The Emancipation Proclamation, issued by President Abraham Lincoln on January 1, 1863, declared that all enslaved people in Confederate states in active rebellion were to be freed. However, it did not apply to border states like Delaware and Kentucky, where slavery remained legal. Enforcement of the proclamation relied on Union military presence, so in remote areas like Texas, it was not enforced until years later.

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On June 19, 1865, more than two years after the proclamation, Union General Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston, Texas, and issued General Order No. 3, announcing that all enslaved people were free. At that time, an estimated 250,000 people were still enslaved in Texas. This day became known as Freedom Day, Jubilee Day, or Juneteenth, and it has been celebrated ever since by Black Americans and allies as a day of liberation and reflection.

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While the 13th Amendment, ratified in December 1865, officially abolished slavery in the United States, the legacy of slavery and delayed enforcement meant that true freedom came gradually - and, in many cases, incompletely - for formerly enslaved people.

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In the 1990's, Juneteenth celebrations became more common in Black communities, and in 1997 Ben Haith and Lisa Jeanne Graf created and refined the Juneteenth flag.​

 

In June of 2021, President Joe Biden made history when he declared Juneteenth a Federal Holiday by signing the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act into law in response to the work of Lula Briggs Galloway, Opal Lee, and others.

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MEC has proudly supported, sponsored, and promoted Monroe's Juneteenth Public Celebrations since June 2020.

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 Let freedom ring...