The History Behind Juneteenth by Brandon Priddy, Public Services Librarian Juneteenth, a portmanteau of June and nineteenth, also called Freedom Day, Jubilee Day, and Liberation Day has been celebrated for 155 years. ***1 So what is the origin of the holiday? According to the Gale History database: “On April 16, 1862, several months prior to the Emancipation Proclamation, President Abraham Lincoln issued the Compensated Emancipation Act, which freed all enslaved persons in the District of Columbia. The majority of American slaves, however, earned their freedom well after …[and] many were not liberated until the war was nearly over. The most widespread emancipation celebration commemorates the moment when slavery was finally outlawed in Texas. Several months after Robert E. Lee's surrender at Appomattox Court House, Virginia, emancipation remained but a rumor for the nearly 250,000 slaves in Texas. However, on June 19, 1865, federal troops arrived in Galveston and announced that slavery was abolished in the state. Celebrations on June 19, called Juneteenth, continue both in Texas and beyond. In 1968 civil rights leader Ralph Abernathy encouraged participants in the Poor People's March to Washington, DC, to take up the holiday, and Juneteenth celebrations now occur throughout the United States.” ***2 Mt. Lebanon Public Library wishes everyone an enjoyable and contemplative celebration of Juneteenth. We are dedicated to sharing African American history and culture in our community. Please join us virtually on Monday, June 22nd at 7 PM to hear Samuel W. Black, Director of the African American Program at the Senator John Heinz History Center, present his lecture The History of the Pittsburgh Courier. You can register here. Then next month, join local Poet Dessie Bey for her program Know Thyself: An African American Poetic Journey on Thursday, July 23rd at 7:00 PM. You can register here. Sources: ***1 https://www.cnbc.com/2020/06/15/what-is-juneteenth-holidays-history-explained.html ***2 Wright, Ben. "Emancipation Day." America in the World, 1776 to the Present: A Supplement to the Dictionary of American History, edited by Edward J. Blum, vol. 1, Charles Scribner's Sons, 2016, pp. 319-321. Gale In Context: U.S. History, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/CX3630800170/UHIC?u=mtlbn&sid=UHIC&xid=92d7031a. Accessed 18 June 2020. |