By Brenda June Temple

Juneteenth, also called Emancipation Day, is a federal holiday that celebrates the end of slavery in the United States. Many businesses as well as post offices will be closed today.

The slavery of African Americans in the U.S. was a major part of its history and Civil War. Juneteenth is observed annually on June 19 to remember the day when Union Army Gen. Gordon Granger told enslaved people in Galveston, Texas, that they had been liberated on June 19, 1865—nearly three years after President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation to end slavery in the U.S.

On that day, General Gordon Granger landed with Federal troops in Galveston, Texas, with the intention of enforcing President Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation of January 1, 1863. The end of slavery was a gradual process, occurring as news of the proclamation reached outlying towns and states. Juneteenth was probably a shortened version of June 19th. A proclamation from the president stated that all slaves were now free, and the relationship between master and slave was now employer and employee: “The freedmen are advised to remain quietly at their present homes and work for wages. They are informed that they will not be allowed to collect at military posts and that they will not be supported in idleness either there or elsewhere.”

Beginning the year following this Texas event, 1866, festivities to rival the Fourth of July began, including prayer services, inspirational speakers, reading of the Emancipation Proclamation, storytelling by former slaves, and traditional food and games. Soon neighboring states such as Louisiana, Arkansas, and Oklahoma were adding celebrations. Throughout Texas, ex-slaves purchased land for their Juneteenth gatherings. June 19 was declared a legal holiday in Texas in 1980.

Juneteenth became a federal holiday on June 21, 2021. African Americans and citizens across this nation honor and celebrate freedom from slavery as well as the achievements of African Americans from the past 158 years. See the Almanac article on Juneteenth.

FROM WIKIPEDIA COMMONS

Phylicia Rashad (/fɪˈliːʃə rəˈʃɑːd/ fih-li-shə rə-shahd) (née Ayers-Allen; born June 19, 1948) is an American actress. She is dean of the College of Fine Arts at Howard University and best known for her role as Clair Huxtable on the sitcom The Cosby Show (1984–1992) which earned her two Primetime Emmy Award nominations in 1985 and 1986. She also played Ruth Lucas on Cosby (1996–2000).

In 2004, Rashad became the first black actress to win the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play, which she won for her role in the revival of A Raisin in the Sun. In 2022, Rashad won her second Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play for her performance in Dominique Morisseau‘s Skeleton Crew. Her other Broadway credits include Into the Woods (1988), Jelly’s Last Jam (1993), Gem of the Ocean (2004), and Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (2008). Rashad won a NAACP Image Award when she reprised her A Raisin in the Sun role in the 2008 television adaptation.

She has appeared in the films For Colored Girls (2010), Good Deeds (2012), Creed (2015), Creed II (2018), and Creed III (2023). She also voiced Brenda Glover on the Nick Jr. animated children’s educational television series Little Bill (1999–2004). In the 21st century, she has directed revivals of three plays by August Wilson, in major theaters in Seattle, Princeton, New Jersey; and Los Angeles.

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