Patents on the soles of your shoes...: Juneteenth 2023

Monday, June 19, 2023

Juneteenth 2023

Juneteenth, short for June 19th, variously called the other Independence Day, Freedom Day, Emancipation Day, or Liberation Day, is also a Federal Holiday. A Federal Holiday, since June 17th 2021, when President Biden signed into law the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act that commemorates the end of slavery in the United States. To be precise, June 19th refers back to 1865, when the first military orders were given to proclaim the emancipation of slaves in Galveston, Texas. Orders given to implement Abraham Lincoln’s Proclamation of Emancipation, dated January 1st 1863, just a few months prior to ratification of the 13th Amendment to the United States Constitution, on December 6th 1865, formally abolishing slavery across the US.

In 2023, in light of the Black Lives Matter movement, Juneteenth is not only a celebration of the past, but also an opportunity to re-commit to a more just and equitable society for all. As President Biden proclaimed on June 16th 2023:

NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States […] call upon the people of the United States to acknowledge and condemn the history of slavery in our Nation and recognize how the impact of America’s original sin remains. I call on every American to celebrate Juneteenth and recommit to working together to eradicate systemic racism and inequity in our society wherever they find it. [Biden, 06-16- 2023]

Happy Juneteenth 2023!