Teaching Juneteenth: One Black Family's Struggle for Freedom Offers lessons for Texas lawmakers trying to Erase History from the Classroom
By Jeffrey L. Littlejohn, Sam Houston State University and Zachary Montz, Sam Houston State University | – (The Conversation) – The news was startl...
By Jeffrey L. Littlejohn, Sam Houston State University and Zachary Montz, Sam Houston State University | – (The Conversation) – The news was startling. On June 19, 1865, two months after the U.S. Civil War ended, Union Gen. Gordon Granger walked onto the balcony at Ashton Villa in Galveston, Texas, and announced to the people of the state that 'all slaves are free.' As local plantation owners lamented the loss of their most valuable property, Black Texans celebrated Granger's Juneteenth announcement with singing, dancing and feasting.