Tuesday, June 14, 2022
 DSS Team,
Next week, we will recognize and celebrate Juneteenth, or “Freedom Day,” in Missouri. Juneteenth marks the day Galveston, Texas received news that slavery was abolished and the Civil War had ended. It is significant because this day is more than two years after President Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, abolishing slavery in the Confederate states.
Leading up to June 19, we would like to help team members learn a little more about the history of Juneteenth and its relationship to slavery legislation, both on a federal scale and right here in Missouri. We hope you find this compelling and helpful in understanding the diverse histories and experiences of our fellow team members and the citizens we serve each day.
Diversity, Inclusion, & Belonging
 On September 22, 1862, President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation to abolish slavery in confederate states to begin on January 1. It would be reasonable to assume this marked the end of slavery; however, this is far from the truth and the reason Juneteenth has been celebrated by Black communities across America for 150 years.
Despite the proclamation, citizens of Confederate states (who did not recognize Union authority) simply withheld the news from enslaved people who couldn’t access this information independently. To further complicate matters, states like Missouri were not affected by the Emancipation Proclamation because they were not part of the Confederacy, and the proclamation only abolished slavery in Confederate states. This meant that although slavery was officially abolished in the South, the reality for enslaved people across the country remained the same for months or even years to come.
It wasn’t until January 11, 1865, that the Missouri legislature passed an ordinance abolishing slavery in the state. Many other Union border states also abolished slavery. Finally, six months after Missouri abolished slavery and more than two years after President Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, Major General Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston with 2,000 troops and informed Texans that, under the Emancipation Proclamation, all slaves were free.
A few weeks later, the 13th Amendment to the Constitution passed to officially abolish slavery in the United States.
Annual celebrations began almost immediately. Black Texans held annual celebrations and made pilgrimages to Galveston each year. In 1872, a group of Black ministers and businessmen purchased 10 acres of land in Houston and established Emancipation Park.
In time, “June Nineteenth” evolved into the present-day “Juneteenth.” Celebrations spread across the United States and began to incorporate activities celebrating not only freedom from slavery but African-American culture as a whole.
Texas officially recognized Juneteenth by proclamation in 1938 and by legislation four decades later in 1979. Other states eventually began recognizing Juneteenth as well. On Thursday, June 17, 2021, President Joe Biden signed legislation that declared Juneteenth a national holiday commemorating the end of slavery in the United States.
You can learn more about Juneteenth from President Biden’s White House Briefing Room remarks on June 17, 2021.
If you have a story you would like to share with the steering committee or any questions, comments, or concerns, please contact Reggie McElhannon at Reginald.E.McElhannon@dss.mo.gov.
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