Juneteenth was established as a federal holiday by President Joe Biden in 2021 when he signed the Congressional Juneteenth National Independence Day bill.
But the holiday has a long history that predated the 2021 signing. While some people assume that it recognizes the end of slavery, President Barack Obama stated that Juneteenth should be recognized as “a symbolic milestone on our journey toward a more perfect union.” (June 19, 2015)
So why is June 19th significant?
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Galveston 1865
On June 19, 1865, Union Major General Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston, Texas on his sweep through the South. He and his men were traveling to spread the word about 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.”
By the time he arrived in Galveston, it was more than two months after Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrendered to Union General Ulysses S. Grant in Virginia, bringing the Civil War to a close.
Already Free
While Juneteenth began as a recognition of the official end to slavery in Texas, slaves elsewhere were already free. President Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation stated that Southern slaves were free as of January 1, 1863, but of course, the reality of that was difficult to enforce.
Finally, the conclusion of the Civil War on April 9, 1865 (Lee’s surrender) set other slaves free.
Slavery Permanently Abolished
While Juneteenth began as a recognition of the official end to slavery in Texas, slaves elsewhere were already free. President Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation stated that Southern slaves were free as of January 1, 1863, but of course, the reality of that was difficult to enforce.
Finally, the conclusion of the Civil War on April 9, 1865 (Lee’s surrender) set other slaves free.
The First Celebrations
In Texas, special traditions began to be celebrated after 1865. Religious services, family picnics, and guest speakers became part of Juneteenth. One family member remembered that after a religious service, many families read the Emancipation Proclamation and sang “The Star Spangled Banner” and the “Battle Hymn of the Republic” during their picnic.
Families getting together was a very significant part of the day, because for so long, slavery kept families apart. Plantation owners thought nothing of selling off sons, daughters, husbands, or wives, if they could get more money by doing so.
As Texans moved to other parts of the country, the tradition of Juneteenth spread with them. The celebrations were always held in Black neighborhoods, because Black families were not allowed to use parkland designated for white people.
Even as the celebrations spread across the country, they remained low-key events where neighbors and families enjoyed getting together.
More Change Needed
But for former slaves, the 13th Amendment needed to be just the beginning. An end to slavery didn’t make things right. On July 9, 1868, the 14th Amendment granted citizenship to all persons “born or naturalized in the United States” was passed, including formerly enslaved people. It also promises all citizens with “equal protection under the laws.”
But Blacks still couldn’t vote. On February 3, 1870, the 15th Amendment—granting African American men the right to vote and hold political office–was ratified.
The white population bucked that with Jim Crow, and unequivocal voting rights were not affirmed until 1965.
Story of Juneteenth Picks Up Speed
In the meantime, Opal Lee (1926- ), a retired teacher in Fort Worth, Texas, felt the country was missing something by not acknowledging Juneteenth as a federal holiday. Lee was determined to bring attention to this cause.
For many years, she helped organize Fort Worth’s Juneteenth celebration. An important feature she implemented there was an annual bus tour for city leaders. The route is always planned to show landmarks in the area that are important to Black Fort Worth citizens. She also made certain the city leaders saw the parts of town where improvement was needed.
National Campaign
Based on her experience in Fort Worth, she determined to campaign to make it a national holiday. Publicity was key. In 2016 at the age of 89, she began publicizing 2.5 mile-walks that she—a grandmother in tennis shoes—made in many cities. (The significance of 2.5 miles relates to the fact that it took two-and-a-half years for news of the Emancipation Proclamation to reach Texas.)
She visited a variety of cities including Fort Smith and Little Rock, Arkansas; Las Vegas, Nevada; Madison and Milwaukee, Wisconsin; Atlanta, Georgia, and Selma, Alabama as well as several more towns in the Carolinas.
Change.org hosted her petition. As she traveled, she asked for signatures for Juneteenth to be established as a federal holiday. She eventually received 1.6 million signatures.
In early 2021, she was interviewed by reporter Cory McGinnis from ABC-7 in Fort Worth. She told him, “It’s going to be a national holiday, I have no doubt about it. My point is let’s make it a holiday in my lifetime.”
More About Opal Lee
Opal Lee has become known as the “Grandmother of Juneteenth,” but a look at her life shows she is much more than that.
Her activism was stirred when she was only 12 years old. White supremacists descended on her family’s new home (1939), because the family purchased a home in a “white neighborhood.” The police responded, but they couldn’t control the mob. By the end of the night, the interior of the house and all the family’s furniture was burned. This forced the family to look elsewhere to live.
She received a teaching degree from Wiley College in Marshall and a master’s degree in counseling and guidance from North Texas State University (now University of North Texas).
She returned to Fort Worth to teach in the public school system for 15 years, eventually transitioning to working as a home school counselor. She was also active in her Fort Worth-Tarrant County community.
Among her causes was founding the Tarrant County Black Historical and Genealogical Society.
Just as Opal Lee Hoped
In 2021, when Juneteenth became a federal holiday, it kicked off controversy. Organizers were not pleased with major retailers offering “Juneteenth Sales” and other forms of commercialization.
There is also the discussion of the meaning of the day. We’re long past slavery, and Barack Obama put it well: “Juneteenth has never been a celebration of victory, or an acceptance of the way things are. It’s a celebration of progress. It’s an affirmation that despite the most painful parts of our history, change is possible––and there is still so much work to do.”
As he said in 2015, “Just as the slaves of Galveston knew that emancipation is only the first step toward true freedom, just as those who crossed the Edmund Pettus Bridge 50 years ago knew their march was far from finished, our work remains undone.”
Thoughts on the New Holiday
As we add this holiday to our list of federal holidays, it is important to think of it as a day to take stock. What parts of American life are better for Black families? What parts are worse? How can we make things better?
The phrase, “A rising tide lifts all boats,” was popularized by President John F. Kennedy in 1963. It is an apt thought for today.
We are always stronger together.
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The stories of voting rights advocate Fannie Lou Hamer and the citizenship schools of Septima Clark tell more about the continual struggle for justice.