Juneteenth is a fitting to prelude to America’s 250th birthday.
In January 1863, Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, which is often considered the declaration that ended slavery in this country. “All persons held as slaves” shall be “forever free,” it reads. But it was limited in scope. It applied only to places that were “in rebellion,” not to slave states siding with the Union.
Meanwhile, Southern states refused to abide by Lincoln’s pronouncement. Instead, thousands of people had to lose their lives for the words and concepts embedded in the proclamation to become reality for Black Americans.
The Emancipation Proclamation remains an important and seminal document in our history. It made the abolition of slavery one of the goals of the Civil War. It paved the way for the 13th Amendment, which codified the abolition of slavery. It led to 200,000 Black Americans serving in the Union Army.
But two years after the Emancipation Proclamation, slavery still existed in Texas. On June 19, 1865, Union Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger entered Galveston and shared some welcome news. “In accordance with a proclamation from the executive of the United States, all slaves are free,” Maj. Gen. Granger said.
The next year, former slaves celebrated their freedom on June 19 — Juneteenth. The day is also known as Emancipation Day and Freedom Day. Early celebrations included “community-centric events, such as parades, cookouts, prayer gatherings, historical and cultural readings and musical performances,” according to a fact sheet from the Congressional Research Service.
As people migrated from Texas, the celebration of Juneteenth spread. In 1980, Texas became the first state to recognize Juneteenth as an official holiday. Nevada followed in 2011. This important observation became a federal holiday in 2021.
Slavery was a grievous moral evil that inflicted unspeakable horrors. Ending that hideous institution brought freedom to millions. That’s worth celebrating, even if Black Americans’ century-long struggle for civil rights showed that much work remained.
Juneteenth is also a reminder of how much America has improved its commitment to the God-given rights the Declaration of Independence spells out so eloquently. It’s what Frederick Douglass longed for in his famous “What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?” speech. As Mr. Douglass expressed in 1852, our country’s original transgression wasn’t the promotion of freedom and liberty through the Constitution. It was failing to apply those vital concepts to all.
Juneteenth is well worth commemorating.
A version of this editorial originally appeared on this page in 2021.
