What and why is today, June 19th, known as Juneteenth and why important?

A Special Message from Humantelligence CEO, Juan Betancourt

Today is an important day for this country, the United States of America, as it marks the day that all slaves in Texas were proclaimed free: June 19, 1865. Although the “Emancipation Proclamation” had formally freed all slaves in the USA 2 and a half years earlier, Texas was geographically remote resulting in the majority of slaves not learning of their freedom until today when General Gordon Granger announced the federal orders in Galveston, TX. Following this the USA ratified the 13th amendment to the Constitution Dec 6, 1865 abolishing slavery.

Given the United States was built on the back of slavery, it is important for anyone benefiting from this country’s accomplishments to recognize and understand this history and why we should all celebrate and recognize Juneteenth.

At Humantelligence, we recognize this past history, and injustice towards African Americans, which ultimately has a large part to do with the movements today around social justice that we are seeing play out. We hope that better understanding by everyone in this country can lead to healing and equality, which is the journey we all find ourselves taking together.

Two quick articles to get up to speed:

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juneteenth#:~:text=Juneteenth%20(a%20portmanteau%20of%20June,Granger%20announcing%20federal%20orders%20in
• https://www.natlawreview.com/article/recognizing-juneteenth-and-strengthening-company-culture-tips-employers