Certain dates lodge in my head without any apparent effort on my part.  I will always remember that the Bolshevik Revolution happened in 1917.  I am neither a Russion or revolutionary scholar, but since Junior High, I’ve known this factoid, recalling it after years of no need to do so, or to even think about the Bolsheviks.  Such is the pecularities of the mind.

June Nineteenth is one such date, and signifies another kind of revolution.  I learned this from listening to NPR many years ago, and can’t claim to be any kind of knowledgeable person on the subject, but today is Juneteenth, commemorating the day in 1865 on which most people enslaved in the United States found out that, by law, they were Free.  You can google “juneteenth” and find out all about it, but basically,

Juneteenth is the oldest known celebration of the ending of slavery. 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 all slaves were now free. Note that this was two and a half years after President Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation – which had become official January 1, 1863. The Emancipation Proclamation had little impact on the Texans due to the minimal number of Union troops to enforce the new Executive order. However, with the surrender of General Lee in April of 1865, and the arrival of General Granger’s regiment, the forces were finally strong enough to influence and overcome the resistance. 
[from the Electronic Village info page on Juneteenth]

Every year, when I flip our appointment book to this date, or otherwise come across those words “June 19th” I think of what a significant day, what an amazing message came to so many people, and also think about how the day-to-day impact of it wasn’t quick to change most black people’s lives — from bodily slavery to wage slavery, which is an improvement of sorts, but not the freedom which was deserved.  Of course, we’re still fighting that battle in a sense, still seeking the deepest freedoms for far too many people of color, black and otherwise.  Racism dies hard, and 140+ years later, it’s hanging on still.  I wish I could say that it’s in its death throws, but I’m not convinced that’s true.

In any event, hearty appreciation and applause to the (I think) 141st anniversay of Juneteenth!