Memorial Day may be the unofficial start of summer, but it is also time set aside to remember this country’s fallen soldiers. Many Black folks roll their eyes at what this day means, but they shouldn’t. We are the reason the holiday exists.
The Civil War was bloody. In all, over 600,000 Union soldiers were killed fighting to free Black folks from the chains of American chattel slavery. Many of these soldiers were buried in unmarked graves because their commanding officers were more focused on winning the war than giving these people proper burials. The newly freed slaves were not pleased with that. So, they decided to do something about it.
On May 1, 1865 in Charleston, South Carolina, thousands of newly freed slaves organized a parade to honor soldiers who gave their lives that they might be free. This was not only a moving tribute, but it was also a symbolic one.
The parade took place on land that was once a Confederate prison camp where many of the organizers had been held. This celebration, then, was a middle finger to the Confederacy. It was as much an act of defiance as it was a gathering to honor the fallen.
Now, when we think of Memorial Day, images of white soldiers wearing uniforms come to mind. This is largely because after Reconstruction, this parade to honor what the formerly enslaved organizers called the “Martyrs of the Race Course”was ignored by white historians. Americans did not know that it was Black folks, the people that this country treated like cattle, were the ones who gave them this holiday.
Memorial Day was whitewashed until scholars shed light on the real origins of the day. (I’m sure this angered conservatives who wanted to think Reagan, Bush or any other Republican were the reason this holiday existed.) But no, they can thank Black folks for the holiday. Or, to be more specific, Black people who were once the victims of America’s original sin.
So, feel free to celebrate Memorial Day. It is as Black as Juneteenth.