Maxine L. Bryant: Total emancipation of Black people remains deficient in Savannah, nation

The concept of a New Year’s resolution is said to have begun with the ancient Babylonians some 4,000 years ago and involved making promises to the gods to pay debt and return objects they had borrowed, according to history.com.  Around 46 BC, the Romans began recognizing January as the beginning of the new year and offered sacrifices to their deity with promises of good behavior for the incoming year. As early as 1740, Christians began observing the tradition of utilizing the first day of the new year to contemplate past mistakes and to resolve to be better in the upcoming year.

Somewhere along the line, the tradition of New Year's resolutions transitioned from being connected to a religious dogma to being a personal promise to self.  Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation could be viewed as a type of New Year’s resolution for the United States of America.  A recent study indicates that about 45% of citizens in the U.S. make New Year's resolutions, and only about 8% keep them. The Emancipation Proclamation is in alignment with the low number of resolutions that become reality, as it remains a promise that is largely unfulfilled.

Credit: Courtesy of Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C.

Credit: Courtesy of Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C.

A promise made since 1863

On Jan. 1, 1863, Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation which reads in part:

“… on the first day of January, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, all persons held as slaves within any State or designated part of a State, … shall be then, thenceforward, and forever free;… and the Executive Government of the United States, including the military and naval authority thereof, will recognize and maintain the freedom of such persons, and will do no act or acts to repress such persons…"

The fact that Lincoln chose Jan. 1 to sign this proclamation is interesting for at least two reasons. First, Jan. 1 was known as “Hiring Day” or “Heartbreak Day” because it was the day set aside for plantation owners to rent or sell enslaved Blacks, potentially splitting up families. The institution of slavery propelled the economy in southern states.

“Hiring Day” was an integral component of that institution because most debts were settled on New Year’s Day (perhaps reminiscent of Babylonian era). It was common for enslaved people to be put up for auction and/or for slavery contracts to begin on that day.

According to Olivia Waxman in her 2019 Time Magazine article, such deals were made privately among families, friends and business owners. Enslaved Black people were “handed over in town squares, on courthouse steps and sometimes simply on the side of the road.” Perhaps Lincoln desired to attach a new, more positive meaning to Jan. 1 for enslaved Black people.

Another reason his choice of Jan. 1 intrigues me is because traditionally it is the day set aside to proclaim New Year's resolutions. It is not farfetched to imagine Jan. 1,1863, as the day that this country resolved to right the wrongs of slavery. As a national "resolution," Lincoln stated that the U.S. government, in its entirety, would "recognize and maintain the freedom of [Black people]."

Savannah REAL Task Force survey

I’d dare say the U.S. government has not kept this "New Year’s Resolution" — neither nationally nor locally.

The ways in which the "Resolution" has failed nationally are often discussed. Let’s look at Savannah. In 2020, Mayor Van Johnson commissioned a task force to examine racial inequities in our city. The Racial Equity and Leadership (REAL) Task Force was led by former mayor Otis Johnson. I was among 50-plus community members who developed the report released in 2021.

One of the findings of the Criminal Justice subcommittee was that over 71 inmates, mostly Black, have been detained at the Chatham County jail for over 1,000 days while awaiting trial.  According to our law, one is innocent until proven guilty.  So why are people, mostly Black, detained in jail for an average of 2-plus years for crimes they’ve not been convicted of?  The government has failed the 1863 New Year’s Resolution.

A finding of the REAL Economic Development subcommittee was that although our city is over 54% Black people, only 36% of the city’s business are Black-owned. Firms owned by Black people are less likely to serve as prime contractors for city contracts and White-owned businesses are worth nearly 16 times the worth of Black-owned businesses. These numbers do not speak to the inferiority of Blacks, but rather, to the opportunities afforded more often to White people — a type of economic oppression/slavery. The government has failed the 1863 New Year’s Resolution.

The REAL Education subcommittee found that at the end of the 2018-19 academic year, only 14.8% of Black third-graders scored proficient or above on the state standardized test as compared to 52.5% of White students. This statistic does not speak to learning disabilities of Black children, but rather to an educational system that misses the mark in preparing them for success — resulting in academic suppression.  The government has failed the 1863 New Year’s resolution.

According to the REAL Health Subcommittee, Black people make up about 60% to 80% of individuals who live in areas of Savannah without healthy food access. The result is that they have higher rates of mortality related to chronic conditions, such as diabetes and heart disease. This is not because they choose to live in or near food deserts, but rather a direct result of city planning and economics. The government has failed the 1863 New Year’s resolution.

The REAL Housing subcommittee found that currently there are over 9,000 families on the wait list for affording housing at the Housing Authority of Savannah – the wait list has been closed since 2013.  Blacks account for 96% of Housing Authority of Savannah tenants. There are over 2,600 properties in Savannah that are currently unlivable and in need of repair and rehabilitation. Property owners find that deflated property values in low-wealth communities prevent home repair loans. The inability to find affordable, livable housing is not because Blacks don’t know where to look.  But rather a very real lack of viable options — the absence of freedom of choice. The government has failed the 1863 New Year’s resolution.

Credit: Courtesy of Maxine L. Bryant

Credit: Courtesy of Maxine L. Bryant

In 1951, Langston Hughes asked the question, “What happens to a dream deferred”? In 1963, Martin Luther King Jr. suggested that the country had given Black people a bad check that was returned marked insufficient funds.  This year, 2022, Hughes’ question remains unanswered. King’s assessment remains true. The nation’s resolution regarding total emancipation of Black people remains deficient and unresolved.

But, in the words of the Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr., we shall keep hope alive!

Happy New Year!

With this article online, read the transcript of the Emancipation Proclamation and read a PDF of  "Georgia Systemic Change Alliance Savannah Report by The Racial Equity and Leadership Task Force submitted to the Mayor and City Council of Savannah, Georgia." Or go online to bit.ly/SavREAL to read the task force document.

Maxine L. Bryant, Ph.D., is a contributing lifestyles columnist for the Savannah Morning News. She is an assistant professor, Department of Criminal Justice & Criminology, director, Center for Africana Studies, and director, Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Center at Georgia Southern University, Armstrong Campus. Contact her at 912-344-3602 or email dr.maxinebryant@gmail.com. See more columns by her at SavannahNow.com/lifestyle/.

This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Maxine L. Bryant: Total emancipation of Black people remains deficient in Savannah, nation