What Juneteenth means to me:
Juneteenth is not just a black holiday. Maybe it was historically, as most people celebrating it were the descendants of slaves and it has special meaning for those whose ancestors gained their freedom in that time. But now…it’s officially a federal holiday. The federal government is by and for all people of America. More importantly, the end of slavery is important to the history and very spirit of this country.
If you would have asked me before Juneteenth was put into law as a holiday: should it be a federal holiday? I would have said no, mentioning that we already have enough holidays. But, if we have to have an additional one, Juneteenth is a good choice.
Juneteenth is about freedom! Among reasonable choices that could describe the United States in one word, liberty and freedom rank high. A holiday celebrating freedom is quintessential America.
We are all Americans. The country’s history and spirit are part of us all as citizens, whether or not our ancestors took part in, or benefited from, slavery. Its sins are our sins. Its virtues are our virtues. Its progress is our progress. Like we all celebrate independence from monarchy on the fourth of July…we’ll all celebrate the Juneteenth independence from enslavement, similar to, on the third Monday of each January, appreciating Civil Rights advances a hundred years later by remembering Martin Luther King. All these holidays remember important historical advances in liberty, equality, and the pursuit of happiness.
Slavery is one of America’s original sins. A country built on liberty being dependent on enslaved peoples. A country built on equality believing steadfastly in racism. A country built on opportunity and the pursuit of happiness ignoring that a whole swath of brutally treated people have no such opportunity. Oh, the contradictions; oh, the hypocrisy.
However, our Constitution also mentioned forming a more perfect union. The Declaration of Independence spoke of the pursuit of happiness. Thus, overcoming our contradictions is also quintessential America.
The ending of a great wrong. Or more honestly, the beginning of a long struggle to end that wrong, is something to celebrate. Slavery is deeply ingrained in our history, and defeating that evil will forever be one of the great conquests of that history. Slavery and emancipation helped form the nation that we are born or naturalized into today.
So, what does the holiday of Juneteenth mean? It is the recognition of the great sin of slavery; the recognition that even good-intentioned geniuses can fail to fully see great wrongs. It is the celebration of the United States overcoming a great wrong, taking a step toward a more perfect union that recognizes that all people are created equal with unalienable Rights that include Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness. It is a celebration of us better-securing the Blessings of Liberty now and in the future. And a reminder that the country we live in is not free of sin, and always should be looking to better perfect itself.