Happy #Juneteenth ❤️🖤💛💚
Juneteenth (now a federal holiday) honors the emancipation of Black slaves in the U.S.
Join us for the 3rd annual Cumberland Juneteenth Celebration (hosted by Allegany County NAACP Branch 7007)
June 16: Juneteenth Sneaker Ball
June 17: Juneteenth Festival @ Canal Place
June 18: Gospel Festival
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The name “Juneteenth” is a blend of two words: “June” and “nineteenth.” It’s believed to be the oldest African-American holiday, with annual celebrations on June 19th in different parts of the country dating back to 1866. The federal holiday is observed on June 20th.
Even though the Emancipation Proclamation was made effective in 1863, it could not be implemented in places still under Confederate control. As a result, in the westernmost Confederate state of Texas, enslaved people would not be free until much later. Freedom finally came on June 19, 1865, when some 2,000 Union troops arrived in Galveston Bay, Texas. The army announced that the more than 250,000 enslaved Black people in the state, were free by executive decree. This day came to be known as “Juneteenth,” by the newly freed people in Texas.
History of Juneteenth: https://nmaahc.si.edu/…/historical-legacy-juneteenth
