Juneteenth, celebrated on June 19, holds significant importance in American history as it marks the emancipation of enslaved African Americans and signals the end of the Civil War. However, some individuals in Washington DC perceive Juneteenth as unnecessary and meaningless, expressing concern about the country’s direction.
This particular incident involves an elderly woman visiting the Washington Monument in Washington DC. TikTok user @kdubyanolongerflirtin shared a clip of the woman during an interview where she made the following remarks:
“Juneteenth is– excuse me, bullsh*t. What’s happening to the white people? They have a Black Ms. America, they have a Black college, they have a Black month. What do we have? Now they have Juneteenth.
Yes, I understand there was slavery, don’t get me wrong. But there was also a Holocaust, and that was more recent than slavery, but you don’t hear the Jews saying ‘gimme gimme gimme gimme.’ What’s the point of Juneteenth? What is it? I don’t know,”
according to the elderly woman in the video.
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The woman was likely referring to the eight Black women who have won the Miss America title when she mentioned a “Black Ms. America.” To date, the majority of the 97 Miss America winners have been white. Her complaint about White people lacking something akin to Juneteenth remains unclear, given that Juneteenth specifically honors emancipation from slavery.
The remarks made by the woman sparked widespread outrage and disgust online, with many commentators attributing such attitudes to her generational cohort, potentially Baby Boomers or members of the Silent Generation. Notably, this woman is not the only senior citizen to express negative views about Juneteenth; there have been multiple accounts on social media of older individuals denouncing the holiday.
In addition, former President Donald Trump, also a Baby Boomer, has voiced a somewhat critical stance on Juneteenth, mentioning that the United States has too many non-working holidays, suggesting the nation could be more productive without them.
The Irony of the Boomer’s Remarks
Interestingly, the woman featured in the video was likely on vacation, given her presence at the Washington Monument. This implies she possibly benefited from the Juneteenth holiday, which granted her, or those funding her trip, a day off from work.
Many online users quickly pointed out the hypocrisy of her statements. After all, Juneteenth is a single holiday among 365 days each year, celebrating a vital moment in U.S. history. Numerous commenters criticized her tirade, highlighting that her views echo sentiments commonly expressed by racists or people harboring latent racist beliefs about this American holiday.
“she’s probably touring the monuments bc her office gave her the day off for juneteenth. Ungrateful!!!,” notes Emergency-Bottle-432
“Imagine being this upset at a f***ing holiday lmao,” comments AnotherSh*ttyComment
“‘What do we have?’ Every f***ing thing else,” replies Baby gravy