Juneteenth: By Any Means Necessary

Members of the Revolutionary Abolitionist Movement (RAM) in NYC reflect on Juneteeth and the ongoing struggle against white supremacy.

Juneteenth is a very special day, marking the end of slavery in the United States. For all of us it is a marker of a day to come in the future when we can finally be rid of this decrepit system, and live with freedom and dignity.

This year is really a cause for celebration because something has truly changed within all of us. The fearlessness, the comraderie of the streets and the power we have against our enemy has changed reality for everyone living on this occupied land.

This year we celebrate with joy in our hearts and pride for all the fighters who have taken to the streets and shown the world that we are not going to take this tyranny any longer and that we have the power to make that change. This year we celebrate those who burned down the 3rd precinct in Minneapolis, the brave people who took the fight to the oppressor, the people that burned down the Wendy’s in Atlanta, and all those who fought back against the pigs where they stood. You have all started a momentum which cannot be stopped. You have given hope to us all. We celebrate our prisoners of war who have been dragged to the dungeons with their heads held high. They are joining the millions of people held in torture chambers across the country, which highlights the need to continue the struggle.

We celebrate Juneteenth because we intend to liberate people from those cages, abolish police, and cast off the shackles the United States never took off and never intended to take off.

For the celebration, we placed the message, ‘By any means necessary’ across New York City. Honoring the legacy of Malcolm X, we state that his message still speaks to the task at hand decades later. We send this message to all the fighters out there who we met briefly in the street: we are in it until the end!

This year we shout: Juneteenth is a day for rebellion!

We will abolish slavery once for all!

-Revolutionary Abolitionist Movement – NYC