In 1961, Albany Georgia Police Chief Laurie Pritchett restrained his forces from using violence on civil rights protesters. Instead he ordered their wholesale arrest of and incarceration in separate holding places in neighboring hamlets thus keeping his jails from getting overcrowded. Pritchett held Abernathy, MLK, and other leaders of the movement in Albany proper in horrid conditions including withholding food.
We talk with professor and food writer Fred Opie about the celebratory foods of Juneteenth, as well as the rich history of soul food in the United States and the many foods of the African Diaspora.
During the Great Depression Juneteenth celebrations declined but the Civil Rights and Black Power movements of the 1960s and 70s revitalized the holiday in African American communities. Black history, educating people about African American contributions, and agitating for the advancement of African American needs (and sometimes for reparations) serves as the reason for the holiday, but down home cooking has attracted large crowds too.
