Celebrating Juneteenth
**This was originally published on June 19, 2018. We have updated and added some content.**
June 19th, or Juneteenth, is a day set aside to commemorate the end of slavery. Juneteenth is also known as Emancipation Day, and has its roots in Texas. This may be surprising to some, as no major Civil War battles were fought there. For this very reason and because of the state’s location on the outskirts of the Confederacy, the Emancipation Proclamation, issued January 1, 1863, had no immediate effect in Texas. In fact, the Proclamation prompted slaveholders in other confederate states to pick up roots and flee with their slaves to Texas, ahead of Union occupation. Slave auctions were being held in Texas as late as April 1865, the same month General Lee surrendered at Appomattox. But on June 19, 1865 Union soldiers, led by General Gordon Granger, landed at Galveston, where Granger delivered General Order Number 3, sometimes referred to as the Texas Emancipation Proclamation, bringing the news of emancipation to Texas. Annual celebrations began the following year in 1866.
Observance of the holiday fell off through the Jim Crow and Civil Rights eras. But the holiday was officially made a legal Texas state holiday in 1979. Today, it is traditionally observed in the African American community with family and community celebrations, such as parades, concerts and public gatherings in parks. Many a barbecue is held, where the holiday’s traditional red soda is served.
Today, in an effort to bring attention to forgotten history and contemporary issues, the holiday is being used to celebrate more than just emancipation. Many museums and cultural centers organize arts and education events. This year, the day is being celebrated virtually by many organizations due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Many events will focus on the impact of COVID-19 and police violence in black communities.
Scholar and activist Dr. Marcus Bright encourages Juneteenth celebrants to reflect on the importance of implementation. In light of the years it took for freedom to come to the slaves of Texas, despite President Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation, Dr. Bright stresses the importance of following through on policy and court decisions, and encourages persistence in civil rights organizing to ensure the effectiveness of policies and rulings meant to preserve rights.
Historian Hari Jones contends the day should commemorate the role African American soldiers played in the defeat of the Confederacy. Indeed, the first official regiment of black soldiers joined the Union army on September 27, 1862 after passage of the Militia Act of 1862 authorizing slaves to enlist. These regiments would later become known as the United States Colored Troops. Active recruitment of black troops was then pursued with the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation.
In 2007, Washington State passed legislation officially recognizing the observance of Juneteenth. Chapter 61, Laws of 2007 states, “The legislature declares that an annual day of recognition be observed in remembrance of the day the slaves realized they were free as a reminder that individual rights and freedoms must never be denied.”
Sources and further reading and listening:
Before Juneteenth: The Emancipation Proclamation in Texas by W. Caleb McDaniel, Associate Professor of History, Rice University
Texas State Historical Association’s Handbook of Texas Juneteenth article
BlackPast.org Perspectives article, Juneteenth: The Growth of an African American Holiday (1865 — )
Folklife Today article, Juneteenth, featuring links to recorded slave narratives in the Library of Congress’ American Memory collection Voices from the Days of Slavery
Library of Congress digital collection, Born in Slavery: Slave Narratives from the Federal Writers’ Project, 1936 to 1938 (SC)
