Housing Hope, HopeWorks, and our Social Enterprises will be closed June 19th in honor of Juneteenth. We will return to our regular hours June 20th.
What is Juneteenth?
Juneteenth commemorates June 19, 1865 when Union forces arrived in Galveston, Texas to declare freedom for those enslaved, by enforcing the Emancipation Proclamation, two and a half years after it was signed. Kelly Navies of the National Museum of African American History and Culture describes Juneteenth as a celebration of “freedom, family, and the joy of being alive and being able to live into the future and to look to the past.”
While the Emancipation Proclamation went into effect in January of 1863, its enforcement did not reach many parts of the United States that were still under Confederate control. In June of 1865, Union troops finally reached Texas, the westernmost state at the time, to free those remaining in slavery. That day, another 250,000 enslaved Black people were acknowledged as free.
Thus began the fight for freedoms and racial justice, beginning with paid wages for formerly enslaved peoples. This spread into the Reconstruction period when many formerly enslaved people sought to regain some of what they lost, including family reunification, education, and political involvement. The day of June 19th, affectionately monikered as “Juneteenth”, continued to be celebrated year after year, primarily among Black communities.
In 1980, it became a state holiday in Texas. In 2021, it became a national holiday.
At the same time, freedom and equity were not and are not straight lines from the Emancipation Proclamation to today. While strides have been made from the Emancipation Proclamation to the Civil Rights Movement to Black Lives Matter, we have not achieved racial justice. In 2024, remember to take the time to reflect on how far we’ve come and how far we still must go.
Visit Us at Lynnwood's Juneteenth Celebration!
Housing Hope is proud to join the Juneteenth Celebration in Lynnwood tomorrow! Come find us from 10am till 3pm, at Cedar Valley Community School for the 2024 Freedom Festival.
The festival will feature a series of powerful speeches hosted by Dr. Margaret Towolaw, performances from local music groups, artists and dance teams, delicious food trucks, and a mini health & resource fair to provide hands-on services to community members. Don’t forget to come and say to us at our Housing Hope booth too!
Bring the whole family, and be a part of the future while celebrating the past.
Learn more about the event online at www.lynnwoodwa.gov/.../Community.../Juneteenth-2024
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