The Women of Color Leadership Movement’s annual Juneteenth celebration at Rebecca Howard Park will go forward without the City of Olympia’s support, event organizer Shawna Hawk declared Tuesday.
“I’m not here to ask you to reverse your decision to support Juneteenth. We’re going to find a way to do it anyway. We’re going to make it happen,” Hawk said during public comment at Olympia City Council’s regular meeting on Tuesday, May 5.
Hawk, executive director of The Women of Color Leadership Movement and Media Island International, gave public comment at the Olympia City Council’s Tuesday, May 5 meeting regarding the city’s recent decision to pull sponsorship from the event.
The Women in Color Leadership Movement, with Media Island International and the Hawk Foundation for Research and Education in African Culture, have been partnering with the City of Olympia for an annual Juneteenth celebration at Rebecca Howard Park since 2021.
The Juneteenth celebration at Rebecca Howard Park — named for Olympia’s first Black businesswoman — commemorates the effective end of slavery in the United States by honoring the empowerment of Olympia's Black community members and promoting healing, prosperity and resilience.
In prior years, a contract between Hawk's organizations and the City of Olympia for the Juneteenth celebration was completed and signed in early April.
However, Hawk said, this year there was a stark lack of communication from the city about the event until a city official met with Hawk on Friday, April 17.
During that meeting, Hawk learned that the city would not sponsor Hawk’s Juneteenth event this year. City staff did not tell her why, Hawk said.
While Hawk began thinking about ways to run the event independently last year, she clarified that she never had a discussion about going independent with city officials before the city pulled its sponsorship.
The city will still waive the fee for use of Rebecca Howard Park, but event organizers are now responsible for organizing amenities like porta potties, insurance and tents, and financing other event costs that were previously covered by the city.
“From a logistical perspective, this is an inexcusable nightmare,” said public commenter Kael Moffat, noting that the city gave Hawk just eight weeks to fundraise and finalize community partnerships, contracts and facilities before the June 19 event.
“There is something deeply disturbing about the timing,” Moffat said.
Hawk and other event partners and community supporters allege that the city pulled sponsorship from their event in retaliation for a public clash between Olympia Mayor Dontae Payne and event partner Javoen Byrd, executive director of the Hawk Foundation, in February.
The city had invited Byrd to speak during a celebration for its Black History Month proclamation on Feb. 3, but Payne cut off Byrd’s comments after Byrd addressed the city council and said, “Do you think my ancestors care about the discomfort of a racist council member?”’
Addressing the city council again on Tuesday, Byrd defended his comments and reiterated his belief that Payne acted improperly when he cut off his remarks in February.
“My speech was mischaracterized as something I did not say, and I was not allowed to complete my statement. At no point do I name any individual. I addressed a comment and the defense of the comment. That speech is protected,” Byrd said.
Following the incident, members of the community — including Hawk — submitted a formal accountability letter to the city documenting concerns about how it was handled.
“The city has not remedied the situation. Instead, they have done other things,” Byrd said, announcing that he has filed a complaint with the Washington state Attorney General’s Office for review.
Referencing her long history of partnering with the City of Olympia and her work to establish Rebecca Howard Park, Hawk said, “the city … seems to have an issue with pitting the Black community against each other. When one Black community (member) wants to hold the city accountable for something, then they go and work with another community member.”
George Collins, communications director for the Hawk Foundation, called the city’s move to pull support from the Juneteenth celebration “contradictory with the stated aims of the council” to support diversity, equity and inclusion.
“There’s now this decision to not support something that can directly help assist and advance the fortune of Black members of our community,” Collins said. “What I’m asking for is for some level of soul searching to see how this has been reached, because frankly, it’s very, very concerning as a constituent.”
Payne did not elaborate on the city’s reasons for revoking the event’s sponsorship, but said, “The city of Olympia is continuing to observe Juneteenth as a holiday here in the City of Olympia, via declaration by proclamation, also with the raising of the flag over city hall, and is continuing to work with other partners on how we celebrate and observe the holiday in the City of Olympia.”
In an emailed statement to the Thurston Chronicle last week, Assistant City Manager Stacey Ray said that the City of Olympia was in discussions with two other organizations to potentially partner with for a separate Juneteenth event this year. Details of that event have not yet been released.
Of the decision not to partner with The Women of Color Leadership Movement and its partners, Ray said, “After an internal evaluation of that partnership, city leaders decided the timing was right to explore opportunities to develop partnerships with different organizations as part of an ongoing effort to bring new voices and experiences to our cultural events.”
For those looking to support The Women of Color Leadership Movement’s Juneteenth event at Rebecca Howard Park event, Hawk asks people to email her at shawna@mediaislandinternational.org. Event organizers are currently looking for sponsors, community partners, donations and volunteers.
