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What is Juneteenth Day of Observance? Exploring date,origin, and importance of National Freedom Day
Today, the State of California declared Juneteenth National Freedom Day: A Day of Observance, as proclaimed by Governor Gavin Newsom.
Governor Gavin Newsom made the proclamation today, declaring Juneteenth National Freedom Day: A Day of Observance in the State of California. In the proclamation, the governor mentioned that the United States celebrates its independence on one more day other than July 4.
On June 19 of each year, the nation celebrates the day in 1865 when Union General Gordon Granger announced the end of the Civil War and the infamous institution of slavery. More than two years after President Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, thousands of slaves in Texas—among the last to be informed of their freedom—were eventually set free.
Juneteenth Day of Observance: Date, origin, and importance
President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863, stating that everyone who was being held as a slave would be free. Congress approved the 13th Amendment two years later, on January 31, 1865. According to the NMAAHC, Union forces did not finally arrive in Galveston Bay, Texas, bearing tidings of liberation until that summer, on June 19, 1865.
The White House proclamation states that Juneteenth is now a federal holiday honoring two of the most important moments in American history: the end of the Civil War and the emancipation of Black Americans. Following the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act's enactment by President Joe Biden in 2021, the day was declared a federal holiday. Following the adoption of Martin Luther King Jr. Day in 1983, Juneteenth became the first newly declared federal holiday.
Governor Newsom asked every Californian to consider the ongoing struggle for Black Americans' freedom, emphasizing that while General Granger's 1865 proclamation called for absolute equality, that goal was and is still far from achieved. In addition to acknowledging the country's accomplishments, he invited everyone to consider the steps still needed to fully realize the country's original goals.
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