On Tuesday, Brentwood City Councilwoman Pa’Tanisha Pierson passionately offered justification to bring a Juneteenth Event to the City of Brentwood.
After a lengthy discussion, in order to bring the event to Brentwood by allocating funds, the council agreed to reduce the number of Summer Concerts in the Park from 10 concerts, to 9 concerts while using those $15k in funding to produce a Juneteenth event–while needing to find another $15k for the event. The council agreed to a $30k not-to-exceed cost.
Pierson had actually requested the item back in February of 2023 and staff was requested on May 9, 2023 to bring back a report about hosting an event for Juneteenth—there was no 2023 event in Brentwood. Since then, 4EverMe Foundation had already applied for a 2024 event in Brentwood and was requesting fee waivers of $1,150 to $9,023 for city park, community center, and police services. Ultimately, the council directed staff to see if the 4EverMe Foundation will partner with the city or accept a consulting fee.
Pierson aired out her frustrations with staff in pitting her requests with 4EverMe Foundation citing they were two different things and did not like any of the options provided by staff. She also said her original ask was if the city held the event, what is the budget. She didn’t get that number.
“Have you come up with any kind of budge because that is what we have waiting over a year and a half for,” said Pierson.
Staff said they didn’t have a budget and did not have a size and scope of the event.
Pierson then requested how many times staff met to hold the Juneteenth event which she originally asked back in February, March and May – not talk about third parties, but specifically Brentwood making this an annual event.
Staff said they had a number of talks about the event since February of last year but due to circumstances it was a challenge to prioritize it over other assignments staff had.
Vice Mayor Susannah Meyer said this had been pending for a very long time and felt it was unfair to a large event in a short period of time. She also wanted to know why this took so long to get to the council.
Staff attempted to explain they had been busy with multiple events, including the 75th Anniversary of the city, turnover in the department, however, they understood the frustrations by council. They were still attempting to pull off a 2024 event—they requested a “not to exceed” budget number. Staff said there was a lot of items on the plate.
After public comments, Pierson then provided a nearly 10-minute monologue of why Juneteenth was important and it needed to be every year in the city of Brentwood.
Note – below is the text from the nearly 10 minute monologue from Pa’Tanisha Pierson if you choose not to watch the video:
“I feel like tonight is not very fair to the 4EverMe Foundation, because I don’t think their request should have been combined with my request. It should have been two separate requests. My request was on February 14, we are at a full year almost to the date. Where I asked us to look at celebratory events to match our proclamations during that time I brought up Juneteenth and during that time there was a request that I haven’t seen in here is where vice mayor asked for feedback from the downtown businesses in what works for them and what does not work for them. That is missing here as well. On March 28, I asked for us to again look at the Juneteenth event. I asked for us to specifically as a city do something. Let me tell you why I am asking for us as a city, and not us punting the ball to a third party.
If there is not an application next year, it won’t happen next year. My goal is to have this become an annual event… I want to say the reason why this keeps coming up to me and I have tried my best, every time this comes up to not get emotional, because of something Frederick Douglas said.
Frederick Douglas, when asked about July 4, 1776 said what to a slave is the Forth of July? I am going to add to that, what to the African American is the Forth of July? What to the woman is the Fourth of July. Pre-woman suffrage, people were still enslaved. There was no independence for people who look like me. In my gender, by my gender choices, and by the color of my skin.
So I am not saying denounce the Fourth of July, I am all American, but I am saying add to perfect us establishing the responsibility of what happened which was slavery.
Now for those who do not know, on January 1, 1863, Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation not just to end slavery, but to protect the union. Abraham actually said if he could continue slavery he would have continued slavery if the union was supportive. But on that day, he signed the Emancipation Proclamation to support the union and slaves were freed, however, not all people were freed. It took two more years, it wasn’t until June 19th, two years later that you had people in Texas who were still murdered, raped, we are going to tell the truth tonight, raped by their masters, beaten, who were still slaved and forced into work when they had freedom. It wasn’t until June 19th, 1865 that all people were free, but then guess what, when we had a time to get economic advantages, Jim Crow laws came into place and still have the effects of slavery, effects of Jim Crow that still keep people like me and people who are lighter than me, and brown, and women still with unequal pay and now we add to it with people who have a different sexual orientation and disability.
I apologize I am emotional because this is important. This is why I ran. I don’t need the money, this year I got my returns back, from the City of Brentwood, I made $83 after my medical benefits were paid. I do not do this for money, I do this because there are people with disabilities like me, I do this for people who have skin like me, who have my gender who do not have a voice.
We go all out for the Fourth of July, and I asked in February for this, yes, I am not only frustrated, I am pissed. And then it was combined with someone who I adore. And her daughter, who I adore. But its not fair to the applicant because what I am seeing in the staff report, by granting the applicant money it does not support us in the future by continuing the event. It just puts a Band-Aid that we are going to have a Juneteenth by them this year. It also puts them in an unfair advantage because they submitted their application after the agenda came out. I know Velma personally… she does a lot for the community, her daughter does a lot for the community, I got to know them, I went to the Juneteenth they threw here, it was a good start. I went to the Juneteenth last year; it was an epic fail. It’s no disrespect to them, but I tell the absolute truth.
For me, what I asked for and I said it in May. When we do something, we should do it in excellence. Bruce, you actually said and I appreciate you falling on your sword, that is very honorable. Tim, I appreciate you telling the truth, look I didn’t even have the bandwidth, it was just me doing the job of several people, but the truth is we get a lot of other stuff done.
We did Fouth of July in excellence, the 75th Anniversary, we couldn’t take time to put it together, we have two people here saying they can get it done in four months. But a whole staff can’t get it done? In May, Bruce said we didn’t have the bandwidth, Juneteenth 2023 is only a few months around the corner. We can’t get it done. I laughed and I said sir I am not expecting that from you but I will hope by next year and you said yes.
Now we are next year and as a city we can’t put it together and it puts me in a complicated position to sit across who I adore and respect and to see her daughter on this thing and sit back and know you are asking me to put them in a complicated position when they submitted their application in November. It is now the end of February, we are considering it. They have limited time and my concern is we are going to get what they did last year in Antioch and I am being honest. That is not what I want for the city of Brentwood.
So what I am trying to figure out is how is how can we have both and how we can support the vision of the people who believe in Juneteenth as much as I do. How can we support them, but how can we have everybody sit at the table and put the same freaking effort that I see on the Fourth of July towards Juneteenth.
Juneteenth is my Fourth of July. That is my Barbeque day. That is my day to celebrate that I don’t have shackles on my feet. That is my day. I know, nobody is putting nets on the side of boats because people were jumping to their death because they didn’t want to be enslaved. That’s my celebration day so I don’t want anyone up here to sugar coat and BS anybody. How do we get it done.
Every time we talk about DEI right now, it is a bad word. Nobody wants to do DEI training, George Floyd died in vain, everybody cared about him at first and nobody cares anymore but I am still carrying on to make sure that kind of stuff never happens again.
I would like to see for Juneteenth, which was beautiful the year I saw in Antioch, I left here, it was a good event, it was a good start for people who had limited time and although we supported $1.000 and they had limited resources, but it was a good event. Then I went to Antioch, am I am not going to diss Antioch even though they didn’t support this group, but when I went there, police presence to see intersectionality between black people and police so we can take down the veil that says there is a bad thing where we are arguing black lives versus blue lives—its stupid. When we know they are there to protect and serve.
I am sorry I am ranting. You guys elected me and I am going to take my moment because I am passionate about it and your going to keep hearing me talk about it. But we need to see it. I would love to see an event where our police are playing with kids. The same way I’ve seen at the Día De Los Muertos events. That the other events we support. That is what black kids need to see. Police are un-intimidating, police are here to protect and serve you. To see our community leaders, white men, black men, the same thing Martin Luther King standing up and making statements. At the Juneteenth that Velma and her daughter threw, I saw in 2022 there was all of five people, everyone else was black and that is a damn shame… I didn’t see any city staff and that was prior to me being on city council. That is ridiculous.
I have a lot more to say, but I am done.
Mendoza said her heart hurt for Pierson but urged Bryant, Meyer and Oerlemans to fight for them and show up. She urged city manager Tim Ogden to become the biggest ally on every single agenda item.
“We have asked for this and you failed us,” stated Mendoza “I am glad your hear, because I felt really alone. Its hard when you are the only brown person up here because people don’t get it. So I get you and I appreciate you and I feel what you are feeling. It hurts me for you but we have to figure something out.”
Councilmember Tony Oerlemans told Pierson to be as passionate as she wanted to be and had the right to stand up and scream and let everyone know what we are not taking care of. He believed this event should be run by the city. He called for the city to begin putting passion and effort into the Juneteenth event, but urged the city to collaborate with 4EverMe.
Oerlemans said he was shocked there was $12k to $15k for every concert in the park and that if they didn’t have a concert in the park on June 21st, they now have $15k in funds available for Juneteenth–saying they don’t want to run two events in city park in the same week.
“I honestly believe the City of Brentwood needs to own this event and we need to step into it with our shoulders to the grindstone and make it happen and the event it should be,” stated Oerlemans.
While attempting to craft the staff direction, Mayor Bryant suggested that doing two major events in the same week in the same park, he wanted this to be as convenient to the community as possible and create as little confusion as possible to be as smooth as possible.
Pierson disagreed.
“Convenience goes out the window when we are trying to do something so impactful as Juneteenth,” stated Pierson. “I am sorry, we would have an outstanding number of citizens who will be so happy to forgo one concert in the park. I am going to tell you, I think June 21st was going to be your black music one, because we all know you have your Latin day, we have R&B and soul, you can call it what you want to, it’s the black music day, so we can forgo the black music day on June 21 and have an event two-days before where people are off work and kids are out of school to celebrate.”
Pierson also suggested the city has never taken a pulse on the significance the concerts in the park have had on the residence—no way to measure the impact or what Juneteenth—and she was asking to forgo one day.
Bryant responded by stating “Juneteenth was the priority”.
He said that a lot of families make an effort to go downtown to the concerts, however, Mendoza interjected saying the schedule has not yet been released for the concerts in the park.
“Juneteenth is going to be uncomfortable for some people. So lets make them uncomfortable and not give them an out,” said Mendoza. “That might be rude to some, but if you want to do something that week, its Juneteenth.”
Motion:
- Hold Juneteenth in Brentwood on 6/19
- Appoint councilmember Pierson as liaison to work with Parks & Recreation staff on the 2024 event, with no need to return to full council for approval
- Cancel the 6/1 concert in the park – repurpose 6/21 concert in the park event and funds for Juneteenth Event
- City to contribute $30k to event – see if 4EverMe wants to either partner with city or accept consultant fee.
- Have conversations regarding raising maximum budget next year
- Recognize Juneteenth as an annual event to be hosted by City of Brentwood and have conversation regarding scope of future Juneteenth Events.
The city council voted 5-0 on the motion.
Related
- June 17, 2023 – Upcoming Juneteenth Events
- Dec 31, 2022 – 30 New California Laws Coming in 2023
