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June 19 is also known as Juneteenth, or Freedom Day, in the US. Americans celebrate the holiday yearly in memory of a world-changing reading of the Emancipation Proclamation.
Broadly, the holiday commemorates the end of slavery in the US, but it does not mark the exact date slavery ended. Instead, this specific date recalls a very particular and important reading of the Emancipation Proclamation in Texas.
People are placing extra focus on the holiday this year as Black Lives Matter protests take center stage in national discourse.
So, what is Juneteenth? And how do Americans observe this long-running historical holiday? Here’s everything you need to know about Juneteenth. If you’re not already familiar, consider this your home work!
While the Civil War was still raging in 1863, then-President of the United States, Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation. But given that the Confederate states claimed to be a separate country from the Union, none of them heeded Lincoln’s command to free all of their slaves.
Still, the reading of the Proclamation brought about a renewed intensity in the Union’s fight to bring the Confederacy to heel.
By the end of the war in 1865, it had become common for messengers from the North to spread news of the Proclamation to slaves in the South. However, this proved to be a dangerous vocation. Slave owners tended to resent these messengers. Many simply ignored them and told their slaves to get back to work.
As a result, the Union Army themselves began riding through the South to tell slaves of their freedom. Plantation owners couldn’t easily deny the army’s authority, so largely, it worked.
On June 19, 1865, Union army general Gordon Granger rode into Galveston, Texas, and announced federal orders proclaiming that all slaves in Texas were now free.
The joyful citizens marked the date as the anniversary of their freedom. This is how Juneteenth came to be.
While the holiday remained a regional celebration for decades, it would eventually make its way into American culture at large. Throughout the US, all but two states (Hawaii and South Dakota) officially recognize the holiday.
Historically, Americans and others have celebrated the holiday in joyous and festival-like ways. People would often fish, play baseball, hold barbecues and celebrate freedom. In the modern era, the holiday has also taken on an educational air. The holiday is also about learning about the history of slavery in the US and the importance of social progress for black Americans.
