In 1619, a Dutch ship introduced slavery to the Virginia Colony when it brought about 20 Black African indentured servants. As time passed, Southern colonies’ property owners recognized their ideal climate for cash crops like rice, tobacco and sugar cane that required increasing amounts of labor. To meet the need, wealthy planters turned more and more to slave traders. By 1820, the moral dilemma over owning humans created escalating tensions between the North and South, leading to the embittered secession of Southern states.
At 4:30 a.m. April 12, 1861, Southern Confederate troops fired on Fort Sumter in South Carolina’s Charleston Harbor. Northern Union forces surrendered less than 36 hours later, officially marking the beginning of the Civil War. Four long, bloody, years of battle ensued that ended when Robert E. Lee surrendered to Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Court House in April 1865. Slavery had ended, but the Southern Confederate states despised the idea of forfeiting their way of life that included slave labor to work their crops. Even though President Abraham Lincoln had issued the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863, the Southern Confederacy used the fact that it could not be enforced in areas still under Confederate control. Therefore, not all slaves received word of their new status as free men and women.
Westernmost Texas remained under firm Confederate control. More than two months after the Confederacy surrender, Union troops finally arrived in Galveston Bay, Texas to announce the end of the Civil War. On 19 June 1865, Union General Gordon Granger proclaimed,
“The people of Texas are informed 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 laborer.”
More than 250,000 Texan African Americans embraced their freedom from this executive decree in what became known as Juneteenth or Freedom Day. One year later freed slaves in Texas celebrated the first Juneteenth on 19 June 1866 and called it “Jubilee Day.”
Considered our country’s second Independence Day, the Black community has long celebrated this significant event, but remains largely unknown to most other ethnic backgrounds. On June 17, 2021, President Joe Biden established Juneteenth as a federal holiday allowing for a better understanding of the meaning of the holiday in historical context. Juneteenth celebrations recognize the ongoing fight for human rights and equality and are renowned for family gatherings, faith services, musical performances and storytelling that both reflect on the past, and look to the future.
The original Juneteenth flag was designed in 1997 by Ben Haith, activist and founder of the National Juneteenth Celebration Foundation, and was updated in 2000. The flag features red, white and blue, the colors of the American flag, a clear declaration that all enslaved people and their descendants are American. A five pointed white bursting star in the middle of the flag alludes both to Texas, nicknamed the Lone Star State, and to the freedom of African Americans in all 50 states. Surrounding that star is a nova, a new star, representing a new beginning for all. An arc runs horizontally through the center of the flag symbolizing the new horizon of opportunity for Black people. Above the arc is blue and below is red emblematic of the ground soaked with blood shed by the United States Colored Troops during all wars and those who did not survive the Middle Passage. The date on the flag positioned vertically on the right side represents that of General Order No. 3 issued in Galveston, Texas in 1865.
The color red symbolizes Juneteenth, especially when it comes to food. It reminds participants of the blood shed by those who fought to ensure freedom for all. The color red also has significance to West Africa, where some dishes have a red and orange hue because they are cooked with red palm oil to add nutrition, flavor and color for meats and fish. Examples include rice with tomatoes, red beans and rice, red hot sauce, strawberry slab pie, red velvet cake.
The historical legacy of Juneteenth shows the value of never giving up hope in uncertain times. May we all strive to hold this message close to our hearts in these present uncertain times.
