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What Exactly Is Junteenth?
By: Savannah Walsh
Photo credit: Joe Amon - Getty Images
Juneteenth, a holiday that honors the end of slavery in the United States, has been celebrated by Black Americans for the last 155 years. But this year, nationwide protests following the recent deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and other Black people at the hands of police have sparked an unprecedented interest in the day from non-Black people.
The American education system has largely white-washed history, crediting President Abraham Lincoln with freeing slaves by signing the Emancipation Proclamation in 1862 and ending the Civil War. But it would actually be two more years before slavery was officially ended, when Gen. Gordon Granger and a group of Union troops arrived in Galveston, TX to tell slaves of their freedom.
It's one of many facts about the experience of the Black community that many white Americans are learning about and acknowledging, perhaps for the first time. "Juneteenth is now on people's radar even though we have been using it to validate our existence which has been wiped away from us for generations," James Felton Keith, who is running for a seat in New York's 13th Congressional District, told ABC News. "Juneteenth truly represents freedom."
Ahead, what to know about Juneteenth's history, why people are fighting to make it a national holiday, and how you can help honor the day.
Juneteenth, a combination of “June” and “nineteenth,” commemorates June 19, 1865: the day that Union Army Gen. Gordon Granger traveled to Galveston (the last area in the U.S. where Black people were still enslaved) to order they be freed. This day was long overdue, especially considering that Lincoln had signed the Emancipation Proclamation, meant to free all enslaved people, in January 1863.
In the time in between the signing and Granger's announcement, many white slave owners ignored Lincoln's declaration. "In fact, there were slave owners who moved from parts of the South, from slave states, to continue the practice of slavery in Texas because they knew they could practice there for a longer time without interruption," Kelly E. Navies, a museum specialist and oral historian with the National Museum of African American History and Culture, told ABC News.
Furthermore, Juneteenth.com states that there were not enough Union troops in Texas to enforce Lincoln's proclamation. But with the arrival of Granger's troops, there was enough strength to do so. “The people of Texas are informed that in accordance with a Proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free,” the Union general read aloud to the residents of Galveston, per the Texas State Library and Archives Commission. Uncertainty about the future of Black people in the U.S. would persist, but it was the first step toward freedom for a group that had long been oppressed.
The holiday—which is also referred to as Emancipation Day, and Juneteenth Independence Day—is celebrated much like the Fourth of July. Events often take place with parades or festivals and involve, food, picnics, and other outdoor activities with loved ones. There is often a religious or spiritual element to the proceedings with prayers and guest speakers.
In 1866, the first Juneteenth anniversary celebration occurred in Texas, spreading to the surrounding states of Louisiana, Arkansas and Oklahoma first. By 1872, the celebrations expanded when a group of former slaves purchased "emancipation grounds" meant for Juneteenth parties. Ten acres of land in Houston became Emancipation Park, where Juneteenth events are held to this day. There's also an Emancipation Park in Austin and a Booker T. Washington Park in Mexia, Texas.
Photo credit: Joe Amon - Getty Images
Douglas Matthews, who has helped facilitate Juneteenth gatherings in Galveston, told The New York Times that while the city usually hosts around 15 events, this year, due to the coronavirus pandemic, several of the in-person celebrations will take place virtually. Large-scale celebrations will still take place, per ABC News. One such event is "Juneteenth 1,000,000 March NYC," where protesters are expected to gather with masks and gloves in front of City Hall and paint a Black Lives Matter street mural on Friday.
A growing number of brands and companies are acknowledging Juneteenth for the first time this year, granting employees paid holidays or supporting the Black community in other ways. Some of the major companies to make Juneteenth a paid company holiday included Nike, Twitter, and the NFL. In a press release, Target Chairman and CEO Brian Cornell said, "We recognize that the racial trauma the country is experiencing now is not new, but throughout recent weeks there has been a sense that this time is, and has to be, different." The retailer will recognize Juneteenth as a companywide holiday in the future and hourly employees working on Friday will be paid time and a half.
Media organizations are also spotlighting Juneteenth. Hulu is moving the release dates for two of its originals—Love, Victor (June 17) and Taste the Nation (June 18)—in observance of the day. Vice TV will devote its programming on Friday to amplifying Black voices. CNBC has compiled a running list of companies observing Juneteenth.
