19 Jun Juneteenth

On June 19, 1865, 2,000 union soldiers arrived at Galveston Bay, Texas, announcing that more than 250,000 enslaved Black people were free, as per executive order. Texas was the last state in the confederacy to enslave Black people, and the newly freed people in Texas referred to this day as Juneteenth.

Juneteenth National Independence Day was the most recently declared federal holiday, on June 17, 2021, to commemorate the end of slavery and to honor African Americans’ culture, community, and achievements. This day also serves as a reminder of the inhumane treatment of Black people, and that our country must continue to reflect, change, grow, and learn from its past.