June 15, 2022
Dear Campus Community:
As part of the CSU’s Inaugural Juneteenth Symposium being held on June 15 and 16, we invite you to join other CSUCI faculty, staff, and students, in celebrating African American history and achievement and promoting and sustaining the anti-racism work underway across the CSU’s 23 campuses. This vibrant first-ever event will be live-streamed and will feature world-class speakers, evocative student performances, thought-provoking panel discussions and interactive breakout sessions meant to inspire connection, innovation and continued pursuit of a just and equitable world.
We are also pleased to share our participation and sponsorship of the annual Ventura County Juneteenth Celebration to be held on Saturday, June 18 at Plaza Park in downtown Oxnard from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
For more than 30 years, Ventura County’s Juneteenth Celebration has been organized by several primarily African American community organizations as a way to educate the public about the importance of Black history and heritage, as well as celebrating President Lincoln’s passage of the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863 outlawing slavery in the United States and freeing over 500,000 enslaved African Americans.
This free community event will include local artists, entertainment, food, health and wellness information, exhibits, and vendors. CSUCI will have an information table at this weekend’s Juneteenth event and we invite members of the campus community to join us.
Additionally, nationally renowned African American mixed media artist, Milton 510 Bowens, will present a lecture for students and the community entitled, “The Search for Understanding Freedom Through Art.” Mr. Bowens highlights the milestones in our history like Juneteenth and captures the untold stories of significant African American icons like Mahalia Jackson, Chadwick Boseman, Madame CJ Walker, Satchel Paige, and Ketanji Brown Jackson. The artwork of Milton 510 Bowens is among the collections of NBA greats Lebron James, Michael Jordan, Kevin Johnson, Charles Barkley; as well as, Donna Brazile, Andrew Young, and Terry McMillian, to name a few.
The art talk is one of several activities over two days, Friday and Saturday, June 17 and 18, including an artist reception, a VIP collection preview and pre-purchase, and a Q&A interview session with Bowens, moderated by human rights advocate and multi-media producer – Maleena Lawrence. A schedule of these activities is outlined below.
Milton 510 Bowens Event Schedule
June 17, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Art Talk Lecture
Virtual Session
June 17, 1 p.m.
Live Broadcast on Radio Station 99.3 FM and live-streamed on 99ThreeFM.com
June 18, Noon to 4 p.m.
Milton 510 Collection Exhibition and Public Sale
Open Door Studio - 329 W Fifth Street, Downtown Oxnard (Next to Carnegie Art Museum)
We invite you to participate in any of these events and the weekend’s celebration.