Juneteenth: Freedom Day

Juneteenth, short for June nineteenth, is a celebration of chattel slavery ending in America. On June 19, 1865, a little over two years after the Emancipation Proclamation had been signed, Union soldiers reached Galveston, TX with news that the Civil War ended and slaves were now free. The slaves in Galveston are regarded as the last group in the country to hear the news of liberation.

Educators Credit Union is proud to join the celebration of this momentous day.

Here is an excerpt of the Emancipation Proclamation from www.archives.gov:

By the President of the United States of America:

A Proclamation.

Whereas, on the twenty-second day of September, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-two, a proclamation was issued by the President of the United States, containing, among other things, the following, to wit:

“That on the first day of January, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, all persons held as slaves within any State or designated part of a State, the people whereof shall then be in rebellion against the United States, shall be then, thenceforward, and forever free; and the Executive Government of the United States, including the military and naval authority thereof, will recognize and maintain the freedom of such persons, and will do no act or acts to repress such persons, or any of them, in any efforts they may make for their actual freedom… And by virtue of the power, and for the purpose aforesaid, I do order and declare that all persons held as slaves within said designated States, and parts of States, are, and henceforward shall be free; and that the Executive government of the United States, including the military and naval authorities thereof, will recognize and maintain the freedom of said persons.”

By the President: ABRAHAM LINCOLN
WILLIAM H. SEWARD, Secretary of State.