What is Juneteenth?
Juneteenth (a name referencing the date of the holiday which combines the words "June" and "Nineteenth") is a holiday that commemorates June 19th, 1865, when Major General Gordon Granger led the Union Soldiers to Galveston, TX, to announce the end of the Civil War and the freedom of all enslaved people in Texas, almost three years after the Emancipation Proclamation of 1862. At the time Texas was very much secluded from the remainder of The South due to its vast size and sweltering climate, allowing it to flout governing law. Although Juneteenth was only recently made a federal holiday in 2021, it has been a widely celebrated Texas state holiday since 1980.
Why is Juneteenth Important to You?
As a descendant of Saint John Colony, a freedom colony that was organized by 14 families in the early 1870's, Juneteenth has a incredible significance to me and my family. After realizing that sharecropping would never lead to their dream of independence and true freedom, a movement began in rural Texas for Black Americans to form their own landowner communities in rural areas that were unincorporated and out of the reach of the continued attacks from the Ku Klux Klan. Growth of these settlements, often called freedom colonies or freed man colonies, peaked in the early 1900's with 3196 of Black Texans owning land. To this day, due to our dedication and pure grit, my family still retains a nearly 100 acres ranch slightly east of Austin where we honor our ancestors and strong tradition of agriculture, entrepreneurialism, and family.
How do you celebrate Juneteenth?
For over 150 years our family has congregated in celebration and atonement together at the St. John Colony Emancipation Grounds with a focus on life, liberty, love, faith, family, friends and community. Our celebrations often include prayer, education, and motivational speeches, centered around a large barbecue (a staple for any southern gathering) watermelon and red beverages, a color that symbolizes the bloodshed by enslaved ancestors due to the transatlantic slave trade. For me personally, it is also combined with the celebration of my father's birthday on June 18th, whom I greatly admire as an incredible man who has held the role of being the leader and guardian of our family and our family's ranch and legacy.
