Recognizing Juneteenth

Today we recognize the holiday of Juneteenth, the commemoration of the abolition of slavery in Texas. On June 19, 1865 General Gordon Granger and federal troops arrived in Galveston Texas taking control of the state and enforcing the emancipation of slaves. DNC Chairman Tim Kaine and DNC Black Caucus Chair Virgie M. Rollins issued the following statement:

“On this day in 1865, emancipation finally made it west, freeing the last slaves in Texas . So today, we commemorate the end of slavery in America and honor all those throughout our history who have fought for freedom, equality and justice by celebrating Juneteenth.

“As we take time to honor this occasion, we also stop to consider the remarkable path African Americans have forged, from slavery to the White House. With the first African American President of the United States , we usher in an era of endless opportunity. A new generation of Americans will be raised with no limits to their dreams – something their predecessors, who fought for equality as slaves in the fields of Texas and Freedom Riders in the streets of Alabama, may have never been able to imagine.

“But while we have come a long way, we still have further to go. We at the DNC join President Obama and the African American community in the fight to ensure equality in education, employment, and health care for all Americans.”