City Hall lit up for Juneteenth in San Francisco, California

© yhelfman/Shutterstoc

Happy Juneteenth!. Juneteenth

Juneteenth is here, a day celebrating the freedom of enslaved African Americans shortly after the end of the Civil War. While Abraham Lincoln's final Emancipation Proclamation in January 1863 freed slaves in Confederate states, certain areas did not abolish slavery until months after Confederate forces surrendered. Texas issued an order on June 19, 1865, that 'all slaves are free.' This act was the origin of Juneteenth, which combines the words June and nineteenth. However, slavery did not fully end in the US until the 13th Amendment was ratified on December 6, 1865.

The holiday has been recognized in every state since 1979. Modern celebrations and jubilees include concerts, marches, fairs, and buildings lit up with red, black, and green like we see in our photo. Juneteenth offers us the opportunity to celebrate progress while also challenging ourselves to identify the ongoing work that needs to be done.