This piece was originally posted in San Antonio Express News by Scott Huddleston The article can be found here.
Juneteenth is officially a Bexar County holiday.
It commemorates the end of slavery in Texas on June 19, 1865. Juneteenth became a federal holiday in June, when President Joe Biden signed into law the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act.
The city of San Antonio observed Juneteenth as an official holiday for the first time this year.
Now, Bexar County is on board. County commissioners, acting on a proposal by Precinct 1 Commissioner Rebeca Clay-Flores, voted unanimously last week to make Juneteenth a county holiday.
Clay-Flores said the recognition was just a beginning, a gesture that had to be backed up with “substance and action.”
“We need to continue to advocate for educational access, political representation, voting rights, health equity and bridging the wealth gap for people of color in Bexar County and beyond,” she said.
On June 19, 1865, Union Gen. Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston to announce that the estimated quarter-million slaves in Texas had been freed by President Abraham Lincoln. That was more than two years after Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation.
Celebrations began immediately and have been occurring annually ever since. Though the holiday is rooted in Texas, Juneteenth long since has spread to other states. The drive to make it a national holiday gained momentum after the police killing of George Floyd in May 2020 sparked racial justice protests across the country.
shuddleston@express-news.net
