KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — People in Knoxville gathered on Sunday morning to mark the Eighth of August, a date that commemorates the day in 1863 when slaves in Tennessee were freed.
"I think that, whenever you think about history and the struggles and the challenges, it is emotional," said Reverend Renee Kesler, president of the Beck Cultural Exchange Center. "Particularly when you think about what our ancestors went through."
Sunday morning's Libation Ceremony took place at the Freedmen's Mission Historic Cemetery, adjacent to the historic Knoxville College. The cemetery is the resting place for three of Knoxville's original slaves.
"I think that is part of the importance of understanding history," Kesler said. "It is understanding it was real people with real lives that were impacted and affected, but because of their endurance, we are standing here today."
Kesler said the Eighth of August is about looking back on history and understanding it, but also about looking ahead.
"If you are not afraid to look back, then nothing you are facing can frighten you," she said. "So I think it is that we look back, we remember and commemorate history so that we can look forward to a great future."
Kesler recognized many people in Knoxville do not know what the Eighth of August is about, so she said she hopes that by commemorating it year after year people will start to catch on.
"I did not know this history and I was a little ashamed about that before," Kesler said. "But now that I know, I want everyone else to know as well. It is about understanding, and un-silencing history, which is so important that we give voice to history, because I think that is truly where we begin to learn."