June 18, 2020
Dear Spelman Community,
Happy Juneteenth! Friday, June 19, is Juneteenth, a day-long commemoration in the African American community of the official end to slavery.
On June 19, 1865, the enslaved population in Galveston, Texas, was finally made aware of the Emancipation Proclamation, two and half years after it was signed into law on January 1, 1863, and months after Congress passed the 13th amendment that eliminated slavery. Since that time, Juneteenth has been celebrated throughout the Black community as our true Independence Day.