Juneteenth, a portmanteau of “June” and “nineteenth,” is a federal holiday commemorating the end of slavery in the United States. It marks June 19, 1865, when Major General Gordon Granger announced the enforcement of the Emancipation Proclamation in Texas, effectively ending slavery throughout the former Confederacy after the Civil War.
Juneteenth became a federal holiday on June 17, 2021 when President Joe Biden signed legislation designating June 19th as Juneteenth National Independence Day. It is the first new federal holiday since Martin Luther King Jr. Day was declared a holiday in 1986.
Visit the African American History: Juneteenth for more information and resources.
Web Links:
- “100 Amazing Facts About the Negro” (PBS)
- ‘Grandmother of Juneteenth’ Celebrates Federal Holiday—But There Is More Work to Do (CNN)
- “Hungry for Stories about Black History”: Henry Louis Gates Jr. Breaks Down the Significance and History of Juneteenth (CBS News)
- Juneteenth: Campaigns (NAACP)
- Juneteenth Topic Page (College: Gale in Context)
- Juneteenth: Special Series (NPR)
- National Museum of African History & Culture (Smithsonian)
- What is Juneteenth? (History)
Videos: