I was looking into some of what you did with Linnentown. How do you think things like that are going to impact the future of Athens?
KG: One of the things I think has always been true is that in Athens, and in similar communities across the country, there are things that are right in front of us that are hidden in plain sight, (such as) events that might have happened not that far in the past in the grand scheme of history that people just have not been aware of, (but that) we should be aware of. I think as human beings and certainly, for institutions, we always have to be asking ourselves, ‘How can we do better? How can we do more? How can we act with broader knowledge?’ To be involved with former Linnentown residents and those who have been advocates for them is to kind of open up that laboratory of how we could do a better job for everybody, particularly those people like Black Athenians who’ve been marginalized, including in recent times.
