President Abraham Lincoln may have issued his Emancipation Proclamation on January 30, 1863, but it was over two years before enslaved people in Texas received word, when Major-General Grange read General Order No. 3 (above) on June 19 in Galveston. Juneteenth has been celebrated on June 19 since, and in 1980 Texas became the first state to officially recognize Juneteenth as a holiday.
Juneteenth has its own flag (below) and its own traditions, but in many ways it’s similar to July 4th celebrations. Original Juneteenth celebrations included prayer, spirituals and dressing up in fancy clothes, and current-day celebrations have grown to include music and food festivals, educational events and family picnics. The color red features prominently, in food and dress, to recognize the sacrifices enslaved ancestors made (among other reasons).
As with many celebrations, food is important on Juneteenth. In keeping with the red theme, ingredients like strawberries, red beans, or even BBQ sauce feature in many recipes, and red drinks are particularly important. For some inspiration, check out these vegan collard greens, some old-fashioned tea cakes, or Carla Hall’s Watermelon Salad with Habanero-Pickled Onions and Lime Salt.
And what is a celebration without music and dancing? Just as the “Star Spangled Banner” is synonymous with July 4th, Francis Scott Key’s ode to the stars and stripes is set aside to make way on Juneteenth for the Black National Anthem: “Lift Every Voice and Sing.” Dance also has a long history in Black culture, and some styles of social dance can be traced back all the way to enslaved Africans without a common language–or the drums plantation owners prohibited them from having–working to form a community. The Cake Walk, a Black dance parodying the manners of the masters was so well-received that owners requested performances, never suspecting that they were being mocked. Today, dance continues to serve as a powerful form of Black protest.
But perhaps that’s a deep enough dive for now. This post is in no way intended to be a full history of Juneteenth, but a scratching of the surface of a rich history and heritage that so many Americans know nothing about. I recommend taking this opportunity to learn as we teach our children. We have a list of Juneteenth kids’ books (including Juneteenth for Mazie, read aloud here), resources from the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History, and President Obama’s 2016 Juneteenth speech. Here’s an article full of writing prompts for children all the way from Kindergarten to the end of High School.
We’ve put together some additional resources to use in school or at home in the hope that Juneteenth will become more than just a footnote at the end of the school year.
Rais Abraham Lincoln alitangaza amri ya kuachiliwa kwa watumwa mnamo Januari 30, 1863, lakini ilikuwa zaidi ya miaka miwili kabla ya watu wa Texas kupokea neno hilo wakati Meja-Jenerali Grange aliposoma Amri ya Jenerali No. (Soma zaidi juu) Juni 19, 2019 katika Galveston Juni 19 ni siku ya kusherehekea mwaka wa 1980, na mwaka huohuo, jimbo la Texas lilitambua rasmi siku hiyo kuwa siku ya likizo. Juneteenth ina bendera yake mwenyewe (chini) na mila yake mwenyewe, lakini kwa njia nyingi ni sawa na maadhimisho ya Julai 4. Sherehe za awali za Juni 19 zilijumuisha sala, ibada za kiroho na kuvaa nguo za kifahari, na sherehe za siku za sasa zimekua kujumuisha sherehe za muziki na chakula, matukio ya elimu na picnics za familia. Rangi nyekundu inaonekana sana, katika chakula na mavazi, ili kutambua dhabihu ambazo mababu waliofanya wakiwa watumwa (miongoni mwa sababu nyingine). Kama ilivyo na sherehe nyingi, chakula ni muhimu kwenye Juni kumi na moja. Kwa kuzingatia mandhari nyekundu, viungo kama vile jordgubbar, maharagwe nyekundu, au hata mchuzi wa BBQ vinaonekana katika mapishi mengi, na vinywaji nyekundu ni muhimu sana. Kwa baadhi ya msukumo, angalia hizi mboga collard kijani, baadhi ya zamani-fashioned keki chai, au Carla Hall ya Watermelon Salad na Habanero-Pickled Vitunguu na Chumvi Lime. Na sherehe ni nini bila muziki na dansi? "Kama vile ""Star Spangled Banner"" ni sawa na Julai 4, Francis Scott Key's ode kwa nyota na mistari ni kuweka kando kufanya njia juu ya Juni kumi na tatu kwa Black National Anthem: ""Lift Kila Sauti na Wimbo.""Dansi pia ina historia ndefu katika Black utamaduni, na baadhi ya mitindo ya dansi ya kijamii inaweza kufuatiliwa nyuma njia yote kwa Waafrika watumwa bila lugha ya kawaida au wamiliki wa mashamba ngoma waliwazuia kuwa na." The Cake Walk, dansi ya Black parodying tabia ya mabwana ilikuwa hivyo vizuri kupokea kwamba wamiliki aliomba maonyesho, kamwe kukata shaka kwamba walikuwa kuwa ridiculed. Leo, dansi inaendelea kuwa njia yenye nguvu ya kupinga kwa Weusi. Lakini labda hiyo ni kuzama kina cha kutosha kwa sasa. "Hii sio ""historia kamili ya Junieteenth"" bali ni ""kuchora uso wa historia na urithi tajiri ambao Wamarekani wengi hawajui chochote juu yake.""" Tunapendekeza kutumia fursa hii kujifunza kama tunavyowafundisha watoto wetu. "Hii ni pamoja na orodha ya vitabu vya watoto wa Junieteenth (ikiwa ni pamoja na ""Juneteenth for Mazie,"" soma kwa sauti hapa), rasilimali kutoka kwa Jumba la Makumbusho la Kitaifa la Historia ya Afrika ya Amerika la Smithsonian, na hotuba ya Rais Obama ya Junieteenth ya 2016." Hapa ni makala kamili ya kuandika anatoa kwa ajili ya watoto njia yote kutoka Kindergarten kwa mwisho wa Shule ya Upili. Tumeweka pamoja rasilimali zingine za ziada za kutumia shuleni au nyumbani kwa matumaini kwamba Junieteenth itakuwa zaidi ya maelezo ya chini tu mwishoni mwa mwaka wa shule.