CELEBRATING OUR FREEDOM

By Damita Miller-Shanklin

Source: education.national geographic.com | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opal_Lee

We all know how special June 19 is to our culture. It is our day of freedom. On June 19, 1866, formerly enslaved people in Galveston, Texas, celebrated a year of emancipation, or freedom, with the “Juneteenth” holiday. Juneteenth celebrations quickly spread to the rest of the country, and the date continues to be the oldest known tradition honoring the end of slavery in the United States. Juneteenth

Freedom is more important today because our rights are being challenged and removed almost daily. I would like to take this opportunity, along with Ujima

Magazine, to say Thank You to the Ms. Opal Lee. She is known as the “grandmother of Juneteenth.” Lee campaigned for decades to have Juneteenth recognized as a federal holiday. After her activism of working to make Juneteenth a holiday in her lifetime, in June 2021, her dream came true. Congress passed the Juneteenth bill and President Joe Biden signed it.

As we celebrate our Freedom Day, take a moment to think about how Lee was a reason we are gathering to celebrate. To learn more about events happening around Austin, you can visit https://www.juneteenthcentral texas.com/

Be safe and enjoy the celebration.

Happy Freedom Day!