Juneteenth

Letters from an American vor 3 Monaten

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Letters from an American

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A newsletter about the history behind today's politics.

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June 19, 2026

The federal holiday honoring Juneteenth celebrates the
announcement on June 19, 1865 letting Texans know that enslaved
Americans were free, The federal government would see to it that
going forward white people and Black people would be equal, While
white legislators in the former Confederacy grudgingly ratified
the 13th amendment abolishing enslavement, they also passed laws
keeping freedpeople subservient to their white neighbors, Black
codes restricted the rights of Black Americans, When Congress
refused to readmit states with Black Codes in place, the 13th
amendment was added to the Constitution, And in 1866 the 14th
Amendment to the Constitution was passed, establishing that no
state could discriminate against any of its citizens or take away
any of their rights, The federal government encouraged Juneteenth
celebrations, which began to spread to Black communities across
the nation, While these celebrations declined during the Jim Crow
years, after WWII, Black Americans brought the celebrations with
them across the US, and in 2021 President Biden signed a measure
to create a federal Juneteenth holiday, Pressure from those
determined to preserve a government that protects the wealthy and
white men today threatens the new nation that Juneteenth
celebrated—one that would honor the equality of all Americans.

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