In honor of Juneteenth this week, we want to encourage you to learn more about its history on the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture website.
Juneteenth has been an unofficial Independence Day since June 19, 1865, when a Union General was sent to Texas to enforce the Emancipation Proclamation President Lincoln had signed 2½ years prior. Since President Biden signed the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act into law on June 17th, 2021, Juneteenth is now a federal holiday.
Marking Juneteenth, as a national holiday, is the right thing to do both to recognize this important event AND to acknowledge we’re still far from being a country in which all men and women are treated equally.
Educating ourselves and our children is a great step forward.