Juneteenth, observed every June 19, marks the day in 1865 when Union troops, led by General Gordon Granger, arrived in Galveston, Texas, to announce the freedom of the last enslaved people in the Confederacy. The announcement happened more than two years after President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation of 1863 that officially freed all slaves. First celebrated in 1866 as “Jubilee Day,” the holiday eventually spread across the country and became an officially recognized federal holiday in 2021.
This year marks the 160th anniversary of the first freedom celebration, making Juneteenth America’s longest-running African American holiday. While Juneteenth has grown in visibility in recent years, there are still many little-known truths that make the holiday more than just a date on the calendar. Here are a five obscure facts to deepen our understanding of what this day really means.
It’s Called Many Names
Juneteenth is also known as Freedom Day, Jubilee Day, Emancipation Day, America’s Second Independence Day and Black Independence Day. These alternate names highlight both its historical significance and its deep cultural meaning to Black Americans.
Freedom Came With Strings Attached
Even after General Granger issued General Order No. 3 in Galveston, not all enslaved people heard the news immediately—some slaveholders deliberately withheld the information to preserve their labor force through the harvest season. And the language of the order itself wasn’t exactly celebratory:
“The freedmen are advised to remain quietly at their present homes and work for wages. They are informed that they will not be allowed to collect at military posts and that they will not be supported in idleness either there or elsewhere.”
This phrasing reveals the limited view of freedom at the time—one shaped by labor demands and white control, not by justice or equity.
Juneteenth Celebrations Happen in Mexico Too
Juneteenth is also celebrated by the Mascogos, descendants of Black Seminoles who escaped U.S. slavery by fleeing to Coahuila, Mexico in the 1800s. In the village of Nacimiento de los Negros— translated as “birth of the blacks” in Spanish— annual gatherings called El Día de Los Negros reflect Juneteenth’s transnational legacy. For the Mascogos, the end of slavery in neighboring Texas meant they were no longer under threat of being captured and returned to bondage.
Opal Lee Walked to Make It a Holiday
Often called the “Grandmother of Juneteenth,” Opal Lee campaigned for decades to make Juneteenth a federal holiday. At age 89, she walked 2.5 miles each day from Fort Worth, Texas, to Washington, D.C. Stopping in dozens of cities along her route to The Capital, Lee walked 2.5 to symbolize the 2.5 years it took for freedom to reach Texas. Her efforts culminated in the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act, signed into law by President Biden in 2021. Opal Lee is now 98 years old.
Juneteenth Has an Official Flag
Designed in 1997 by activist Ben Haith and later refined by illustrator Lisa Jeanne Graf, the Juneteenth flag features a five-pointed bursting star to represent Texas—the Lone Star State. Surrounding the star is a 12-ray nova (or “new star”) representing a new beginning for all, and a new beginning for Black Americans. The red, white, and blue colors echo the American flag, asserting Black people’s rightful claim to full citizenship, national belonging and our integral place in the country’s narrative.
Looking for Juneteenth 2025 events in Palm Beach County, check out our events calendar!
