For nearly a decade, Shawna Hawk and Javoen Byrd have worked to advance Black visibility, cultural education, and civic engagement in Olympia. Today, both leaders are raising concerns that their efforts to hold local government accountable have resulted in retaliation against Black-led organizations and initiatives.
Hawk, founder of the Women of Color in Leadership Movement and director of Media Island International, has organized Juneteenth celebrations and racial justice programming in Olympia since 2016. Byrd, an educational equity advocate, researcher, and doctoral student, serves with the Hawk Foundation for Research and Education in African Culture, where he focuses on African American history, civics education, youth development, and cultural preservation.
At the center of the dispute is the sudden withdrawal of city support for Olympia’s Juneteenth celebration, an event Hawk had organized for years. The decision came suddenly and without explanation.
“They wait till the 17th to say, ‘We’re not going to contract with you anymore,’” Hawk recalled. “I said, ‘Why?’ three times.”
According to Hawk, no meaningful explanation was ever provided.
The controversy follows a series of disputes between Byrd and city leadership after he publicly challenged what he viewed as anti-Black attitudes and policies. Byrd says tensions escalated after he raised concerns about comments made during discussions regarding a potential sister-city relationship with Nigeria and later criticized city officials during public meetings.
One of the most contentious moments occurred during a city proclamation event when Byrd said he was prevented from completing remarks critical of city leadership.
“The mayor cut me off during my protected speech,” Byrd said. “I said, ‘No, I will not be silenced.’”
For Byrd, the issue extends beyond a single incident. He argues that Black leaders who speak forcefully or demand accountability often encounter resistance in environments that reward accommodation over confrontation. Additionally, often the tokenization of Black faces in white spaces make it more complex and nuanced when confronting microaggressive and macroaggressive conduct.
Hawk echoes those concerns and marks another pernicious maneuver used by the powers that be: divide and conquer.
“They seem to feel comfortable pitting Black people against each other,” she said.
The concerns extend beyond Juneteenth.
Hawk points to delays surrounding the proposed Rebecca Howard Park, a project intended to honor one of Olympia’s most significant Black pioneers. She says city leaders made commitments to the project following the racial justice movement of 2020, yet progress has remained slow.
“I’ve been working on that and simultaneously with the Juneteenth event to get the city to follow through on a promise they made in 2020,” Hawk said.
For Hawk, the stalled park project and the withdrawal of support for Juneteenth reflect a broader pattern in which public commitments to Black communities receive enthusiastic support in principle but less follow-through in practice.
“If the Black community themselves is not going to be able to benefit from that, and the park is being pushed back, and now you’re retaliating against the Juneteenth event,” Hawk said.
Hawk and Byrd argue that Black leaders are often welcomed into conversations about equity until they begin demanding accountability. Their allegations center on what they describe as retaliation—not through public punishment, but through withdrawn support, stalled projects, canceled opportunities, and exclusion from decision-making.
The question at the heart of the controversy is simple: Do institutions value Black voices when they challenge power, or only when they remain agreeable?
What’s Next?
Despite the loss of city support, Hawk says organizers intend to move forward with Olympia’s Juneteenth celebration on June 20 while continuing efforts to secure funding and community partnerships. Hawk and Byrd are also pursuing accountability through public advocacy, outreach to state officials, and requests for greater transparency regarding decisions affecting Juneteenth and Rebecca Howard Park.
Whether Olympia’s actions constitute retaliation depends on which side of the issue you’re on. What is clear is that Hawk and Byrd believe the consequences they experienced began when they chose not to be quiet.
This raises a poignant, overarching concern: Are Black voices welcomed only when they are compliant?