Today marks the 161st celebration of Juneteenth.
First celebrated in 1866, the day commemorates the end of enslavement as it was on June 19 that the enslaved people in Galveston learned about the Emancipation Proclamation.
In honor of Juneteenth, here are five facts to know about the holiday.
Juneteenth celebrations were brought back to life during the Civil Rights Movement. Although the start of the Jim Crow era and the hardship of the Great Depression marked an increased difficulty in properly celebrating Juneteenth, the civil rights movement led to a rebirth of celebrations for the holiday.
In 1968, following the assassination of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., his widow, Coretta Scott King, and the SCLC ensured that his vision for the Poor People’s Campaign, which sought to address the evils of poverty, coincided with Juneteenth. The connection linking the emancipation of formerly enslaved people to the symbolism of freedom from economic oppression allowed for the spirit of Juneteenth to be carried more broadly across the country.
Juneteenth was declared a federal holiday in 2021. Once it was declared, it became the first new federal holiday since 1983, when Martin Luther King Jr. Day was adopted. Although it was first celebrated in 1866, the 117th U.S. Congress officially passed measures to declare it a federal holiday on June 17, 2021, with former President Joe Biden signing the bill into law. Previously, throughout the 2000s and 2010s, 45 states recognized Juneteenth as a holiday. Eventually, before it was declared a federal holiday, it was celebrated in every state except South Dakota.
Activist Opal Lee is often referred to as “the Grandmother of Juneteenth.” Lee, a 98-year-old, has been a longstanding activist in the push to make Juneteenth a federal holiday. Previously a teacher, she helped organize the annual Juneteenth celebration in Fort Worth, Texas. For decades, she advocated for the recognition of Juneteenth as a federal holiday by leading a 2.5-mile walk each year; the 2.5 miles represented the 2.5 years it took for the news of the Emancipation Proclamation to reach Texas. She has marched across several states, including Nevada, Wisconsin, and Georgia. She is currently hospitalized for an undisclosed illness and is not expected to lead this year’s walk in Texas. For her work, she has been awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by former President Joe Biden.
Emancipation Park was explicitly purchased for Juneteenth. In 1872, Rep. Richard Allen, Richard Brock, Jack Yates and Elias Dibble purchased 10 acres of Emancipation Park for $800 (roughly $21,000 in today’s economy). The men were all bonded together as members of the Antioch Missionary Baptists Church and the Trinity Methodist Episcopal Church. For a time, the park was used only to commemorate Juneteenth when celebrations were held.
Red foods are traditionally used to celebrate Juneteenth. Red foods and drinks such as hibiscus tea and strawberry sodas are typically served at Juneteenth celebrations. The tradition came from West Africa; people from Yoruba and Congo brought the meaning to Texas in the 1800s. In both cultures, red is symbolic of power, sacrifice and transformation.
