This month, America celebrates its Juneteenth, commemorating the day the last group of enslaved African Americans was informed they were free. Juneteenth marks the events of June 19, 1865, in Galveston, Texas when the last Black slaves of the Confederacy were ordered free following the arrival of Union troops. Also called Emancipation Day or Freedom Day, the holiday rose to national prominence in 2020 amid nationwide protests against ongoing racial inequities, sparked in part by the police killings of George Floyd, a Black man, and Breonna Taylor, a Black woman. Juneteenth has been long celebrated by the Black community but was officially recognized as a federal holiday by President Joe Biden in 2021.
When is Juneteenth? Juneteenth is on Friday, June 19, this year.
Here are a few important words from Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. (1929-1968) -- Baptist minster, Civil Rights leader -- a brave Black man who was assassinated for his fearless and humanitarian views.
We must accept
finite disappointment
but never lose
infinite hope.
Freedom is never
voluntarily given
by the oppressor;
it must be demanded
by the oppressed.
This link leads to previous posts in this blog that celebrate this hero.
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