She said Juneteenth is a celebration of the “strength, the joy, the resilience of [the] Black community,” as well as a reminder of slavery and other abuses endured by Black people in America. And threats to the Black community persist, Healey said, citing efforts that have chipped away at affirmative action policies and targeted diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives.
Advertisem*nt
“We are a country that is both about incredible ideals, aspirational ideals and also a nation of deep injustices and we’ve been trying to work on that together,” Healey said.
Juneteenth commemorates June 19, 1865, when Union soldiers brought the news of freedom to enslaved Black people in Galveston, Texas, two months after the Confederacy had surrendered and about 2 1/2 years after the Emancipation Proclamation freed slaves in Southern states.
Prior to the arrival of the Union troops on that day, the US military presence in Texas was too weak to enforce the Emancipation Proclamation and some slaveholders kept the news secret to continue to hold Black people in bondage, according to the National Park Service.
Three years ago, President Biden signed legislation that made Juneteenth a federal holiday. In Massachusetts, Juneteenth was declared a state holiday in 2020.
Thirteen years earlier, in 2007, Deval Patrick, then governor of Massachusetts, signed a proclamation recognizing Juneteenth.
In 1979, Texas became the first state to make Juneteenth an official state holiday.
One of the first large events in Boston to celebrate Juneteenth began in the 1990s when a group of Roxbury residents gathered following the funeral of a mutual friend, according to the city’s website.
Advertisem*nt
The gathering on Saturday in Franklin Park was sponsored by The Partnership, Inc., the Boston branch of the NAACP, Greater Boston National Pan-Hellenic Council, Urban League of Eastern Massachusetts, and Embrace Boston, said Pratt Wiley, president and chief executive at The Partnership. The organization provides leadership development programs to people of color.
Volunteers canvassed the park as part of a voter registration drive.
“Quite literally our livelihood, our existence, our essence is on the ballot...in November and we think it’s important that everybody make sure that their voices are heard and that they make sure that they are doing everything they can do to help secure the outcome that they want to see,” Wiley said.
Wiley said he learned about Juneteenth from his mother, who grew up in Washington, D.C.
He said Juneteenth is a day of celebration and a warning because it marks the moment when enslaved people learned of their freedom, 2 1/2 years after it was granted.
“It’s a reminder that change is hard, that resistance is real, and that you need to be as persistent in your resistance as those who don’t want to see change are in theirs,” Wiley said. “You can never stop working toward change or take any victories for granted.”
Faith Constantine, 24, of Marlborough, marked the celebration with members of Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority.
She said she learned about Juneteenth when she moved to Massachusetts a year ago from the South, a revelation that saddened her because the story wasn’t incorporated into the history lessons she learned as a child.
“It is a part of American history so it shouldn’t be something that I find out at 23 years old,” Constantine said. “It should be something that’s in the curriculum like we cover everything else.”
Advertisem*nt
She described Juneteenth as a “celebration of everything that we as African Americans have been through.”
“It’s a time to fellowship, have fun, and reflect as well,” Constantine said.
Jason Cordova of Roxbury also said the history courses he took in school didn’t include lessons about Juneteenth.
“It’s kind of crazy when you really think about it. You think, ‘Is it a planned thing?’ Why aren’t you teaching us that? It won’t hurt anybody to teach us what we need to know,” Cordova said.
But there are signs that Juneteenth is no longer overlooked in the classroom.
Cordova’s 15-year-old son, Julian, said he learned about the historic moment two years ago when he was in seventh grade.
Ernst Jean-Jacques, 36, of Roxbury, celebrated with members of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity.
“It’s an honor that this day is finally...being recognized as a holiday,” he said. “It should have happened a long time ago.”
Get Globe Weather Forecast
Your essential daily forecast, delivered daily at 6:30 am.
Laura Crimaldi can be reached at laura.crimaldi@globe.com. Follow her @lauracrimaldi.
