Post by Brown University

Today, Brown University acknowledges and celebrates #Juneteenth. Recognized as a federal holiday in 2021, Juneteenth commemorates the news of freedom arriving to the enslaved Black people of Galveston, Texas on June 19, 1865, two years after the Emancipation Proclamation had been signed by President Abraham Lincoln. Although the arrival of this news did not mark total emancipation, annual celebrations of freedom began to occur shortly thereafter. How did Juneteenth come to be, and why is it such a historically significant holiday? Françoise Hamlin, associate professor of Africana Studies and history, explains the origins of Juneteenth and how we can use the holiday to reckon with the nation’s past in order to inform a more just future. — #BrownCurious is a social media series that features Brown University’s community of experts answering the world’s most searched and discussed questions. 📸 Image credit: Courtesy of Galveston Historical Foundation. "June 19, Emancipation Day. Corpus Christi, 1913," Collection of African American photographs Ag2002.1415, DeGolyer Library, Southern Methodist University. "Emancipation Day Parade, Lincolnville, Florida (1920s)" by Richard Aloysius Twine, 1896-1974. State Archives of Florida, Florida Memory. "Emancipation Day Officers Of The Day" from Austin History Center, Austin Public Library. “Juneteenth parade in Denver heading north from downtown toward the corner of York and ??? circ 1983” by Newestf (CC BY-SA 4.0). "Juneteenth marching band parade in Austin, Texas, 2009." Jessica Mullen (CC BY 2.0).

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