Juneteenth - the holiday now being embraced by Nike, Google, the NFL and the state of New York in the wake of police brutality protests - is one of the oldest celebrations commemorating the end of slavery in the United States.
Washington -
Then, on June 19, 1865, Major General Gordon Granger landed on Galveston Island with more than 2,000 Union troops. He stood at the Headquarters District of Texas in Galveston and read "General Order No. 3": Another powerful ingredient in early Juneteenth celebrations was that the early festivities took place on land owned by black people.
The 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution formally abolished slavery in the United States, declaring that: "Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction." Congress passed the 13th Amendment on Jan. 31, 1865. It was ratified on Dec. 6, 1865.
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