In the United States, the new holiday of Juneteenth now officially commemorates the slave emancipation on June 19, 1865. It is celebrated with a typically American mixture of barbecues, awareness-raising campaigns, commerce and even rodeos.
Participants celebrate and dance at a Juneteenth festival in Prospect Park in New York.
Last year, US President Joe Biden declared June 19 a national holiday, and this year it will be properly celebrated for the first time. This day commemorates the liberation of African Americans from slavery. The common expression “Juneteenth” is a short form of “June Nineteenth”. Because the date falls on a Sunday this year, the official holiday has been moved to Monday.
The slaves found out about their liberation only late
“Juneteenth” refers to June 19, 1865 and the American Civil War (1861-1865). President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation abolishing slavery in September 1862. As the Civil War progressed, the proclamation was gradually promulgated in the defeated southern states. The last such declaration, which also proclaimed the end of the war, was on June 19, 1865 in Galveston, Texas, two months after Lincoln’s assassination.
It was bitterly ironic that the 250,000 Texan slaves were only told after a long delay that they had “actually” been free for almost three years. From the following year, the end of slavery was celebrated on June 19th. However, the day was not introduced as a public holiday in Texas until 1980, and then nationally last year.
The decision had a lot to do with the killing of George Floyd on May 25, 2020, the ensuing Black Lives Matter protests and renewed discussion of slavery and racism. Donald Trump’s intention to hold the opening event of his election campaign on June 19 in Tulsa, where one of the most devastating massacres of African Americans with around 300 deaths had taken place in 1921 due to race riots, also played a role. The ensuing controversy in the summer of 2020 brought Juneteenth national attention.
Juneteenth rodeos and staff quizzes
The US has only eleven national holidays. Apart from Christmas, they are not of a religious nature, but mostly refer to American history. The most recent – before Juneteenth – is the birthday of civil rights campaigner Martin Luther King in January, which then-President Ronald Reagan declared as an official memorial day in 1983. The law making Juneteenth an American holiday was passed almost unanimously by Congress last summer.
President Biden called on Juneteenth on Sunday to continue fighting discrimination. “Great nations do not ignore their most painful moments,” he said. “You face them to get stronger. And that is what this great nation must continue to do.” The country should not rest until the promise of equality for all Americans has been fulfilled.
In the US, Juneteenth has so far been celebrated primarily by the Afro-American population, often with barbecues, preferably with food and drinks in red, i.e. watermelons, red beans and soft drinks like “Big Red”. The rise of the national holiday has now led to many employers decorating their offices in the “pan-African” colors of yellow, red and black, offering snacks and drinks, organizing quizzes and puzzles and conducting awareness-raising sessions in the teams. Many places host festivals, concerts, parades and even Juneteenth rodeos.
In the United States, the custom is widespread to place signs in the front yard. The residents use it to praise, for example, their children’s school, a political candidate, “Black Lives Matter” or now Juneteenth. With Memorial Day now coinciding with Father’s Day, which is more important in the US than in Europe, and Pride month with numerous LGBTQ rallies, parades and festivals, Juneteenth signs can now be seen in many gardens alongside rainbow flags and “Best Dad Ever” banners.
Of course, such an occasion also includes commercialization. The Walmart stores are overflowing with picnic blankets, cardboard plates, hats, even ice cream in the appropriate colors and beer coolers with the inscription: “This is freedom for me!”.
Large museum planned in Fort Worth
Juneteenth’s “grandmother” is 95-year-old Opal Lee, who campaigned for June 19 to become a national holiday. For twenty years she maintained a modest museum on the subject in Fort Worth, Texas. At the same time, she was publicly committed to dedicating a larger, more dignified place to the end of slavery. Now her wish has come true. At the end of the year, the groundbreaking ceremony for the National Juneteenth Museum takes place. The $70 million project is scheduled to open on June 19, 2024. When asked what Juneteenth meant to her, she simply replied: “Freedom”.