Happy Juneteenth

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On this day in 1865 enslaved African Americans in Texas were notified by the soldiers of their freedom exactly 2.5 years after the Emancipation Proclamation!

Today we celebrate and honor the end of slavery in the U.S.

Read below of some Juneteenth history facts by an article from “Kids Play and Create.com”

•JUNETEENTH IS ALSO KNOWN AS EMANCIPATION DAY OR FREEDOM DAY.

•JUNETEENTH IS A HOLIDAY IN THE U.S THAT CELEBRATES THE ANNIVERSARY OF THE DAY WHEN TEXAS WAS FORCED TO FREE THEIR REMAINING SLAVES ON JUNE 19, 1865.

•ON JANUARY 1, 1863 THE EMANCIPATION PROCLAMATION CAME INT0 EFFECT ABOLISHING SLAVERY. TEXAS WOULD NOT ACCEPT THE EMANCIPATION PROCLAMATION AND KEPT THEIR SLAVES. THE SLAVES DIDN’T EVEN GET THE NEWS THAT THEY WERE FREE.

•MORE THAN 200,000 AFRICAN AMERICANS WERE STILL ENSLAVED IN TEXAS AFTER THE EMANCIPATION PROCLAMATION.

•ON JUNE 19, 1865 GENERAL GORDON GRANGER ALONG WITH UNION SOLDIERS ENTERED GALVESTEN TEXAS AND FORCED THEM TO FREE THEIR SLAVES.

•JUNETEENTH IS A COMBINATION OF JUNE AND 19TH.

•TEXAS WAS THE FIRST STATE TO DECLARE JUNETEENTH A HOLIDAY ON JANUARY 1, 1980, THEN OTHER STATES FOLLOWED.

•THE FOLLOWING STATES NOW CELEBRATE JUNETEENTH: ALASKA, ARKANSAS, CALIFORNIA, COLORADO, CONNECTICUT, DELAWARE, FLORIDA, IDAHO, INDIANA, ILLINOIS, IOWA, LOUISIANA, KANSAS, KENTUCKY, MASSACHUSETTS, MICHIGAN, MINNESOTA, MISSOURI, NEBRASKA, NEW JERSEY, NEW YORK, NORTH CAROLINA, OHIO, OKLAHOMA, OREGON, SOUTH CAROLINA, TEXAS, TENNESSEE, VERMONT, VIRGINIA, WASHINGTON, WEST VIRGINIA, WISCONSIN, WYOMING AND ALSO WASHINGTON D.C.

•THERE IS A FLAG THAT REPRESENTS JUNETEENTH. IT HAS A RECTANGLE ON IT. THE TOP OF THE RECTANGLE IS BLUE AND THE BOTTOM IS RED. THERE IS A WHITE 5 POINT STAR IN THE MIDDLE.

•JUNETEENTH IS CELEBRATED MANY DIFFERENT WAYS WITH BBQ’S, READINGS OF POEMS, SINGING SONGS AND MORE.

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