Recently, President Joe Biden signed Juneteenth to be a federal holiday. Today should be an important day for all Americans as we recognize today to continue the struggle for a more perfect Union, to reflect and to become more educated on how we can be involved in our communities and in the struggle for racial equality. It is a remember that injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere and no one is free until we are all free. June 19th, 1865, Union General Gordon Granger issued General Order No. 3 at Ashton Villa in Galveston, Texas. General Order No. 3 stated the following:
The people of Texas are informed that, in accordance with the proclamation of the United States, all slaves are free. This involves an absolute equality of personal rights and rights of property between former masters and slaves, and the connection heretofore existing between them becomes that between employer and hired labor.
The freedmen are advised to remain quietly at their present homes and work for wages. They are informed that they will not be allowed to collect at military posts, and that they will not be supported in idleness either there or elsewhere.
They had to wait over two years since President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation for freedom. On this day, the freedmen discovered the sweet smell and taste of freedom, little did they know on this day, Reconstruction and Jim Crow laws would hinder this idea of freedom. But for a moment and for a day in time, they became free. These people fought for a more perfect Union in spite of not being viewed as equal in society and under the law. Yet they fought with courage and dignity despite being treated with malice and indignation.
Today, we are relatively back to normal. Some will choose to celebrate by reciting the Emancipation Proclamation and General Order No. 3. Some will choose to reflect. Some cities are having barbecue and music. I hope we all choose to educate ourselves on how we can be better towards each other because as I look around, we have a long ways to go. Myself included.
From us at Madness To Creation, I want to wish a day of jubilee, reflection, love and light. After this post, we are pausing to recognize the importance of the holiday and we are spending time to get educated. Below, I have provided some resources for you.
Please check out the Safe Project. We will be making a monetary donation to this site. It provides Addiction & Mental Health Resources for the Black community.
Check out Black Mental Health with Reginald Howard: a podcast devoted understanding and unraveling the mental health struggles in the black community.
Check out the website www.therapyforblackgirls.com
- Their major platform is to de-stigmatize mental health
