As I’ve heard it, this is the anniversary of that date, some two years after Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation, when the Union Army took control of Texas and General Gordon Granger, standing on the balcony of Galveston’s Ashton Villa and read out the Proclamation. Until that time Confederate authorities did all they could to keep slaves from knowing about the Proclamation. I gather the historical details of this story are in dispute. I’d bet most slaves knew well before this date. Nonetheless, this date has come to be known as Juneteenth and is widely observed within the African American community. It has also gradually been recognized within the larger community. According to Wikipedia as of 2008 some twenty-eight states and the District of Columbia observe this holiday in some manner.
It is now a time to observe the call for human liberation and dignity.
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In