“If you cannot look back at history, you're unable to really understand what you don't want to repeat again,” Golden said. “[Juneteenth] can be used as a platform for critical conversations about race and the legacies of racial slavery, but also the legacies of Black people's tremendous resistance across time. It is about an ongoing struggle but also honoring that continued movement to create real justice and equality in this country.”

Juneteenth is a federal holiday in the United States that commemorates the emancipation of enslaved African Americans. On June 19, 1865, Union Major General Gordon Granger told enslaved men, women and children in Galveston, Texas, that they were free and that the Civil War had ended.

The 158-year-old holiday is a reminder that the Emancipation Proclamation by President Abraham Lincoln on Jan. 1, 1863, did not liberate all enslaved Black people in the Confederate States and that Texas enslavers refused to adhere to life without slavery as mandated by the Union until federal troops arrived to enforce the Proclamation. (The Emancipation Proclamation’s purpose was to free enslaved people in the states that had seceded from the Union. A handful of Union states, including Delaware and Maryland, continued to allow enslavement through 1864 and 1865, until the 13th Amendment was ratified by enough states to abolish slavery across the nation. Delaware was the first state to ratify the Constitution, but it did not ratify the 13th Amendment until 1901.)

“When we look at and listen to Black people's histories and perspectives, we realize that no, independence doesn't come on July 4. It only comes for some. It doesn't come for all,” Golden said. “And so how can we really think about the true meaning of freedom? It means looking at the most oppressed and suppressed and marginalized of us and really listening to those historical and present voices and perspectives.”

The first planned Juneteenth celebration occurred in Galveston, Texas, in 1866. Through migratory waves in the late 19th century, the cultural celebration of freedom spread first throughout the South and then to the North. By the turn of the 20th century, Juneteenth celebrations occurred throughout the country. Over the years, celebrations have included family reunions, parades, picnics, religious observances, festivals and marches. 

President Joe Biden signed into law on June 17, 2021, the “Juneteenth National Independence Day Act,” designating Juneteenth as a legal public holiday. Since then, the holiday’s reach has been expanded to encourage all Americans to celebrate Black freedom and educate themselves on the complex history of Black liberation and ongoing struggles for justice and equality.

UD is observing Juneteenth on Monday, June 19, with classes suspended and offices closed.

While Juneteenth has historically been celebrated by mostly Black communities, Golden said there is a level of responsibility for everyone to care about slavery and freedom — and to learn from it.

“Everybody should care about Black folks' histories, their plight — past and present — but also their contributions to the building of this country that we're sharing,” Golden said. “Juneteenth is an opportunity to think about all of this and to ask questions and have open, honest conversations. While Juneteenth allows us to do that — and asks that we do that — there are other opportunities beyond Juneteenth. It's not just a one-day thing.”

One of those opportunities is to take a course in Africana studies, Golden said, adding that the Department of Africana Studies website has more information about Africana course offerings. Other options include listening to a podcast, reading a book (Golden recommends On Juneteenth by Annette Gordon-Reed and The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander), posting and engaging on social media in respectful ways, writing private reflections, attending a celebration, and listening to the relevant perspectives of Black friends, co-workers and neighbors.

Juneteenth also offers an opportunity for Black people to speak about their personal experiences of inequality and tie those experiences to broader history — and for everyone to recognize the need for further work in those areas, Golden said.

“Do something — and that goes beyond Juneteenth,” Golden said. “Recognize that we can do something all the time, even as we take this day to really pour into these ideas and these reflections. You can do something like this all the time, whenever you see a need or an opportunity to advocate for equality and justice.”