Holidays are about bringing Americans together and Juneteenth celebrates the long progression of integrating freed black persons into the economic, political, and social American life.
It all began with the final announcement of the Emancipation Proclamation to freed slaves on June 19, 1865 in Galveston Bay, Texas. Since then, America has progressed through the Civil War, the 13th, 14th, and 15thConstitutional Amendments, initial reconstruction, Black Codes, Jim Crow laws, segregation, integration, and civil rights legislation of the 1960s including the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, and the Fair Housing Act of 1968.
We have come a long way and we continue to progress through current issues including fair voting legislation, Black Lives Matter issues, and systemic racism that most of us may not even recognize. We now have two freedom holidays within two weeks. Maybe we can continue to evolve and celebrate Juneteenth and 4th of July with each other.
Jeff Bensch 