Thread by @benwikler

Today, #Juneteenth, is a celebration of liberation through struggle. A reminder that even the hardest-won policy victories for Black Americans don't change lives overnight—and that pursuing a more perfect union where #BlackLivesMatter is the work of a lifetime, for all of us.

Wisconsin is no stranger to justice deferred. In 1849, a majority of Wisconsin voters supported a referendum for Black male suffrage—but an even larger number of voters abstained, and the state Board of Canvassers wrongfully decided that the abstentions counted as "no" votes.

For 17 subsequent years, as Professor Christy @ClarkPujara has documented, Black Wisconsinites were denied the ballot. Debate raged, and white voters rejected extending suffrage in two more referenda. But in 1866, a court case changed our state's history. madison365.com/untold-storyof…

Ezekiel Gillespie was born enslaved in Tennessee. He purchased his own freedom, moved to Milwaukee, and operated a local branch of the Underground Railroad. In 1865, he attempted to vote. Was denied. Sued. Fought all the way to the state Supreme Court.
shepherdexpress.com/news/features/…

In Gillespie's case, Wisconsin's Supreme Court determined that the 1849 referendum had, in fact, been valid—and that Black men in Wisconsin had the right to vote. Justice took 17 years. Black leaders fighting for civil rights in our state moved Wisconsin closer to democracy.

It would be another 53 years before Wisconsin became the first state to ratify the 19th amendment and give women, Black and white, the right to vote in presidential elections. And today, many Wisconsinites are again disenfranchised—by an array of more subtle suppression laws.

The years of struggle, protest, organizing, & litigation in past fights ground us in the work to come today, as we recommit ourselves, across race, to correcting the systemic injustices and that make Wisconsin one of the hardest states in the country for Black people to live.

Wisconsin has some of the nation's most extreme racial disparities. The 2010 census found that Wisconsin incarcerates Black men at the highest rate in the nation. These disparities are rooted in a bleak history and present of intense systemic racism.
bostonreview.net/race/s-ani-muk…

And yet—today is a day for celebration and recommitment about the work to come. Today, for the first time, @WisDems are celebrating #Juneteenth as a staff holiday. Wisconsinites are celebrating statewide. Here's a guide to events wherever you might be: docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d…

Rep. @JacksonLeeTX18 is proposing that #Juneteenth become a national holiday. If you're moved to weigh in, the Congressional switchboard is 202-224-3121.

Happy #Juneteenth. Thanks to the heroes who have labored for centuries to move America closer to becoming the land of the free. May we draw on their resilience and vision as we continue their work.
milwaukeehistoryblog.wordpress.com/2013/02/18/eze…