Photos by Ingrid Barrentine

We continue to be heartbroken by the senseless deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, Rayshard Brooks and too many others. Our CEO Brad Tilden shared thoughts on these tragic events through an open letter to our employees, which you can read here. 

At Alaska, we are currently conducting employee listening sessions with Brad and our President, Ben Minicucci, to inform both short- and long-term action plans to address racial equity within and beyond our company. Listening and learning are part of the journey. Talking about race isn’t easy, however, it is critical to learn about the history, experiences and perspectives of Black people in America. 

This Friday, June 19, is a significant day to commemorate Juneteenth, the oldest-known tribute to the end of slavery in the United States. While slavery ended a long time ago, racism has not. 

Today, Alaska’s Business Resource Group, Air Group Black Employees, Allies and Advocates (ABEA) is hosting a virtual internal discussion with all Alaska and Horizon Air employees in recognition of Juneteenth in the hope of educating, engaging and uplifting our company. The virtual event will also feature guest speaker LeNesha DeBardelaben, who is the executive director of the Northwest African American Museum (NAAM) in Seattle and an African American Historian. 

“In order to know where we’re going, we need to understand where we’ve been,” said ABEA BRG leader, Sarah [pictured in middle of photo above]. “Our hope is that revisiting the struggles and resilience from the past will help increase understanding and help us gather strength for the road ahead.”

Watch video to hear ABEA members explain Juneteenth: