By Michael P. Walsh
Special to the Voice
For the fifth straight year, the city observed Juneteenth on June 19, the day in 1865 when enslaved people in Galveston, Texas, learned they were free — two years after the Emancipation Proclamation.
On June 17, 2021, Juneteenth, which has been known through the years as Freedom Day, Jubilee Day and Emancipation Day, became a U.S. federal holiday.
To celebrate the holiday in West Haven, Mayor Dorinda Borer and City Council members Mackie McMillian (D-5), and Katherine Tucker (D-7), encouraged their fellow Westies to join with one voice in recognizing the importance of equality.
“Our city is dedicated to fostering unity, inclusion and equal opportunities for all residents,” Borer said. “Juneteenth is an opportunity to take a moment and reflect on the importance of inspiring continued progress toward an equitable place for all.”
Tucker, the city’s 2023 African American Citizen of the Year, said: “Juneteenth is a day that marks the experiences of Black people in American history. While this day marks the time in our history for true emancipation of enslaved people, we now have evolved to use this day as an opportunity to expand the celebration into a celebration of beautiful Black culture.”
McMillian added: “Juneteenth is a powerful reminder of our progress and the work that still lies ahead. It commemorates the delayed but hard-won freedom of enslaved people in 1865 and challenges us to continue striving for justice, equity and true liberation today.
“Let’s honor this day by standing together, uplifting Black voices, and working toward a more just and inclusive community.”
On Sept. 22, 1862, President Abraham Lincoln issued the initial version of the Emancipation Proclamation, declaring all slaves free in Confederate territory, but it could not be enforced in many places until after the Confederacy surrendered in the Civil War.
June 19, 1865, is the date when Union soldiers arrived in Galveston, Texas, to enforce the Emancipation Proclamation.
The first Juneteenth event was held in Texas in 1866. Since then, Juneteenth Independence Day has been marked in hundreds of communities nationwide, providing a special opportunity to commemorate the end of slavery in the United States.
Juneteenth also highlights the artistic and intellectual achievements collectively preserved through the slave trade, the Emancipation era and the Civil Rights Movement, along with more recent accomplishments of African American cultural expression.