CELEBRATING JUNETEENTH

How do you plan to Juneteenth this year? Celebrating Juneteenth means finding ways to honor freedom, culture, the past and the future. Juneteenth celebrations include: acknowledging the pain while celebrating the resilience of African American ancestors, attending events near you, church services, civil rights activism, festivities and parades, joining virtual Juneteenth celebrations, 

learning the full history of the holiday, musical performances and concerts, picnics, readings, spreading the word, supporting Black-owned businesses, food, and so much more.

Food has been essential to Juneteenth celebrations. History.com says: Certain foods are customary in Juneteenth celebrations, and traditionally, red foods dominate. The color signifies resilience amid bondage. As Chef Chris Scott who spearheaded the James Beard Foundation’s first Juneteenth celebration in 2018, explains, “the red symbolizes the blood that was shed by Black Africans and Black Americans during slave capture, slave travel, and slave trade here in the States and in the Caribbean.”  He lists watermelon, strawberries, barbeque, and red velvet cake as traditional red foods to include.

On Juneteenth, many reflect on sacrifices made by those who fought for freedom and equality. It has been described as a day "when we honor the strength and courage of African Americans and the contributions they have made and continue to make for our country." 

Juneteenth is a blending of the words June and nineteenth. It is the oldest known U.S. celebration of the end of slavery. It is also known as Emancipation Day, Freedom Day, Jubilee Day, Juneteenth Independence Day, and Black Independence Day. On June 19, 1865, Major General Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston, TX, and announced the end of the civil war and the end of slavery, even though the Emancipation Proclamation came 2½ years earlier on January 1, 1863. President Biden signed into law the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act on June 17, 2021, making June 19 a federal holiday. All 50 states and the District of Columbia recognize Juneteenth as a holiday or observance, and at least 28 states and the District of Columbia have designated Juneteenth as a permanent paid and/or legal holiday.

To learn more about Juneteenth you can go to the National Museum of African American History and Culture’s Juneteenth webpage (https://nmaahc.si.edu/juneteenth) for info on: The First Juneteenth, Freedom Deferred, Tastes of Resilience, Sounds of Freedom, Juneteenth Today, Reading List, Commemorative Collection, and so much more.