Yeah, how you know?

 This afternoon The Husband hangs up the phone. He'd clearly just been booking a gig of some kind. "What is Mansipation?"

Me: What?

Husband: Mansipation when the slaves got freed?

Me: You mean emancipation?

Husband: Yeah. What is that?

Me: Like liberty for the slaves.

Husband: Yeah that. I just got a call for this weekend to celebrate-

Me: JUNETEENTH?!

Husband: Yeah, how you know?

Me: Because it's June. Juneteenth is when the last slaves in the South were freed in Texas. It was a few years later and the slaveowners had refused to tell them they were free so the Union army had to go in to liberate them.

Husband: Yeah, yeah. That's it! So this weekend is an event at some street, 18th and-

Me: VINE?! 18th and Vine?

Husband (shocked expression): Yeah, how you know? It's a parade. There is a jazz mus-

Me: The Jazz Museum? The museums at 18th and Vine?

Husband: Yeah, how you know? There's also a Ne-

Me: The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum and the Jazz Museum?!

Husband (astonished): Yeah, how you know?

Me (gushing): You're working at the Juneteenth event by the museums at 18th and Vine!!!!! That is so cool! 

Husband: Yeah, how you know?

Me: I grew up in Kansas City.

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I cannot believe I've never talked to him about these places. It's amazing what kinds of knowledge about your home you take for granted. The Husband has lived here so long that it's easy for me to forget about him being an immigrant that wouldn't know all those nuggets of Kansas City history. I'm also white so it's easier for me to overlook teaching him about Kansas City's Black history. I clearly need to do better. I mean I saw Buck O'Neil speak TWICE growing up. He was so cool! I'll never forget how he talked about not getting the job with the Cubs because he didn't have "that piece of paper." I loved his word choice. It was an excellent way to describe a diploma. It does seem like just a piece of paper sometimes, but it's a piece of paper with power. 

I'm off now. I have to go teach my kids about these things as well and they don't read my blog.

#KnowBetterDoBetter