Local News
Reparations to be discussed during Juneteenth celebration in Dallas
07:21 AM CDT on Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Celebrators will observe Juneteenth throughout Dallas and Texas on Friday while the National Coalition of Blacks for Reparations in America also pays homage to the holiday during its 20th annual National Conference in Dallas.
N'COBRA members will meet Thursday through Sunday in Mount Tabor Baptist Church's Family Life Center at 3700 Simpson Stuart Road.
Congressman John Conyers, D-Mich., a longtime reparations advocate, will be among dozens of proponents who will address the issue.
The colloquial expression "Juneteenth" represents June 19, 1865, when enslaved black people in Texas learned – two years late – that President Abraham Lincoln had ended slavery throughout the nation. Freedom celebrations that ensued in Texas became known as Juneteenth.
Proponents of reparations seek monetary payment for the more than 200 years that black people in the nation were enslaved.
Conference activities also will include a youth summit. To learn more or to register, visit www.ncobradallas.com or call 214-723-6030.
Various other Juneteenth activities in Dallas include a Juneteenth film festival and Black Music Month discussion and concert at the South Dallas Cultural Center, 3400 S. Fitzhugh Ave. The film fest is at 8 p.m. Friday. Admission is $5. The free discussion and music set are from 1 to 4 p.m. Saturday, and the free blues concert is at 6 p.m. Call 214-939-ARTS (2787).
ABOUT TOWN: Girls Inc. of Metropolitan Dallas will celebrate opening three new reading rooms for different age groups from 4 to 5 p.m. today at the Girls Inc. campus at 2040 Empire Central Drive.
Capital One and the Heart of America Foundation provided a $40,000 grant to sponsor the rooms and more than 1,000 new books. Volunteers from the two entities painted and set up the rooms. Children's book author Jan Peck will read and autograph books. Call 214-654-4530.
•Lincoln High School and Humanities/ Communications Magnet students who made a documentary on President Barack Obama's inauguration will begin a new documentary project this fall. The radio/television class will film a documentary on Dallas County District Attorney Craig Watkins and his work that helped free people who were convicted of crimes they did not commit.
Heath Harris
, an administrative chief in Watkins' office, attended the premier of the Obama documentary at Lincoln last Sunday and helped Bobby Higgs , a Lincoln documentary adviser, announce the new project. "The education that these young people got [through the documentary project], you can't get that in books," Harris said.The Obama documentary is available for $30 in a three-disc DVD package. Call 972-693-1489.
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