A little known bit of Americana outside the black American community..

I was talking about the day with a friend and it occured to me that many of my buds from across the water.. or even down the street for that matter may have never heard of this day.. and why it is celebrated in the black community, so I thought I'd share...

<sub>Juneteenth, also known as Freedom Day or Emancipation Day, is an annual holiday or holiday observance in 29 states of the United States. Celebrated on June 19, it commemorates the announcement of the abolition of slavery in Texas. The holiday originated in Galveston, Texas; for more than a century, the state of Texas was the primary home of Juneteenth celebrations. However, one small community in Arkansas (Wilmar) boasts that its celebration, called "June Dinner" has been consistently observed and celebrated, except for one year, since approximately 1870. Since 1980, Juneteenth has been an official state holiday in Texas. It is considered a "partial staffing holiday" meaning that state offices do not close but some employees will be using a floating holiday to take the day off. Twelve other states list it as an official holiday, including Arkansas, New York, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Alaska. In California, Governor Schwarzenegger proclaimed June 19th "Juneteenth" on June 19, 2005. However, some of these states, such as Connecticut, do not consider it a legal holiday and do not close government offices in observance of the occasion. Its informal observance has spread to some other states, with a few celebrations even taking place in other countries.

As of June 2008, 29 states and the District of Columbia have recognized Juneteenth as either a state holiday or state holiday observance; these include Alaska, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, and Wyoming.

History

Though the Emancipation Proclamation had been issued on September 22, 1862, with an effective date of January 1, 1863, it had little immediate effect on most slaves’ day-to-day lives, particularly in Texas, which was almost entirely under Confederate control. Juneteenth commemorates June 19, 1865, the day Union General Gordon Granger and 2,000 federal troops arrived in Galveston, Texas, to take possession of the state and enforce the emancipation of its slaves. Legend has it while standing on the balcony of Galveston’s Ashton Villa, Granger read the contents of “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. This involves an absolute equality of personal rights and rights of property between former masters and slaves, and the connection heretofore existing between them becomes that between employer and hired labor. The freedmen are advised to remain quietly at their present homes and work for wages. They are informed that they will not be allowed to collect at military posts and that they will not be supported in idleness either there or elsewhere.

That day has since become known as Juneteenth, a name derived from a portmanteau of the words June and nineteenth.

Former slaves in Galveston rejoiced in the streets with jubilant celebrations. Juneteenth celebrations began in Texas the following year.[8] Across many parts of Texas, freed people pooled their funds to purchase land specifically for their communities’ increasingly large Juneteenth gatherings — including Houston’s Emancipation Park, Mexia’s Booker T. Washington Park, and Emancipation Park in Austin. Juneteenth celebrations include a wide range of festivities, such as parades, street fairs, cookouts, or park parties and include such things as music and dancing or even contests of physical strength and intellect. Baseball and other popular American games may also be played.</sub>

S!

Thanks for sharing Bearcat. I agree it is a little known holiday.

Living in Texas and being a history buff I've always known about Juneteenth. In fact, I had Czech ancestors living side by side with Blacks in Granger, TX which was named after Gordon Granger. These immigrants faced somewhat similar hardships in the past and could relate easier to the Black community. I remember my Grandmother telling me that they worked in the fields with some Blacks that could speak Czech.

Of course, the white immigrants could assimilate easier into "white society" but I think small "mixed" communities like Granger had an advantage over the other all-white towns in our changing society. One example of community strength can be seen in its school. Granger has won some state championships in athletics and that is not an easy task...other schools have racial problems and cannot have the same kind of unity.

Mexia, another one of the towns mentioned with a park is similar to Granger. It's a nice medium sized country school far enough away from the big city for the people to keep humble lives. I did some teaching there several years ago right after they won their own state championship in football.

But one thing I've come to realize is that a lot of Blacks don't celebrate Juneteenth anymore. I guess it's just one of those events in the distant past that people don't pay much attention to anymore. Last night at work I asked my Black co-workers if they were going to celebrate and they said no. One of the happy-go-lucky guys jokingly called me a racist for even asking that quesion hahaa! We both laughed because we know each other too well.

Some people are less color-blind than others. I believe our experiment with integration has been a good thing. People from different backgrounds can go to school, work together, and laugh together when they have closer contact with one another.

Maybe I got a little off topic but I just wanted to talk about my observances. Juneteenth should not be forgotten. Some Blacks may not celebrate it but they know what it's about. Even if you don't celebrate it you should be aware. Happy Juneteenth!

A day worth celebrating!