Celebrating Juneteenth

This year, the Minnesota State Legislature, along with Governor Tim Walz affirmed the value of this holiday by signing a measure into law designating Juneteenth as a state holiday. While many of us have this day off work and will be celebrating in our own way, we must remember why this holiday is so important.

On June 19, 1865, Union soldiers arrived in Galveston, Texas with a purpose. They had been sent to alert enslaved people that they were now free. After 246 years of recorded enslavement in the United States, enslaved people through the country were finally freed from their forcible servitude. Though this historical moment was a great step in the equal treatment of African American peoples, we acknowledge that there is still a great deal more we can do to ensure and protect this equality. We therefore celebrate Juneteenth humbly and with an eye toward the future.

If you are interested in learning more about Juneteenth, we invite you to listen to the National Museum of African American History and Culture’s panel discussion on Juneteenth HERE.

Wisdom Ways believes that, unconditionally, Black Lives Matter.