Juneteenth Rang In Freedom For All

When Abraham Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation declared the end of slavery in the Confederacy on April 16, 1862, it appeared that Emancipation Day would be celebrated on that day. However, his proclamation had no impact on enslaved people, as they were not even aware of it, until the Civil War ended in 1865, according to vox.

It was only two months after Gen. Robert E. Lee surrendered on April 9, 1865, announcing the end of the Civil War, that Major General Gordon Granger steamed into the port of Galveston, Texas. On June 19, about 150 years ago, Granger stood on the balcony of a building in downtown Galveston and announced: "The people of Texas are informed that, in accordance with a proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free," he said, according to nytimes.

Emancipation, then, meant a number of unofficial holidays on different dates. In Charleston, Boston, and Richmond, what it meant was 'emancipation' on January 1, while in New York it translated into August 1, pronouncing the end of slavery in the widespread British Empire. In Washington, DC, emancipation day was official on April 16---when the Emancipation Proclamation had happened.

Hence, emancipation was celebrated only when freedom touched various lives, scattering the dates across the calendar. News of the Civil War's end reached Texas only on June 19, 1865. A Time feature (1997) explained the effect on the state: "Texas got the big news a little late. On June 19, 1865---nearly a month after the Civil War ended and more than two years after President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation---General Gordon Granger of the Union Army landed at Galveston, Texas, and read aloud General Order No. 3: "The people of Texas are informed that in accordance with a Proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free."'

Juneteenth also became an important date that could celebrate emancipation due to its "romantic and unusual name" that helped the day to stand out against other "Emancipation Days" in the calendar of holidays. Juneteenth did not just celebrate a change in law, but also the freedom that followed.

Galveston, Texas, did erupt in joy , and the feeling went viral, leading to the holiday of "Juneteenth". However, the Juneteenth celebrations did not begin to ring immediately. It was only a century later in 1997, that Congress recognized Juneteenth with a joint resolution, celebrating that "Juneteenth celebrations have thus been held for 130 years to honor the memory of all those who endured slavery and especially those who moved from slavery to freedom," even though it wasn't a national holiday.

As nytimes puts it: "The day should be recognized for what it is: a shared point of pride in the symbolic end of centuries of racial slavery - a crime against humanity and the great stain on America's soul. As meaningful as Independence Day itself, Juneteenth completes the circle, reaffirming "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness" as the rights of all, not a select few."