We need your support! The Takoma Park City Council hasn’t taken any action to acknowledge this issue concerning racial equity and restorative justice. Please email the mayor and City Council at council@takomaparkmd.gov and urge them to pass a resolution to honor Juneteenth and show respect for city employees who keep Takoma Park running every day. Thanks for your help.

Open Letter to the Takoma Park City Council

June 12, 2024

Mayor Searcy and Councilmembers,

AFSCME Local 3399's Executive Board is still advocating for a City Council resolution that would formally acknowledge and apologize for the City's decision to not recognize the first Juneteenth federal holiday as a city holiday in 2021. Former City Manager Suzanne Ludlow's retirement party that was held during work hours that day shouldn't have taken precedence over a national holiday celebrating the end of slavery. It's an insult to city staff, especially Black employees, to say otherwise. 

At a City Council meeting two days before the Juneteenth holiday in 2021, Ludlow said the City doesn't always recognize federal holidays and there would be a discussion with the City Council and the city's unions. However, she never contacted our union leadership, and we would have wholeheartedly supported the celebration of Juneteenth as a city holiday. City employees didn't receive any explanation about why the City of Takoma Park was ignoring the Juneteenth holiday and everyone was required to report to work.  

While there was short notice about the Juneteenth federal holiday in 2021, the federal government, other state, county and local governments, and public employers across the country observed the holiday. Takoma Park only has about 200 city employees so short notice isn't a valid reason for ignoring that historic day.

Ordinance 2021-41, which belatedly recognized Juneteenth as a city holiday four months later, didn't provide an apology or any recompense to city staff for skipping Juneteenth in 2021. Ironically, the ordinance stated it is "the responsibility of City government to engage in genuine gestures of appreciation of the Black community." It also is "the charge of elected officials to ensure the physical and emotional safety and the equitable treatment of Black people in the City of Takoma Park as a workforce and community." Unfortunately, the City Council didn't honor those responsibilities relating to Juneteenth that year.

The ordinance also stated that "the City of Takoma Park formally recognizes and apologizes for the atrocities Black people have suffered in this nation and is committed to restoring trust, deconstructing institutional and systemic racism, and working towards a more just future for the Black community in Takoma Park and the nation." If the City Council and city management are truly committed to restoring trust with Black city employees, then the next step on that road is formally recognizing and apologizing for the City Council's decision to not recognize the first Juneteenth holiday. 

In the interest of restorative justice, the City also should provide one personal day to all city employees since they weren’t able to celebrate the Juneteenth national holiday in 2021. Personal days have a minimal cost to the city so this would be a simple remedy.

 I hope you won't remain silent any longer about this important issue so please let us know who will take some action to right these past wrongs. 

Brendan Smith 

AFSCME Local 3399 President