GREENSBORO, N.C. — Across the United States of America, Juneteenth, or Freedom Day, is celebrated in a variety of ways.
“As an African-American person, freedom is very important," stated John Swaine, CEO of the International Civil Rights Center & Museum.
But what is Juneteenth? And how does its history date all the way back to the American Civil War-era?
“We celebrate Juneteenth because there were people who were enslaved in Galveston, Texas that remained in bondage for another two years after the emancipation proclamation," recounted Swaine.
While Lincoln’s Proclamation was law, the law relied on Union troops enforcing it. With Texas being the most remote state in the Confederacy at the time, it took 900 days for the Emancipation Proclamation to make its way to the Island of Galveston. There Major General Gordon Granger informed the people of Texas that “all slaves are free.”
“It is a day of celebration, and I wish it was something like the King holiday where we have a core mission. It’s not just a celebration, but it’s time to hunker down and do something to build community," Swaine said.
For the next several decades, Juneteenth became an annual commemoration across Texas a soon across the United States. It became an official holiday in the Lone Star state in 1980 and the federal government followed suit over 40 years later in 2021.
“I think it’s an excellent opportunity for us to further understand who we are as one people. What is that common goal that we want to work for? And it is our core democratic values," said Swaine.
So, yes, Juneteenth is not just a holiday. It’s a rich history where Americans are to remember, to commune, and to celebrate the freedom given to Black-Americans.
“People at some point, will take a look at the America we came from and ask ourselves, are we gonna turn to embrace that or are we gonna move forward to build something to that is powerful for everybody? I’m going to choose the later," Swaine declared.