Wednesda, June 19m our nation celebrated Juneteenth, yet some folks still don't know or understand what it is about.

            I'll try to clear some of that up for you.

            Juneteenth is a blend of June and nineteenth.

            According to the Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History and Culture, the name is a play on June 19th, 1865. On that day, the Union Army made its way into Galveston, Texas under the leadership of General Gordon Granger, and he announced to the people of Texas that all enslaved African Americans were free.

            The Emancipation Proclamation freed African Americans in rebel states, Texas being one of them, when it went into effect on January 1st, 1863.  The Civil War ended in April 1865.  But, it took a while for freedom to make its way to Lone Star State.

              Although the Emancipation Proclamation freed the slaves in 1863, it wasn't until June 19th, 1865 that it was actually enforced with the Union Army.  General Granger announced on that day, "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 rights and rights of property between former masters and slaves, and the connection heretofore existing between them becomes that between employer and hired laborer."

            We remember that the Emancipation Proclamation declared by President Abraham Lincoln only freed slaves held in Confederate states. It took the Thirteenth Amendment to our Constitution to make it a national policy. It was passed by the Senate on April 8, 1864, and by the House on January 31, 1865. The joint resolution of both bodies that submitted the amendment to the states for approval was signed by President Abraham Lincoln on February 1, 1865.

            Today many people regard Juneteenth as our country's second Independence Day. Although it has long been celebrated in the African American community, this monumental event remains somewhat unknown to most Americans.

            While some states celebrated Juneteenth earlier, the day became a National Holiday in 2021.