Juneteenth
Juneteenth, officially Juneteenth National Independence Day, is a federal holiday in the United States. It is celebrated annually on June 19 to commemorate the ending of slavery in the United States.
The holiday's name is a portmanteau of the words "June" and "nineteenth", as it was on June 19, 1865, when Major General Gordon Granger ordered the final enforcement of the Emancipation Proclamation in Texas at the end of the American Civil War.
Early celebrations date back to 1866, at first involving church-centered community gatherings in Texas. They spread across the South
amongst newly freed African American slaves and their descendants and
became more commercialized in the 1920s and 1930s, often centering on a food festival. Participants in the Great Migration brought these celebrations to the rest of the country. During the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s, these celebrations were eclipsed by the nonviolent determination to achieve civil rights, but grew in popularity again in the 1970s with a focus on African-American freedom and African-American arts. Beginning with Texas by proclamation in 1938, and by legislation in 1979, every U.S. state and the District of Columbia has formally recognized the holiday in some way.
Juneteenth is also celebrated by the Mascogos, descendants of Black Seminoles who escaped from slavery in 1852 and settled in Coahuila, Mexico.
The day was recognized as a federal holiday in 2021, when President Joe Biden signed the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act into law. Juneteenth became the first new federal holiday since Martin Luther King Jr. Day was adopted in 1983.Celebrations and traditions
The holiday is considered the "longest-running African-American holiday" and has been called "America's second Independence Day." Juneteenth falls on June 19 and has often been celebrated on the third Saturday in June. Historian Mitch Kachun considers that celebrations of the end of slavery have three goals: "to celebrate, to educate, and to agitate".
The holiday is considered the "longest-running African-American holiday" and has been called "America's second Independence Day." Juneteenth falls on June 19 and has often been celebrated on the third Saturday in June. Historian Mitch Kachun considers that celebrations of the end of slavery have three goals: "to celebrate, to educate, and to agitate".
Traditions include public readings of the Emancipation Proclamation which promised freedom, singing traditional songs such as "Swing Low, Sweet Chariot" and "Lift Every Voice and Sing", and reading of works by noted African-American writers, such as Ralph Ellison and Maya Angelou. Celebrations include picnics, rodeos, street fairs, cookouts, family reunions, park parties, historical reenactments, blues festivals, and Miss Juneteenth contests. Red food and drinks are traditional during the celebrations, including red velvet cake and strawberry soda, with red meant to represent resilience and joy.
The Black Seminoles of Nacimiento in Mexico hold a festival and reunion, known as el Día de los Negros on June 19. Many former British colonies celebrate Emancipation Day on August 1, commemorating the Slavery Abolition Act of 1833.
Since 2021, the United Nations has designated August 31 as the International Day for People of African Descent.
History
On September 22, 1862, President Abraham Lincoln announced that the Emancipation Proclamation would go into effect on January 1, 1863, promising freedom to enslaved people in all of the rebellious parts of Southern states of the Confederacy including Texas. Enforcement of the Proclamation generally relied upon the advance of Union troops. Texas, as the most remote state of the former Confederacy, had seen an expansion of slavery because the presence of Union troops was low as the American Civil War ended; thus, the enforcement of the Emancipation Proclamation had been slow and inconsistent there prior to Granger's order.
On September 22, 1862, President Abraham Lincoln announced that the Emancipation Proclamation would go into effect on January 1, 1863, promising freedom to enslaved people in all of the rebellious parts of Southern states of the Confederacy including Texas. Enforcement of the Proclamation generally relied upon the advance of Union troops. Texas, as the most remote state of the former Confederacy, had seen an expansion of slavery because the presence of Union troops was low as the American Civil War ended; thus, the enforcement of the Emancipation Proclamation had been slow and inconsistent there prior to Granger's order.
Opal Lee is a huge reason Juneteenth is a federal holiday. In 2016 she walked from Fort Worth, Texas to D.C., 2.5M a day, to symbolize the 2.5 years it took news to reach the remaining slaves in Texas that they were free. She was 89. She walked 1400 miles hoping to make Juneteenth a federal holiday.
She tried again in 2019 to make the walk but it was cut short by covid (I can't even do any math on how long this walk must take for her).
Last summer, Biden signed the bill making Juneteenth a federal holiday with her in attendance.
President Joe Biden signed the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act into law, June 17, 2021
Today’s video Google Doodle, illustrated by Los Angeles-based guest artist Loveis Wise and narrated by actor and activist LeVar Burton, honors the 155th anniversary of Juneteenth.
Short for “June Nineteenth,” Juneteenth marks the true end of chattel slavery across the United States - which didn’t actually occur until 1865, two and a half years after the Emancipation Proclamation.
Short for “June Nineteenth,” Juneteenth marks the true end of chattel slavery across the United States - which didn’t actually occur until 1865, two and a half years after the Emancipation Proclamation.
Specifically, it marks the day when enslaved Black people in Galveston, Texas (one of the westernmost points in the Confederate South) finally received news of their liberation.
✌ ✌ 🎊 🎈 🎉 🎂 🍾 ✌✊🏽 ✌
Happy
Juneteenth
👇 📽️ 👇
Le Juneteenth (une combinaison de June, le mois de juin, et nineteenth, soit l’adjectif dix-neuvième en anglais), officiellement le Juneteenth National Independence Day, également connu sous le nom de jour de la Liberté (Freedom Day), jour de l'Émancipation (Emancipation Day), ou encore jour du Jubilé (Jubilee Day) est une fête nationale et jour férié aux États-Unis célébré le . La fête est officielle dans l'État américain du Texas depuis 1980 et un jour férié national depuis . Le Juneteenth symbolise l'émancipation des esclaves afro-américains au Texas et plus généralement à travers tout le Sud confédéré.
De façon plus précise, elle commémore l’annonce par le général nordiste Gordon Granger des ordres fédéraux proclamés le 19 juin 1865 à Galveston, au Texas, qui ont libéré tous les esclaves du Texas.
Quelque deux ans et demi auparavant, la proclamation d'émancipation du président Abraham Lincoln
avait rendu illégal l’esclavage au Texas, de même que dans les autres
États américains en rébellion contre l'Union. La mise en application de
la proclamation reposait généralement sur les avancées militaires des
troupes nordistes. Étant donné que le Texas était l’un des États esclavagistes les plus éloignés du Nord, on n’y trouvait qu’une faible présence de troupes nordistes à la fin de la guerre de Sécession ;
dès lors, la mise en application y avait été plus lente et sporadique
qu'ailleurs. Bien qu'on répète souvent que Juneteenth célèbre la fin de
l'esclavage aux États-Unis, la pratique s'est maintenue dans deux États
de l'Union (le Delaware et le Kentucky) jusqu'au 6 décembre 1865, lorsqu’a été ratifié le treizième amendement de la Constitution des États-Unis, qui abolissait l'esclavage non pénal à l’échelle de la nation tout entière.
Behind the Doodle:
155th Anniversary of Juneteenth
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This Is Why
Juneteenth Matters
NowThis
✌ ✌🎊 🎈 🎉 🎂 🍾 ✌ ✊🏽 ✌
✌🏽 ❤️🖤💚 ✊🏽 ✊🏾 ✊🏼 ❤️🖤💚 ✌🏽
Happy Juneteenth !!!
🤸🏾♀️ 🤸🏾♀️ 🎂 🍾🎊 🤸🏾♀️🎈🎉🎂 🤸🏾♀️ 🤸🏾♀️
✌🏽 ✌ ✌ ✌ ❤️ 🖤 💚 ✌ ✌ ✌ ✌🏽
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