Keynote speaker Naval Air Station Patuxent River Command Master Chief Leon Thompson Jr. challenged employees here to pursue professional success and pull others up along the way at a Juneteenth celebration June 24.
“I owe a tremendous debt of gratitude to every slave and Sailor that has gone before me,” he said, “and that debt cannot be repaid.”
Thompson, the Naval Air Station Patuxent River Operations Department leading chief petty officer, began his remarks with a brief history lesson on Juneteenth, the oldest nationally celebrated commemoration of the ending of slavery in the U.S.
Although President Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863, Juneteenth originated on June 19, 1865, in Galveston, Texas, when Union soldiers landed with news that the war had ended and the enslaved were now free. Today, Juneteenth is celebrated across the U.S. and beyond. This year also marks the 150th anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation.
Slavery was “the most devastating conversation that ever blighted U.S. history,” Thompson said, reminding employees that freedom did not come suddenly for slaves, but in waves – and often brought joy as well as hardship as African-Americans settled into their new lives.
“Each of us are standing on the shoulders and sacrifices of all those who have gone before us,” he said, urging employees to honor slaves and African-American history.
The event, with a theme of “Celebration of Juneteenth: Reflecting on the Past, Rejoicing in the Present, Preparing for the Future,” was hosted by NAVAIR’s African-American Pipelines Advisory Team and Equal Employment Opportunity Office. The team, established in February 2013, falls under the purview of NAVAIR’s Executive Diversity Council and focuses on recruiting, retaining and developing African-American employees.
“Diversity of thought is the only thing that’s going to get us to the next level,” said Dennis West, one of the team’s executive champions.
Employees also enjoyed strawberry soda, a traditional favorite at Juneteenth celebrations. Similar events were held across other NAVAIR sites nationwide.
