Why Juneteenth History Matters And How You Can Honor It

June 19, perhaps better known as Juneteenth, is America’s newest official federal holiday. However, the tradition of celebration and remembrance on this date generally has long roots in the history of the African American community, stretching back to the end of slavery in the immediate aftermath of the U.S. Civil War. 

The nineteenth of June can memorialize the day that the news of the Emancipation Proclamation reached the furthest outpost of the Confederacy. The formerly enslaved people there began to mark the anniversary with a massive day of celebration and rejoicing. Yet discrimination and racism can be said to have persisted long after the end of organized slavery and may continue to harm African Americans to this day. Honoring Juneteenth appropriately can involve a combination of celebrating past progress and contributing to the ongoing fight for equality. In addition, those who have been impacted by racism may benefit from working with a licensed therapist to promote healing.

Are you living with the mental health effects of racism?

Get support from an online therapist

The origins of Juneteenth

While Juneteenth may have begun in the 19th century, a full understanding of its significance may require looking back to America’s colonial roots. The history of this holiday tends to be inextricably tied to the history of chattel slavery in the U.S.

Slavery and the invention of race

Organized slavery in the Americas largely grew out of the demand for a cheap and exploitable labor force to work the massive plantations of sugarcane, tobacco, and other cash crops. The most affordable option for the wealthy owners of these farms was usually to purchase enslaved people transported from Africa.

Theories about the racial superiority of “whites” often emerged to justify the lifelong enslavement of these kidnapped Africans and any descendants they might have. These ideas generally formed the basis of a system in which a person’s legal rights to freedom, property, and justice were determined by their skin color. 

The result for the Black community in America was centuries of brutal, dehumanizing oppression and discrimination. Many of the lingering effects may persist to this day.

The Civil War and the Emancipation Proclamation

In general, slavery became an increasing point of contention between the Northern and Southern states throughout the 1700s and into the 1800s. The growing tension erupted into civil war in 1861, when seven Southern states, fearing that slavery would be outlawed, attempted to break away and form a separate nation known as the Confederate States of America.

President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863, as a wartime measure to undermine the Confederate economy and boost Union recruitment. This executive order freed enslaved African Americans throughout the rebel territories.

The end of the war was still two years away, though, and the Proclamation could not be carried out in areas still under Confederate control. Abolition would not spread throughout the South until two months after the official end of the Civil War. 

On June 19, 1865, Union General Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston, Texas (the westernmost Confederate state) and issued an order stating that:

“...in accordance with a Proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free. This involves an absolute equality of rights and rights of property between former masters and slaves, and the connection heretofore existing between them becomes that between employer and hired labor.”

The first Juneteenth

African Americans in Texas responded joyfully to the news of their liberation. The following year, a group of former slaves marked the occasion with a celebration they called “Jubilee Day,” referring to a Biblical commandment involving the periodic freeing of slaves and forgiving of debts. 

The festivities involved everything from worship services and songs to cookouts and raucous outdoor parties. In some areas, people even produced homemade “fireworks” by filling hollow trees with gunpowder and exploding them. As these celebrations developed into an annual tradition, the name of the holiday became popularly referred to as simply “June Nineteenth,” often shortened to “Juneteenth.”

Despite the joyful response, freedom and equality did not come instantaneously for Black Americans. Many slaveholders avoided telling the people working on their farms that they were free until after the harvest was complete. Some even tried to defy the order, going so far as to murder African Americans who attempted to leave their plantations.

Juneteenth celebrations from 1865 to the present

In the following decades, struggles continued to rage between people attempting to honor the proclamation of “absolute equality” and reactionary movements trying to maintain white supremacy. Tactics like violent lynchings, financial discrimination, and segregationist “Jim Crow” laws were frequently used to oppress freed Black people and their descendants. 

Juneteenth celebrations continued in some places to celebrate the legacy of Emancipation and rally for full equality and justice. However, the tradition didn’t gain national attention until June 1968, when the Poor People’s Campaign, started by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., organized a Juneteenth Solidarity Day. 

Various states around the country began to adopt the date as a formal holiday, beginning with Texas in 1979. It was adopted as a federal holiday in 2021 when President Joe Biden signed the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act. 

Ways to observe Juneteenth within the Black community

Juneteenth hasn’t always been widely celebrated outside of certain parts of the American South. If you’re a Black person unfamiliar with the holiday’s traditions, here are some ways to mark the occasion.

Join a communal celebration

Though it may also serve as a reminder of the work still to be done, Juneteenth began first and foremost as a celebration of freedom. For many, the date remains an important opportunity to take joy in the achievements and communal strength of Black Americans. You can often find public celebrations in your town or city, ranging from semi-formal cookouts in public parks to organized festivities involving parades, live music, and fireworks. Red food and clothing are often featured prominently to symbolize the blood shed by generations of enslaved Americans.

Spend time with family

One of the most wrenching effects of slavery may have been the way it often tore African American families apart, forcing husbands away from wives and children away from parents. Spending quality time with loved ones can be a poignant way to celebrate Emancipation, reaffirming your ties with those who share your heritage. You could also honor the perseverance of your ancestors in the face of hardship by sharing stories from your family history or asking older relatives to share their memories of earlier struggles for civil rights.

Support Black ownership, scholarship, and artistry

Many people like to celebrate Juneteenth by shopping only at Black-owned businesses, consuming only Black-made entertainment, and learning from Black voices on topics related to history and civil rights. Exclusion from the broader economic and intellectual life of the nation has generally been a major component of racist oppression throughout American history. By financially supporting African American creators, you may build the strength of the Black community.

Lend your voice to calls for change

Part of the significance of Juneteenth for many people can be that it emphasizes the ongoing need to overcome racial inequality in the U.S. While embracing the chance for rest and celebration can be a perfectly valid way to observe this holiday, you might also want to take some action — even a small one — to advance the cause of equity and justice. This could mean:

• Signing a petition
• Attending a demonstration
• Making a donation
• Calling or writing to your representative about an important issue

Respectfully honoring Juneteenth as a non-Black person

Though celebrating Juneteenth began as a tradition in the African American community, others can also offer support. Many of the ideas mentioned above, such as supporting Black-owned businesses or materially supporting efforts toward equality, can also be extremely impactful coming from non-Black people. 

Attending public celebrations in your community can also be a way to show solidarity and affirm the importance of remembering the legacy of slavery. However, white Americans (and anyone else whose ancestors profited from U.S. chattel slavery) may need to take extra care to be respectful when observing this day. 

You may want to avoid taking up too much of the spotlight or drowning out African American voices. Instead, it’s often better to make space for the Juneteenth observations of your Black neighbors.

This could mean participating in or volunteering at Black-organized celebrations rather than trying to create your own. If you’re a public figure or community leader, you might want to elevate black speakers and artists instead of making speeches yourself. If you own a business, you’ll probably want to avoid anything that might come across as attempting to profit from Juneteenth.

Educating yourself about the historical legacy of American slavery and racism can also be a meaningful way to mark this holiday. You can read books, visit museums, or attend educational events that discuss the ongoing impacts of racialized slavery.

Therapy can help you heal from the impacts of racism

Experiencing racism can lead to stress, depression, anxiety, and more. Seeking the support of a licensed therapist can help you address any mental health challenges you may be experiencing.

Online therapy can empower you to connect with a therapist who shares your race and understands your background, rather than being limited to the professionals in your local area. It can also offer additional convenience by enabling you to attend sessions from the location of your choice at a time that fits your schedule.

Research suggests that online therapy tends to produce the same client outcomes as traditional face-to-face therapy, so either option can be valid for those interested in reaching out for professional support.