Friday, June 19, commemorates Juneteenth. A 155-year-old holiday, Juneteenth honors the end of slavery in the United States and is considered the longest-running African American holiday.

In recent years, heightened awareness of the racial divide in our country—sparked, in part, by nationwide protests over police brutality inflicted on Black communities and the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on the same communities—has helped Juneteenth gain attention.

In celebration of Juneteenth, we connected with Angel Uddin, director of diversity and inclusion at Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota, to learn more about the significance of Juneteenth and what Blue Cross is doing to honor the day.

Juneteenth observes African American freedom. How does that differ from Independence Day?

Most Americans are very familiar with the Independence Day holiday on July 4, commemorating the signing of the Declaration of Independence, which solidified the colonies’ resolution to fight for their independence from Great Britain in 1776. However, when it was signed, the document did not reflect the independence of slaves.

Those slaves remained property of slave owners until they were told of their emancipation, which occurred after General Lee surrendered and Union soldiers landed at Galveston, Texas on June 19, 1865, at which time they informed those enslaved Black people that they were now free.

To provide further perspective, this was two years after President Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation (January 1, 1863). Lincoln’s Executive Order had little impact in Texas because the Union soldiers had little to no presence to enforce it. It was not until after the end of the Civil War that the forces were finally strong enough to influence and overcome the resistance.

We Rose

 From Africa’s heart, we rose
Already a people, our faces ebon, our bodies lean,
We rose
Skills of art, life, beauty and family
Crushed by forces we knew nothing of, we rose
Survive we must, we did,
We rose
We rose to be you, we rose to be me,
Above everything expected, we rose
To become the knowledge we never knew, We rose
Dream, we did
Act we must

 -Kristina Kay

How will Blue Cross and its associates observe Juneteenth?

At Blue Cross we are committed to diversity, equity and inclusion in our words and in our actions. It lives in our values and is integrated throughout our strategy and culture. Juneteenth is just one aspect of our overall diversity and inclusion work. Other steps we’ve taken include Dr. Craig Samitt, our president and CEO, signing the CEO Action for Diversity and Inclusion Pledge, our continual commitment to being a Human Rights Campaign ( HRC) best place to work, promoting and creating new associate resource groups to fully reflect our teams and members and so much more!

If we weren’t  in our “new normal” of remotely working due to coronavirus, our African American Professional Network (AAPN) associate resource group, would be hosting an event for associates to learn more about Juneteenth and discuss the progress made, as well as the development that still needs to come.

This year, as a remote workplace, we are focusing on education around Juneteenth. Knowledge is power! We are sharing the history behind the holiday and encouraging our teams to dive deeper into the stories omitted from the history books, as unfortunately, more often than we may realize, what is taught in the classrooms does not include the full picture.

I believe as an organization we can do more in the future and I am motivated by that progress that needs to be made when it comes to Juneteenth. It starts with educating our associates on the significance of June 19, how it differs from July 4 and understanding the culture and history of the people we serve— the more we know, we can be better and do better.

You mentioned education. What has Blue Cross provided associates who want to expand their cultural competence beyond Juneteenth?

That’s a great question! As a health plan, we are well aware of the health inequities of the African American community in Minnesota and how those disparities have been exponentially larger for our Black communities throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.

Recently, to call attention to this, AAPN partnered with our very own Dr. Mark Steffen, vice president and chief medical officer, to host conversations about this issue and what Blue Cross can do to address it. Dr. Steffen also was interviewed on FOX 9 news, where he offered some additional perspective on the issue.

In response to the unjust murder of George Floyd, our associates have expressed a desire to learn more, be better and grow from that horrific event. To support them, we are providing several opportunities to engage in meaningful dialogue and action about racism, not only in the workplace, but in the home, community and even self:

• We are hosting “Safe Space Conversations” where our associates are engaging in inclusive, bold conversations about race-based fear and trauma, racism in the workplace, empathy, allyship and how to continue these conversations.
• We created a new internal chat forum on intranet where associates can share their stories, responses and feelings about the systemic changes needed in our state and country. This has been a great vehicle where our people feel comfortable being vulnerable and sharing their emotions. Even through social distancing, it has helped make our people feel closer and less isolated than before.
• I am working with Rosemond Sarpong Owens, director of health equity integration, on forming a team to take action on the recommendations our associates have provided to improve our workplace, our products and services and our stance in the community.

What is your advice for folks out there who want to observe Juneteenth?

Do it! Being a steward of diversity and inclusion can (and should) happen every day. For those who have never celebrated, or even heard of Juneteenth, start with learning more about it. Black history is all around us, it’s not just limited to Juneteenth or Black History Month in February and every small step counts.