On Thursday, June 17th, 2021 President Joe Biden signed legislation establishing Juneteenth as a U.S federal holiday. This is a big step for our country, but we want to acknowledge the work ahead.
Juneteenth is a holiday that celebrates the end of slavery. It honors the day on June 19, 1865, when enslaved Black people in Galveston, Texas, were freed by executive decree – more than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation was put into effect.
For decades, Juneteenth has been widely honored and celebrated by African Americans as a day of healing and rejoicing through community events, music, workshops, and other activities. But many Americans are still learning about the history of Juneteenth. This shows that there is still work that needs to be done.
It’s been 158 years since the Emancipation Proclamation, and the Black community continues to be disproportionately underserved in all aspects of our society. As stated in the City of Portland’s Juneteenth Ordinance, our local Black community has experienced the Vanport flood, displacement due to gentrification, redlining, gaslighting, career suppression, police brutality, racial profiling, discrimination, and all the psychological trauma that has resulted from these experiences.
It is our duty to acknowledge our past as a country and a city in order to dismantle anti-Black racism within the workforce and community and create a more equitable future.
Although Juneteenth is now a federally recognized holiday, our work and fight must go beyond this one holiday. A better future for our community requires our dedication every day of the year.