Today, we celebrate the 147th Anniversary of Juneteenth. Juneteenth is the oldest nationally celebrated commemoration of the ending of slavery in the United States.
While President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation some two and a half years prior, word did not travel down to the port of Galveston, Texas, until June 19, 1865. On that date, Union soldiers led by General Gordon Granger, brought word to this last group of slaves proclaiming that they were, in fact, free men and women.
Today, it is generally celebrated by families and friends coming together. Often times, everyone goes down to the park and barbeque. There’s always plenty of food to share with those who are less fortuned. It is also a time to reflect and marvel at the achievements of black people, be it historical, such as George Washington Carver, Shirley Chisholm, and Frederick Douglass, or contemporary such as General Colin Powell and President Barack Obama.
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