The Significance of Juneteenth
The Significance of Juneteenth
Junious Ricardo
Stanton
“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.” What is Juneteenth? Elizabeth Nix https://www.history.com/news/what-is-juneteenth
As we pause
to celebrate Juneteenth which many maintain is the longest continuously running
indigenous African-American celebration, we need to be clear on what it
is and why we are celebrating it! We have been lied to about our history in
this nation, Africa and the world. We need to know the truth and see it from our
point of view as our adversaries step up their attempts to suppress this truth.
Juneteenth is an honest day of celebration
for us. Contrary to what we have been told and taught Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation actually freed
no enslaved people! It was a disingenuous PR stunt by President Abraham Lincoln
who was an avowed white supremacist at a time when the War Between the States wasn’t going well for the North. Lincoln was in a desperate situation: ten states had
succeeded from the Union, they set up their
own government taking the cotton economy and wealth with them and the war was
unpopular with many Northern whites who were resisting conscription (being
drafted) into the Union Army. Lincoln was faced with a war effort that was not going
well and the eminent possibility of Britain
and France
entering the war on the side of the Confederacy which would have greatly exacerbated
his woes.
On January 1,1863 Lincoln issued an Executive Order called the Emancipation Proclamation that was
directed at the enslaved people in the ten Confederate States that had formed a
separate sovereign nation by establishing its own government with laws, money
and an economy founded on the free labor of our enslaved ancestors. Lincoln however, viewed the Confederacy as an area of
rebellion which was the basis for his Executive Order; but in fact Lincoln had no authority
to pronounce laws on the Confederacy since it was a autonomous entity.
“As Lincoln’s decree applied only to territory
outside the realm of his control, the Emancipation Proclamation had little
actual effect on freeing any of the nation’s enslaved people. But its symbolic
power was enormous, as it announced freedom for enslaved people as one of the
North’s war aims, alongside preserving the Union
itself. It also had practical effects: Nations like Britain
and France,
which had previously considered supporting the Confederacy to expand their
power and influence, backed off due to their steadfast opposition to slavery.
Black Americans were permitted to serve in the Union Army for the first time,
and nearly 200,000 would do so by the end of the war.” https://www.history.com/topics/american-civil-war/emancipation-proclamation
The Emancipation Proclamation did
signal hope for our enslaved ancestors and they abandoned the plantation and fields
and flocked to Union Army camps once the Union
penetrated into the Confederacy. The executive order did pave the way for
Blacks to serve in the Union Army and Navy which greatly helped the Union war
effort and Lincoln
tied the war to the issue of slavery. However Lincoln’s
order did not apply to or free our ancestors who were languishing in brutal
bondage in the Union Border States of Maryland, Kentucky
and Missouri or Union
controlled Confederate territory!
Lincoln’s determination to aggressively fight
the war by continually changing generals plus the infusion of over 200,000
Black soldiers, sailors and support personnel into the Union forces essentially
turned the tide of the war! The Confederacy was unable to sustain the early
momentum and psychological advantages it had gained and their failure to secure
direct foreign military support doomed their efforts. Confederate General Robert
E. Lee surrendered to Union General Ulysses Grant near Appomattox Courthouse on
April 9, 1865.
There was sporadic fighting after
Lee surrendered in April. The final recorded battle took place on Palmito Ranch
in Texas on
May 12-13, 1865. When additional Union troops arrived in Galveston Bay Texas
on June Nineteenth 1865 to take control of the state they
announced the war was over and slavery was ended. Our enslaved ancestors
rejoiced and marked that date as the official end of slavery for them.
For a long time Juneteenth was only
celebrated in Galveston Texas, they called it Emancipation Day. Today we celebrate this date as a national
holiday. More and more African-Americans are becoming aware of the significance
of Juneteenth and making it a meaningful holiday for us as opposed to say the
Fourth of July.
What are some important take aways
we can glean from Juneteenth? First within the overall context of the War
Between the States we know people of African descent aggressively pushed for
and were finally granted an opportunity to fight for their/our freedom. Lincoln’s Executive Order
aka The Emancipation Proclamation allowed Blacks to serve in the military and
we did. Over 200,000 Black soldiers, seaman and support personnel were
essential in the North’s victory!
We shortened June Nineteenth to
Juneteenth which is so like us, so cultural and so Black! Most importantly Juneteenth
is an opportunity for us to celebrate something that directly impacted/affected
us as opposed to celebrating other people’s cultural and religious holidays.
This year Juneteenth falls on June 19th, so celebrate enjoy it and
be grateful.
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