For a lot of Americans, June 19 was just another day until May 2020, when the Black Lives Matter movement was revitalized across the country in the wake of George Floyd’s murder at the hands of Minneapolis police. (Floyd’s death on May 24 made him just one of many Black Americans to die as a result of police violence that year alone.)
Much like previous years when unarmed Black people were assaulted or killed by police or authority-like figures (see: Rodney King, Oscar Grant, Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown, and a quite literal endless list of others), systemic racism was thrust into the forefront of American media and minds (mostly of non-Black people’s minds—racism and how to navigate it in order to survive is typically on melanated folks’ minds). Thousands of people flooded the streets in protest. Folks you hadn’t talked to since high school reached out to know “how to be a good ally.” Required reading lists circulated socials.
But this time around, the racial reckoning brought an interest in Juneteenth, the holiday that commemorates the official end of slavery in the United States and has long been celebrated by Black Americans for more than 150 years. The holiday—sometimes referred to as Juneteenth Independence Day, Freedom Day, or Emancipation Day—was deemed a federal holiday in 2021 when President Biden signed it into legislation on June 17.
Read on to learn more about how Juneteenth came to be, what it looks like today, how you can participate, and why its national recognition is so important.
The History of Juneteenth
While the official end of slavery should have come on January 1, 1863, when President Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation, many Black Americans—specifically those in states still under Confederate control—remained enslaved for years after. The complete end of slavery actually came on June 19, 1865, about two months after Confederate general Robert E. Lee surrendered at Appomattox Court House in Virginia at the end of the Civil War. On this date, Union general Gordon Granger (and approximately 2,000 Union soldiers) went to Galveston, Texas, which had been under Confederate control, to inform the more than 250,000 enslaved Black people that they were now free, per executive decree. Those in this group were the last remaining slaves in the U.S.
According to Juneteenth.com, Granger and his soldiers were met with shock and joy upon delivering the news, and the people broke out in massive celebrations in honor of their newfound freedom. After leaving the plantations, some folks traveled north, while others went in search of friends and family in nearby Southern states. For years after, many formerly enslaved Black people and their descendants traveled to Galveston on June 19 to remember the glorious news that was received there and to celebrate the holiday that became known as Juneteenth. Many still do.
What Juneteenth Celebrations Look Like
Today, Black Americans gather on Juneteenth to participate in activities and traditions that have developed over the years. Past and present get-togethers often include fishing, picnics, rodeos, baseball, and prayer sessions, according to Juneteenth.com, and elders and guest speakers are often asked to speak about the history and significance of the day.
Of course, celebrations are regional and generational. In Texas and other Southern states, expect parades, picnics, festivals, and maybe even annual family reunions (IYKYK). And don’t forget some Northern cities like Chicago and Detroit, where many Black Southerners migrated during Jim Crow. There you’ll get big ol’ barrel BBQ grills with hot links galore. And in historically Black neighborhoods in New York City, like Harlem and Bed-Stuy, block parties abound to mark the day.
In terms of food, historically, red-colored dishes are significant, so there’s usually lots of red velvet cake, watermelon, hot sauce, and strawberry soda (or other crimson-hued beverages). Typical BBQ foods tend to take center stage, but traditional soul food dishes are stars of the show too, especially the ones that are common in Black households on New Year’s Eve, like black-eyed peas, collard greens, corn bread—basically all the side dishes our grandmamas deemed as “prosperity foods.”
But like Blackness, celebrating Juneteenth isn’t monolithic. Not all the celes are full-fledged functions or turn-ups. Honoring the historical day is both communal and personal, so observing it should feel fulfilling to the individual partaking. That can include wellness rituals, some sort of spiritual work, listening to a panel, or meditating, to name a few.
COVID-19 put many Juneteenth plans on pause for the past few years, but 2023 is set to be the year that celebrations happen in full force (aka WE OUTSIDE). This year, June 19 is a Monday, so the public holiday will be observed then.
Why Juneteenth Matters
Today, Juneteenth is used as a day to not only remember the official end of slavery in the country but also celebrate Blackness in its fullness. It also gives non-Black Americans a chance to assess the work that still needs to be done to achieve true racial equity and equality.
June 19, 1865, is technically the day that Black Americans gained freedom in this country, but every day since has been a battle for racial justice in a country rooted in and defined by white supremacy. Even 157 years after that executive decree, the U.S. is still plagued with daily acts of racism, only some of which make national headlines. The fight for racial equity in this country is ongoing, but Juneteenth symbolizes a step toward a better future. And that is worth celebrating.
Christen A. Johnson is the lifestyle editor at Cosmopolitan where she covers health and wellness, money, career, pets, home, food, travel and more for print and digital. Christen was previously on Cosmo's culture team, where she covered celebrity and entertainment news, awards shows, and interviewed some of your faves, like Megan thee Stallion and Queen Latifah. She wrote Cosmo’s first-ever digital cover story featuring Chlöe Bailey. Before joining the magazine, Christen was a lifestyle features reporter at the Chicago Tribune. Several of her health and style stories made the paper's front page. When Christen isn’t digging through antique stores, she's likely drooling over home renos on HGTV, sharing her latest therapy revelation, redoing old workouts from her college basketball days, or trying to perfect her homemade buttermilk biscuit recipe. Follow her on Insta for BTS ~ editor life ~ tingz!
