Juneteenth is the oldest nationally celebrated commemoration of the ending of slavery in the United States. Dating back to 1865, it was on June 19th that the Union soldiers, led by Major General Gordon Granger, landed at Galveston, Texas with news that the war had ended and that the enslaved were now free.
Learn - MoreEntities across the ABA have come together to provide resources focused on uplifting experience of Black attorneys and communities, and combating anti-Black racism. Pledge to join the Challenge, engaging with these resources every day for 21 days. The Syllabus launches on 2/8 and goes through the end of February.
The holiday's origin story begins in Galveston, Texas, which was the western-most area of the Union in 1865. When enslaved people there were told of their emancipation on June 19, 1865, they had technically already been freed two-and-a-half years prior, when President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863.
Learn - MoreFounded in 1925 and is the nation's oldest and largest national network of predominantly African-American attorneys and judges. It represents the interests of approximately 65,000 lawyers, judges, law professors and law students.
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