Please join us today in honoring Juneteenth. We encourage you to use this day as a time to listen, and to educate yourself and your family on the struggles of Black Americans. Engaging in meaningful conversations with family, friends, and colleagues, is a great step towards bringing about change.
Originating in Galveston Texas in 1865, Juneteenth, short for June nineteenth, commemorates the day when federal troops arrived to alert enslaved people they were finally free. This long-overdue declaration was made over two-and-a-half years after the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863. Juneteenth is celebrated because it is the anniversary of the official end of enslavement in the United States.
While now recognized by 47 of the 50 states as a state holiday, Juneteenth has yet to be adopted as a Federal holiday and few non-POC grew up celebrating or learning about it.
To help you learn about Juneteenth and teach your kids about it, we have compiled a list of resources to help understand more about this milestone in American history.
Resources for Children
Let’s Celebrate Emancipation Day & Juneteenth – Barbara deRubertis
All different now: Juneteenth, the first day of freedom – Angela Johnson
Juneteenth for Mazie – Floyd Cooper
Juneteenth – Vaunda Micheaux Nelson – Watch online today
What is Juneteenth? Watch a Juneteenth Cartoon – Educational Videos for Students (YouTube)
Juneteenth – All About the Holidays – PBS Kids (YouTube)
Teaching Juneteenth – Teaching Tolerance
Celebrate Juneteenth – Read, Write, Think
Juneteenth – A Celebration of Freedom Documentary – PBS
Juneteenth Freedom Day Resources – UEN
What is Juneteenth?
Juneteenth: Our Other Independence Day – Smithsonian Magazine
What is Juneteenth, How is it Celebrated, and Why Does It Matter – Teen Vogue
What is Juneteenth? – PBS / The Root
The History of Juneteenth
The Emancipation Proclamation – The National Archives
History of the Modern Juneteenth Movement – National Juneteenth Observance Foundation
Why Juneteenth Celebrates the New Birth of Freedom – Smithsonian Magazine
12 Things You Might Not Know About Juneteenth – Mental Floss
Why is Juneteenth Important?
Why Juneteenth is a celebration of hope – National Geographic
Why celebrating Juneteenth is more important now than ever – Vox
What is Juneteenth, and why is it so important? – TEDEd
The Quintessential Americanness of Juneteenth – The Atlantic
