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Juneteenth Resources

Juneteenth Resources

June 14, 2024

In 2021, President Joe Biden signed into law the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act. By doing so, he approved the first federal holiday since Martin Luther King Jr. Day in 1983:

“On Juneteenth, we recommit ourselves to the work of equity, equality, and justice. And we celebrate the centuries of struggle, courage, and hope that have brought us to this time of progress and possibility. That work has been led throughout our history by abolitionists and educators, Civil Rights advocates and lawyers, courageous activists and trade unionists, public officials, and everyday Americans who have helped make real the ideals of our founding documents for all.” – President Biden, A Proclamation on Juneteenth Day of Observance, 2021

On June 19, 1865, the Union Army arrived in Galveston, Texas, and took control of the state to ensure that all enslaved people were freed. This day, two and a half years after President Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation of 1863, came to be known as “Juneteenth.”

Today, Juneteenth celebrations are held across the country with events, entertainment, and educational awareness. If you’re interested in learning more about the history of this holiday, be sure to explore the following Library reads and resources: 

Juneteenth Programs:

Celebrate Juneteenth by creating crafts to decorate for the holiday! Please register participating children only.

Join storyteller Brother John and explore Juneteenth's history, from its pre-Civil War origins to its establishment as a federal holiday.

In 1877, a group of former Kentucky slaves established the town of Nicodemus in Graham County, Kansas.

Join us to commemorate this day with storytellers George Pettigrew, Karen E. Griffin, and Brenda Lowe, all graduates of The Story Center’s Storytelling Certificate Program. Space is limited, and registration is required.

Suggested Reads (All Ages):

Bibliocommons Lists (Adults):

 Online Resources:

  • African American Music Reference – More than 3,000 essays and images covering blues, jazz, spirituals, civil rights songs, and other forms of black American musical expression.
  • Black Thought and Culture – More than 100,000 pages of speeches, essays, articles, and interviews written by leaders within the black community from earliest times to 1975.
  • Slavery and Anti-Slavery – A collection devoted to scholarly study and understanding slavery from a multinational perspective

Slavery, Abolition, and Social Justice, 1490-2007 – A portal for slavery and abolition studies, bringing together documents and collections covering an extensive time period from 1490-2007

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