Today is Juneteenth

Today is a federal holiday - Juneteenth. All the banks, government offices, some businesses, and most schools are closed today to celebrate the freedom of the slaves in Texas.

Most of the fighting in the War Between the States was in Virginia, Tennessee, Georgia, Mississippi, Louisiana, Alabama and the other southern states. Texas was less of a battlefield so the slaves there were unaware of the Emancipation Proclamation issued by President Abraham Lincoln in 1862 freeing the slaves. After the surrender of General Lee's Army of Northern Virginia at Appomattox Court House and General Johnston's force in the Carolinas most of the south was already under Union military occupation. In May 19, 1865 union forces invaded Texas. That was when slaves in Galveston found out that they were free.

President Joseph R. Biden (D) signed legislation making Juneteenth a federal holiday five years ago.

Congresswoman Terri Sewell is celebrating Juneteenth today with the grand opening on the Barack H. Obama Presidential Library.

Sewell wrote, "Juneteenth is a celebration of freedom and a reminder that the march toward justice is never complete.

As we honor the emancipation of the last remaining enslaved Americans, let us also recommit ourselves to protecting the rights that generations fought to secure, including the sacred right to vote. The promise of America belongs to all of us. The work of making that promise real continues. Happy Juneteenth!"

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