Author Information
A JUNETEENTH PRAYER
Closing our eyes is easy…it’s probably the best way
to think, to hope, to dream…to make a wish…to kiss…to pray.
The quiet darkness behind our eyes is where we start
to heed the teachings of our soul and listen to our heart.
When we close our eyes this Juneteenth I pray
when we open them we’ll listen as our hearts tell us something we’ve known all along
that any kind of slavery…always was…always is…and always will be…wrong.
When we close our eyes this Juneteenth I pray
when we open them we’ll remember human rights should never have to be won…
they should be universal and apply to each and everyone.
When we close our eyes this Juneteenth I pray
when we open them I hope we’ll understand everyone…no matter who or where
should receive the same education, same compassion, same acceptance
same health care.
When we close our eyes this Juneteenth I pray
when we open them we’ll remember how discrimination tried to break their spirit
how it tried to crush their pride…
We’ll remember those who savagely and needlessly suffered at the hands of prejudice
we’ll remember those who died.
When we close our eyes this Juneteenth I pray
when we open them…those whose minds have become twisted
will stop acting as if slavery was ever a good thing…
or that it never existed.
When we close our eyes this Juneteenth I pray
We look deep into our hearts, our souls…our essence too…
so when we open them this Juneteenth…
we will know exactly what we have to do.
What follows is a short history…
from The National Museum of African American History and Culture
A history of a people who were mistreated and misbegotten…
A history that must be taught to every generation
A history that should never be erased…expunged…forgotten
The Historical Legacy of Juneteenth
On “Freedom’s Eve,” or the eve of January 1, 1863, the first Watch Night services took place. On that night, enslaved and free African Americans gathered in churches and private homes all across the country awaiting news that the Emancipation Proclamation had taken effect. At the stroke of midnight, prayers were answered as all enslaved people in Confederate States were declared legally free. Union soldiers, many of whom were black, marched onto plantations and across cities in the south reading small copies of the Emancipation Proclamation spreading the news of freedom in Confederate States. Only through the Thirteenth Amendment did emancipation slavery throughout the United States.
But not everyone in Confederate territory would immediately be free. Even though the Emancipation Proclamation was made effective in 1863, it could not be implemented in places still under Confederate control. As a result, in the westernmost Confederate state of Texas, enslaved people would not be free until much later. Freedom finally came on June 19, 1865, when some 2,000 Union troops arrived in Galveston Bay, Texas. The army announced that the more than 250,000 enslaved black people in the state, were free by executive decree. This day came to be known as "Juneteenth," by the newly freed people in Texas.
The post-emancipation period known as Reconstruction (1865-1877) marked an era of great hope, uncertainty, and struggle for the nation as a whole. Formerly enslaved people immediately sought to reunify families, establish schools, run for political office, push radical legislation and even sue slaveholders for compensation. Given the 200+ years of enslavement, such changes were nothing short of amazing. Not even a generation out of slavery, African Americans were inspired and empowered to transform their lives and their country.
Juneteenth marks our country’s second independence day. Although it has long celebrated in the African American community, this monumental event remains largely unknown to most Americans.
The historical legacy of Juneteenth shows the value of never giving up hope in uncertain times. The National Museum of African American History and Culture is a community space where this spirit of hope lives on. A place where historical events like Juneteenth are shared and new stories with equal urgency are told.
