Hey, GVL. Today is Juneteenth + if you haven’t heard of it or have heard the word but aren’t exactly sure what it is or how it started, we’ve got you covered.
First things first: Juneteenth is a portmanteau of the words “June” + “nineteenth” and is celebrated on June 19 every year.
What is Juneteenth?
Juneteenth, also known as Jubilee Day, Freedom Day, or Emancipation Day, commemorates June 19, 1865, the day Union General Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston, Texas to read General Order No. 3, a federal order freeing any + all previously enslaved people in Texas.
But wait. President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation, freeing all slaves, on January 1, 1863. So shouldn’t slavery have ended then?
Yes + no. There are a few rumored theories as to why Texas still had slaves, more than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation. The first is simply that news traveled slowly in the 1860’s, but 30 months is a long time, even for an era without cell phones + wifi. Some people believe the original messenger was killed to stop the information from reaching Texas. Others believe that the government delayed the announcement so Texas could get one more cotton harvest out of the slaves, but the most probable reason is that Lincoln’s proclamation couldn’t be enforced in Confederate states until the war was officially over.
What happened next?
Many people don’t know that General Order No. 3 urged the former slaves to, “work quietly at their present homes and work for wages,” but most freedpeople had no intention of staying with their former slave owners + some even left before General Granger finished delivering the complete address.
What follows is known as The Scatter, a time when flocks of former slaves immediately left their homes to head north, build schools, find long lost family members, and even run for office. And while there was a lot of joy + hope for what was to come, there were also many dangers for former slaves fleeing their homes, with many being beaten or even killed on their journeys to brighter futures. For those that managed to leave, life was not easy because the end of slavery did not equate to full freedoms + Jim Crow laws were spreading quickly, which meant access to public places was either limited or not allowed at all, so options for Juneteenth celebrations were sparse.
But in 1872, Reverend Jack Yates, former slave + Baptist minister, formed the Colored People’s Festival and Emancipation Park Association in partnership with Antioch Baptist and Trinity Methodist Episcopal Church and pooled $1,000 to buy ten acres of land for their Juneteenth celebration, which they named Emancipation Park.
Later, as more newly-freed Texas slaves migrated to other parts of the country, they carried the Juneteenth traditions with them, but celebrations began to wane and even stop altogether in many places. It wasn’t until the Civil Rights Movement that an emphasis on black pride + identity began to resurface, leading to renewed interest in Juneteenth for newer generations.
How do people celebrate + honor Juneteenth?
In 2008, South Carolina passed a law designating June 19 as a Juneteenth Celebration of Freedom Day, “in order that these things might never be forgotten or taken for granted.” Currently, 45 states + the District of Columbia recognize Juneteenth, but it is not yet a federal holiday.
As for Greenville celebrations this year, JDew will be performing a virtual black history narrative + Derrik Cook will be leading a march + celebration at Wyche Pavilion in Downtown Greenville. The Urban League Upstate will also be hosting an event at The Commons.
So whether you celebrate with barbecue, Juneteenth’s signature dish, from a local business like Bobby’s, by supporting a black-owned business in the area, or by joining a march in the community, we hope you enjoy America’s second Independence Day.
Happy Juneteenth, GVL.
