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Happy Juneteenth: Celebrating Freedom

In addition to the history, it is important for parents to remind their children that freedom comes from God and is the natural state of mankind. When freedom is taken—as in the case of slavery—or when it is hindered—as in the case of segregation—people of honor and courage must rise up and fight against injustice.

Freedom is a precious and a fragile thing. As parents, one of our important responsibilities is to help our children to understand where our freedoms come from and how they are maintained. One important and significant date on the freedom calendar is June 19th, 1865. Now, we celebrate this as a federal holiday—so happy Juneteenth!

On that day, Union soldiers, led by Major General Gordon Granger, landed at Galveston, Texas, with news that the war was over and the slaves were now free. Then, General Granger read to the gathered crowd General Order Number 3:

“…in accordance with a Proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free. This involves an absolute equality of rights and rights of property between former masters and slaves…”

Soon June 19th was celebrated as the day when freedom was finally extended to all the people in America – and it received the celebratory name “Juneteenth”!

How Juneteenth Came to Be

In the days following the Civil War, Americans began commemorating the loved ones lost through “memorial” or “decoration” days. Over the years, African Americans have celebrated their freedom from slavery on several dates—based on how freedom came to them during and after the war.

According to Chris Graham of the American Civil War Museum, many northern black people adopted the abolitionist tradition of celebrating August 1st, which was the anniversary of the 1834 abolition of the slave trade in the British Empire and on the Atlantic Ocean.

“Some freedpeople in Virginia maintained celebrations on April 9, the date of General Robert E. Lee’s surrender at Appomattox,” Graham explains. “Residents of east Tennessee noted August 8, the date that future President Andrew Johnson freed his personal slaves in 1863 (a celebration acknowledged by that state in 2007). In Texas, African Americans celebrated June 19th—Juneteenth … More broadly, Americans in the post-war years looked to the January 1 anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation to commemorate freedom.”

These various regional observances, along with a lack of leadership at the Federal level, led to the failure to establish a unified national observance day for emancipation.

The Role of the Emancipation Proclamation

President Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863, declared “that all persons held as slaves” within the rebellious states “are, and henceforward shall be free.” After this directive went into effect, more than 50,000 enslaved individuals were relocated to Texas. Also, this region was beyond most of the fighting, and thus beyond the reach of the United States Army.

This prolonged bondage for the slaves of Texas. It was only after the Union army forced the surrender of Confederate forces that General Edmund Kirby Smith at Galveston on June 2, 1865, that freedom was finally granted to the slaves in Texas.

On June 19, 250,000 enslaved people were freed—the final official liberation as a result of the Civil War. The official end of slavery in the United States came when the state of Georgia ratified the 13th Amendment on December 6, 1865.

How to Explain Happy Juneteenth to Your Child

When speaking to your child about history, it’s important to be truthful about events within the context of the time in question. Also, it’s important to shape your conversation to the maturity level and the age and stage of your child. Parents should discuss some issues, like slavery, the Civil War, and emancipation with children in stages. For parents, begin with simple concepts and growing more complex as the child grows and matures.

For a young child, you can begin with the concept of freedom and what that means to them. As they grow a little older, you can introduce the concept of slavery and the history of the Civil War, the Emancipation Proclamation, and the end of the war. Also, you can explain the history of “Happy Juneteenth” and what happened to many of the slaves after they received their freedom.

As they enter their teen years, your kids can have more in-depth conversations about subjects related to Juneteenth—freedom, equal rights under the law, racism, civil rights, the history of race relations, and current racial tensions. This is a time where you can also talk about other topics such as:

Where Does Freedom Really Come From?

In addition to the history, it is important for parents to remind their children that freedom comes from God. Moreover, freedom is the natural state of mankind. When freedom is taken—as in the case of slavery—or when it is hindered—as in the case of segregation—people of honor and courage must rise up and fight against injustice.

Another lesson alongside the fight against injustice, there must also be forgiveness against both oppressors and insurgents after achieving justice. Those who hold onto unforgiveness only imprison themselves. In his book, A Gift of Love, Dr. Martin Luther King quotes from Jesus’ teaching from the Sermon on the Mount when he declared, “Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; that ye may be children of your Father which is in heaven.” (Matthew 5:44-45)

“We must develop and maintain the capacity to forgive. He who is devoid of the power to forgive is devoid of the power to love. … There is some good in the worst of us and some evil in the best of us. When we discover this, we are less prone to hate our enemies.”

How to Celebrate Juneteenth?

Being a new federal holiday, you may wonder how to celebrate Juneteenth. As a celebration of freedom, there are numerous ways to celebrate this new holiday. Juneteenth has been recognized on the local level since the 1800s. Common traditions include rodeos, public readings, voter registration efforts, parades, community gatherings, street fairs, fishing and more.

Since 1976, Buffalo, New York holds the largest celebration of Juneteenth. Today, the celebration has thousands of attendees. The event includes dozens of vendors, book giveaways, underground railroad tours, and a three-hour parade.

According to Tonya Abari of Good Housekeeping, Happy Juneteenth celebrations always feature fantastic food, “a tradition that dates back to 1872, when Black leaders in Texas raised money to purchase a plot of land to hold Happy Juneteenth celebrations. Also, these leaders had to solidify special Juneteenth sites, for many communities would not allow for celebration on public property.

Juneteenth celebrations typically involve meals of red food and drink, such as hibiscus tea, watermelon, strawberry shortcake, red beans and rice, red velvet cake and strawberry soda, to symbolize strength and courage. These specialties often appear alongside staples like collard greens, barbecue and tea cakes.”

Happy Juneteenth: Walking in True Freedom

It was in the crucible of revolutionary fervor that the immortal words of the Declaration of Independence emerged:

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.”

On the 4th of July, 1776, the Continental Congress officially adopted the Declaration of Independence. This is the official birth of the United States of America. Then, Abraham Lincoln referred to the immortal words of the declaration in the midst of the Civil War:

“…our fathers brought forth on this continent a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.”

Lincoln noted in his famous Gettysburg Address, that the winning of the Civil War by the Union expanded the notion that “all are created equal.”

…that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain – that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom…

This new birth of freedom expands the original founders’ vision. This phrase captures the significance of that vision: “all are created equal” to people of every color, nation, tribe, and tongue. Finally, this hallowed concept has spread around the world. It lit the torch of freedom everywhere. Eventually inspiring other nations to rise to the ideals of the Declaration of Independence. Above all, this is the freedom we celebrate on this new federal holiday, Juneteenth.

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