YWCA Clark County to Honor Val Joshua Award Recipients at Juneteenth Celebration

Each year, YWCA Clark County recognizes those in our community who are working to end racism and oppression with the Val Joshua Racial Justice Award and the Youth Social Justice Youth Award. This year, we will celebrate Cindi Fisher and William Clark for their leadership in working toward the elimination of racism and promotion of peace, justice freedom and dignity for all.YWCA Clark County is proud to partner with the Vancouver NAACP Branch #1139 to present the awards on June 23rd at the NAACP's Annual Juneteenth Celebration. Join us at 1pm Saturday, June 23rd at Clark College to celebrate these amazing individuals, and to hear how they’ve made a difference in our community. Honorees will receive distinguished awards and the Youth Social Justice Award recipient will receive a $500 scholarship.The Juneteenth Celebration will also feature a job fair hosted by the NAACP and WorkSource to spotlight available local livable wage jobs and a panel discussion on ending and erasing systemic racism led by several Vancouver community leaders. There will be a variety of fun and entertainment for the whole family throughout the day including best pie and NAACP t-shirt design contests, a bouncy house, face painting and crafts, music, dance by Portland's Groovin' Highsteppers and, free hotdogs or hamburgers for the first 75 kids.Event DetailsJune 23rd, 2018 from 1:00-6:00pmat Foster and Hannah Halls, Clark College1933 Fort Vancouver Way, Vancouver, WA 986611:00 Val Joshua Awards Presentation1:00-4:00 Job Fair4:00-5:00 Panel Discussion: Where Do We Go From Here?Event link on FacebookEvent link on YWCA WebsiteEvent link on NAACP WebsiteAbout the Val Joshua AwardsThe Val Joshua Award was originally given to Val Joshua in 1989 to recognize her life-long commitment and work toward eliminating racism. Learn more about the history of the awards, and see a listing of former recipients on our website.About JuneteenthJuneteenth celebrates the 1865 official end of slavery in the state of Texas and the resulting recognition of the Emancipation Proclamation throughout all of America. -President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation on September 22, 1862, and it took effect on January 1, 1863. However, it was not publicized or acknowledged in Texas, where many slaveholders had migrated with their slaves during the war to avoid Civil War battles. The Civil War ended on April 9, 1865, when General Robert E. Lee surrendered at Apppomattox. However, news of the end of the war and of emancipation, did not reach Texas until June 19, 1865, when Major General Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston with about 2000 Union troops to publicly read and enforce the proclamation. Some African-Americans began celebrating “Juneteenth” (the term is a melding of “June” and “19th”) a year after the proclamation was read in Galveston. Celebration of Juneteenth has become widespread in recent decades, and most states have recognized the holiday in some fashion.