|
Juneteenth (short for “June Nineteenth”) marks the day when federal troops arrived in Galveston, Texas in 1865 to take control of the state and
ensure that all enslaved people be freed. The troops’ arrival came a full two and a half years after the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation.
Juneteenth honors the end to slavery in the United States and is considered the longest-running African American holiday. On June 17, 2021,
it officially became a federal holiday. Juneteenth 2023 will occur on Monday, June 19.
Confederate General Robert E. Lee had surrendered at Appomattox Court House two months earlier in Virginia, but slavery had remained relatively
unaffected in Texas—until U.S. General Gordon Granger stood on Texas soil and read General Orders No. 3: “The people of Texas are informed that,
in accordance with a proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free.”
The Emancipation Proclamation
The Emancipation Proclamation issued by President Abraham Lincoln on January 1, 1863, had established that all enslaved people in Confederate states in rebellion against the Union “shall be then, thenceforward, and forever free.”
On the Juneteenth-specific flag, red symbolizes unity with the traditional American flag. The arched shape is meant to symbolize new horizons and
new opportunities.
Mirroring the white of the American flag, the white stars on the Juneteenth flag represent the emancipation of enslaved Black people in Texas who,
upon being freed, became Americans under the law. The five-pointed star represents Texas, aka the Lone Star State, where the freeing took place.
The starburst represents a new beginning for all African Americans in Galveston, Texas, on June 19, 1865.
Blue represents America and the American flag. While there's still a long fight for equality and justice ahead, the American flag colors on the
Juneteenth flag represent a continued commitment of people in United States to do better, learn, and work hard to live up to the American
ideals of justice for all.
The black stripe symbolizes all Black people and their unique heritages and cultures.
Green, which is often used as a symbol of wealth and abundance, represents the natural wealth and prosperity of the land of Africa.
| 
