On June 21, the African American Steering Committee (AASC) hosted their online meeting. In addition to Committee business, the meeting featured the discussion, Define the Narrative – Juneteenth: Facts vs. Myths, a dialogue with veteran arts and entertainment writer Ronda Racha Penrice, the author of Black American History for Dummies.
In a conversation moderated by AASC Director Category Representative Abdul Malik Abbott (The Audacity), Penrice spoke about the history of Juneteenth, a holiday that originated out of Galveston, Texas, which commemorates the end of slavery in the USA.
After giving more information on the true events surrounding the day, Penrice and Abbot discussed topics including the history of Emancipation celebrations across the United States and how our understanding and discussions about history is changing. They also touched on the challenges in the current landscape and spoke about the necessary role that African American filmmakers play in bringing to light all of our national history and stories.
On June 17, 2021, Juneteenth became the first new federal holiday since Martin Luther King Jr. Day was adopted in 1983.
About the Committee:
The African American Steering Committee (AASC) was born of a desire to address the specific needs of the African-American members of the Directors Guild. One of the primary goals of the Committee is to establish a productive line of communication between African-American members and the creative community. The Committee meets monthly to plan events throughout the year celebrating the achievements of African-Americans, as well as forums with industry executives to proactively address what can be done to hire more African-Americans.