Honoring Juneteenth: Links, Resources, and Local Celebrations
This year, for the second time in our organization’s history, Health & Medicine is celebrating Juneteenth. Here, we’ve compiled some links and resources about the significance of this holiday. If you don’t already, we hope that you or your organization will consider joining us in honoring this important day.
What is Juneteenth?
Juneteenth is the oldest known celebration honoring the end of slavery in the United States. On June 19, 1865, Union General Gordon Granger led thousands of federal troops to Galveston, Texas to announce that the Civil War had ended, and slaves had been freed. While the official date of the Emancipation Proclamation was 1863, it would take two years for the news to reach the remote territory of Texas. Upon Gen. Granger’s arrival, approximately 250,000 Texan slaves had no idea that their freedom had been secured.
Resources:
- Check out Health & Medicine’s statement on Juneteenth as well as our related blog post.
- This article, What Is Juneteenth? by Henry Louis Gates, Jr., provides an extensive history of Juneteenth, from Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger’s 1865 order freeing slaves in Texas to how the holiday is celebrated today.
- Bryan Stevenson, the ED of the Equal Justice Initiative, who founded the National Memorial for Peace and Justice, was interviewed on Democracy Now! discussing the importance of narrative and history in fights for justice. Here is part two of the interview.
- Juneteenth: How to Celebrate
- 12 Things You Might Not Know About Juneteenth by Stacy Conradt
- National Observance of Juneteenth is Still a Struggle by Jacqueline J. Holness via Urban Faith
- President Obama’s Statement in Observation of Juneteenth
- The Quintessential Americanness of Juneteenth by Vann R. Newkirk II via The Atlantic
- Hot Links and Red Drinks: The Rich Food Tradition of Juneteenth by Nicole Taylor
- Juneteenth: A Celebration of Resilience and Freedom via Chicago Public Library with suggestions of books for children
- An Antiracist Reading List from the New York Times
- For general information, check out Juneteenth.com.
Participate:
Part of the reason Health & Medicine is celebrating Juneteenth is to promote narrative change and increase dialogue as a step toward recognizing and rectifying historical injustice. We hope you will join us in this celebration either by honoring the day itself or spreading the word over social media and to your network. Please consider sharing these social media messages and adding ones of your own. And don’t forget to tag us @HMPRG on Twitter, @HMPRGChicago on Facebook.
Sample social media messages:
- The Fourth of July is not the only Independence Day that deserves to be celebrated. bit.do/HonoringJuneteenth #Juneteenth #HistoryMatters
- Juneteenth is the oldest known celebration honoring the end of slavery in the United States. Celebrated on June 19th of every year, it marks the day that the last enslaved people in Galveston, Texas learned of their freedom in 1865. How will you celebrate #Juneteenth? bit.do/HonoringJuneteenth
- Historical context matters to health equity. Celebrating Juneteenth is a step towards recognizing the full scope of American history and the unfinished work of advancing racial justice. How will you celebrate #Juneteenth? bit.do/HonoringJuneteenth
- Click here to access social media-ready images to accompany your post.
Celebrate:
Chicago has a rich tradition of Juneteenth celebrations. Here are a few local celebrations:
