If you think ‘Juneteenth was great, Blacks are no longer enslaved, now life goes on.’ It really wasn’t quite like that. It wasn’t like you woke up one day and just everything was equal. Obviously, there’s still a fight for equality going on. The biggest thing I think is to look at it, look at that time period and recognize and acknowledge what it was. It was a start, but it was no where near people being seen as equal, and, by and large, that still exists today, and that’s still the hurdle we’re trying to overcome. - Head Coach Robin Fraser
Juneteenth, now, means celebrating. It was a historic day for Black people, it was a historic day for everybody in the world in general. But, now, it’s about recognizing what the past was and what happened in the past and recognizing it wasn’t right and how we move forward as a nation, as a country and as a society in general. Now, it’s a day of celebration, but it’s also a day for recognition. - Defender Auston Trusty
I think for us, as people, we need to keep stressing the importance of these dates. It was in 1865, and now we’re, what, almost 200 years later. It’s been a whirlwind, especially this last year, all the events, but I think it’s important to keep educating and inspiring the youth and next generations. - Midfielder Kellyn Acosta
I want people to know the importance of Juneteenth. Why it’s celebrated, why it’s important. For me, I don’t think a lot of people even know what Juneteenth is… So it’s important for people to know what it means and realize what it means for our country. - Acosta
It’s, in a way, a celebration. To have slavery end, that meant that things were getting closer to being on an even keel… the fact that somebody had the ability to own another human being is unfathomable these days. So, while it’s a celebration in that respect, it’s also really a stain on the country because it talks a lot about what life was like then. - Fraser
