VOA文化艺术2024--What Is Juneteenth in the US?

What Is Juneteenth in the US?

Today is Juneteenth in the United States.

The holiday is over 150 years old but it is still unknown to many people. It marks the end of official slavery in the country and celebrates the promise of freedom.

The word "Juneteenth" combines the month "June" with the number 19. It recalls June 19, 1865, the day troops from the Union side of the American Civil War arrived in the city of Galveston, Texas.

At that time, Texas was part of the Confederate States of America, the group of Southern states fighting the Union for the right to keep slaves. The 250,000 enslaved people in Texas did not know that the president at the time -- Abraham Lincoln -- had declared them legally free.

In fact, Lincoln had declared them legally free more than two years earlier - on January 1, 1863.

But Texas was in the far west of the country and removed from much of the fighting. Few Union soldiers were there to communicate or enforce Lincoln's order. Confederate slaveholders did not agree with it. They did not want to lose the labor¹ they got for free.

So, no one told the enslaved people -- until June 19, when a Union general and a few thousand soldiers arrived to take control of the area. The general quickly read an announcement. He informed the people that the Union had won the Civil War and that "all slaves are free."

Many formerly² enslaved people immediately began to celebrate. As soon as they could, some left Texas and joined family members in other states. Some remained and built new lives.

They remembered June 19 in the years that followed. In time, their children and grandchildren celebrated³ it as a holiday, too.

What happens on Juneteenth?

Historically, Juneteenth has involved cooking and eating outdoors, listening to music, saying prayers and wearing nice clothes.

Betty Anderson, who is a descendant of enslaved people, spoke⁴ to The Federalist magazine about her Juneteenth traditions. She said the day includes stories about people who continued to fight for equal rights because "freedom from slavery did not bring freedom for the African-American."

Historian Henry Louis Gates Jr. made a similar point in the online magazine The Root. He said one of the important things about Juneteenth is that it is a positive, powerful celebration, even in the face of discrimination.

For example, in the late 1800s and early 1900s, Texas officials refused to permit black people to gather in public spaces. So, black families and friends celebrated Juneteenth near rivers and lakes, Gates said. In time, they bought their own parks where they could celebrate.

Becoming a national holiday

During the country's Civil Rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s, some Black Americans and activists⁵ embraced Juneteenth as a way to connect them to Black history.

Texas became the first state to declare the day an official state holiday in 1980.

In June 2021, U.S. President Joe Biden declared Juneteenth as the country's newest national holiday. Biden said it was a day to "remember the moral stain and terrible toll⁶ of slavery on our country." He added, "But it is a day that also reminds us of our incredible capacity to heal, hope, and emerge from our darkest moments with purpose and resolve."

Last year, at least 28 American states and the city government of Washington, D.C. recognized Juneteenth as a public holiday, a Pew Research Center study said.

On the history of Juneteenth, the National Museum of African American History & Culture wrote that although the event remains⁷ largely unknown to most Americans, it is considered the "country's second independence day" by Black Americans.

"The historical legacy⁸ of Juneteenth shows the value of never giving up hope in uncertain times," it said.

Words in This Story

descendant - n. someone who is related to a person or group of people who lived in the past

positive - n. good or useful

embrace - v. to accept something readily or gladly

stain - n. something that cause people to have less respect

toll - n. harm

moment - n. a short period of time

legacy - n. something that happened in the past

1 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

2 formerly   

adv.从前，以前

参考例句：

• We now enjoy these comforts of which formerly we had only heard.我们现在享受到了过去只是听说过的那些舒适条件。
• This boat was formerly used on the rivers of China.这船从前航行在中国内河里。

3 celebrated   

adj.有名的，声誉卓著的

参考例句：

• He was soon one of the most celebrated young painters in England.不久他就成了英格兰最负盛名的年轻画家之一。
• The celebrated violinist was mobbed by the audience.观众团团围住了这位著名的小提琴演奏家。

4 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

5 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 toll   

n.过路(桥)费；损失，伤亡人数；v.敲(钟)

参考例句：

• The hailstone took a heavy toll of the crops in our village last night.昨晚那场冰雹损坏了我们村的庄稼。
• The war took a heavy toll of human life.这次战争夺去了许多人的生命。

7 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

8 legacy   

n.遗产，遗赠；先人(或过去)留下的东西

参考例句：

• They are the most precious cultural legacy our forefathers left.它们是我们祖先留下来的最宝贵的文化遗产。
• He thinks the legacy is a gift from the Gods.他认为这笔遗产是天赐之物。