As the United States gears up to celebrate 250 years as a country, the Juneteenth holiday marks an important milestone.
The June 19 celebration of the day in 1865 when African Americans in Texas learned that slavery had ended was historic for the United States. In fact, it made the Declaration of Independence, signed 89 years earlier, relevant.
Dan Thorp, associate history professor at Virginia Tech, offers insight into the connections between Juneteenth and the country’s birthday.
“The Declaration of Independence included an aspirational statement that ‘all men are created equal’ and ‘endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights.’ That was not true in 1776,” he said. “For 250 years, many Americans have tried to make it true, and the abolition of slavery was a key step in that process.”
The events of Juneteenth came two years after President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation declaring that all enslaved people in Confederate states were free. But it was not enforced widely, particularly in areas without a strong Union military presence.
When the news finally reached Texas, the proclamation became enforceable, ultimately reflecting the founding fathers’ goals for the nation.
“The 250th anniversary celebrates the expression of an American ideal, and Juneteenth celebrates a milestone in the process of making that ideal a reality,” Thorp said.
Virginia Tech
