#emancipation — Public Fediverse posts

For those who are interested, his (Douglass’) very readable autobiography is available here. Not surprisingly it is out of copyright.

https://www.theguardian.com/news/2026/jul/18/manchester-tribute-abolitionist-frederick-douglass

https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/10986/pg10986.html

#Douglass #Slavery #Emancipation #USA #Book #Biography #Celebration

For those who are interested, his (Douglass’) very readable autobiography is available here. Not surprisingly it is out of copyright.

https://www.theguardian.com/news/2026/jul/18/manchester-tribute-abolitionist-frederick-douglass

https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/10986/pg10986.html

#Douglass #Slavery #Emancipation #USA #Book #Biography #Celebration

For those who are interested, his (Douglass’) very readable autobiography is available here. Not surprisingly it is out of copyright.

https://www.theguardian.com/news/2026/jul/18/manchester-tribute-abolitionist-frederick-douglass

https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/10986/pg10986.html

#Douglass #Slavery #Emancipation #USA #Book #Biography #Celebration

For those who are interested, his (Douglass’) very readable autobiography is available here. Not surprisingly it is out of copyright.

https://www.theguardian.com/news/2026/jul/18/manchester-tribute-abolitionist-frederick-douglass

https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/10986/pg10986.html

#Douglass #Slavery #Emancipation #USA #Book #Biography #Celebration

For those who are interested, his (Douglass’) very readable autobiography is available here. Not surprisingly it is out of copyright.

https://www.theguardian.com/news/2026/jul/18/manchester-tribute-abolitionist-frederick-douglass

https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/10986/pg10986.html

#Douglass #Slavery #Emancipation #USA #Book #Biography #Celebration

Your art history post for today: by Thomas Stuart Smith (1815–1869), The Pipe of Freedom, 1869, oil on canvas, 42x30.9 inches (106.8x78.7 cm), The Stirling Smith Art Gallery and Museum, Stirling, UK. Look closely. Notice a copy of the Emancipation Proclamation pasted on the wall behind the man. It partially covers an advertisement for a slave auction. Freedom has replaced bondage. #arthistory #painting #oilpainting #emancipation #freedom #liberty

From the museum: ‘The Pipe of Freedom was painted in 1869 by Thomas Stuart Smith – the founder of what is today the Stirling Smith Art Gallery and Museum. A prolific artist and abolitionist, there are three surviving portraits of black men by Stuart Smith in our collection.

At the first glance The Pipe of Freedom shines with the warmth of the colours and the relaxed stance of the man in the foreground. His red paisley shawl wraps him in a contentment reflected in the half smile on his lips as he lights the long-stemmed clay pipe. But even the choice of the subject was unusual – at this time black people were more often painted as servants. A closer look at the background also hints that this picture is more than just a simple portrait - it is a political statement too.

The brick wall behind the man is covered with posters, including a yellow one publicising the sale of slaves. This has been covered by a copy of Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation, which declared in 1863 "that all persons held as slaves" within the rebellious states "are, and henceforward shall be free."

Thomas Stuart Smith submitted The Pipe of Freedom to the Royal Academy Exhibition in London in 1869. It was rejected. Suspecting that politics were involved, Smith went on to exhibit it elsewhere alongside other works deemed unsuitable or too risqué by the Academy.’

Your art history post for today: by Thomas Stuart Smith (1815–1869), The Pipe of Freedom, 1869, oil on canvas, 42x30.9 inches (106.8x78.7 cm), The Stirling Smith Art Gallery and Museum, Stirling, UK. Look closely. Notice a copy of the Emancipation Proclamation pasted on the wall behind the man. It partially covers an advertisement for a slave auction. Freedom has replaced bondage. #arthistory #painting #oilpainting #emancipation #freedom #liberty

From the museum: ‘The Pipe of Freedom was painted in 1869 by Thomas Stuart Smith – the founder of what is today the Stirling Smith Art Gallery and Museum. A prolific artist and abolitionist, there are three surviving portraits of black men by Stuart Smith in our collection.

At the first glance The Pipe of Freedom shines with the warmth of the colours and the relaxed stance of the man in the foreground. His red paisley shawl wraps him in a contentment reflected in the half smile on his lips as he lights the long-stemmed clay pipe. But even the choice of the subject was unusual – at this time black people were more often painted as servants. A closer look at the background also hints that this picture is more than just a simple portrait - it is a political statement too.

The brick wall behind the man is covered with posters, including a yellow one publicising the sale of slaves. This has been covered by a copy of Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation, which declared in 1863 "that all persons held as slaves" within the rebellious states "are, and henceforward shall be free."

Thomas Stuart Smith submitted The Pipe of Freedom to the Royal Academy Exhibition in London in 1869. It was rejected. Suspecting that politics were involved, Smith went on to exhibit it elsewhere alongside other works deemed unsuitable or too risqué by the Academy.’

Your art history post for today: by Thomas Stuart Smith (1815–1869), The Pipe of Freedom, 1869, oil on canvas, 42x30.9 inches (106.8x78.7 cm), The Stirling Smith Art Gallery and Museum, Stirling, UK. Look closely. Notice a copy of the Emancipation Proclamation pasted on the wall behind the man. It partially covers an advertisement for a slave auction. Freedom has replaced bondage. #arthistory #painting #oilpainting #emancipation #freedom #liberty

From the museum: ‘The Pipe of Freedom was painted in 1869 by Thomas Stuart Smith – the founder of what is today the Stirling Smith Art Gallery and Museum. A prolific artist and abolitionist, there are three surviving portraits of black men by Stuart Smith in our collection.

At the first glance The Pipe of Freedom shines with the warmth of the colours and the relaxed stance of the man in the foreground. His red paisley shawl wraps him in a contentment reflected in the half smile on his lips as he lights the long-stemmed clay pipe. But even the choice of the subject was unusual – at this time black people were more often painted as servants. A closer look at the background also hints that this picture is more than just a simple portrait - it is a political statement too.

The brick wall behind the man is covered with posters, including a yellow one publicising the sale of slaves. This has been covered by a copy of Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation, which declared in 1863 "that all persons held as slaves" within the rebellious states "are, and henceforward shall be free."

Thomas Stuart Smith submitted The Pipe of Freedom to the Royal Academy Exhibition in London in 1869. It was rejected. Suspecting that politics were involved, Smith went on to exhibit it elsewhere alongside other works deemed unsuitable or too risqué by the Academy.’

Your art history post for today: by Thomas Stuart Smith (1815–1869), The Pipe of Freedom, 1869, oil on canvas, 42x30.9 inches (106.8x78.7 cm), The Stirling Smith Art Gallery and Museum, Stirling, UK. Look closely. Notice a copy of the Emancipation Proclamation pasted on the wall behind the man. It partially covers an advertisement for a slave auction. Freedom has replaced bondage. #arthistory #painting #oilpainting #emancipation #freedom #liberty

From the museum: ‘The Pipe of Freedom was painted in 1869 by Thomas Stuart Smith – the founder of what is today the Stirling Smith Art Gallery and Museum. A prolific artist and abolitionist, there are three surviving portraits of black men by Stuart Smith in our collection.

At the first glance The Pipe of Freedom shines with the warmth of the colours and the relaxed stance of the man in the foreground. His red paisley shawl wraps him in a contentment reflected in the half smile on his lips as he lights the long-stemmed clay pipe. But even the choice of the subject was unusual – at this time black people were more often painted as servants. A closer look at the background also hints that this picture is more than just a simple portrait - it is a political statement too.

The brick wall behind the man is covered with posters, including a yellow one publicising the sale of slaves. This has been covered by a copy of Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation, which declared in 1863 "that all persons held as slaves" within the rebellious states "are, and henceforward shall be free."

Thomas Stuart Smith submitted The Pipe of Freedom to the Royal Academy Exhibition in London in 1869. It was rejected. Suspecting that politics were involved, Smith went on to exhibit it elsewhere alongside other works deemed unsuitable or too risqué by the Academy.’

Your art history post for today: by Thomas Stuart Smith (1815–1869), The Pipe of Freedom, 1869, oil on canvas, 42x30.9 inches (106.8x78.7 cm), The Stirling Smith Art Gallery and Museum, Stirling, UK. Look closely. Notice a copy of the Emancipation Proclamation pasted on the wall behind the man. It partially covers an advertisement for a slave auction. Freedom has replaced bondage. #arthistory #painting #oilpainting #emancipation #freedom #liberty

From the museum: ‘The Pipe of Freedom was painted in 1869 by Thomas Stuart Smith – the founder of what is today the Stirling Smith Art Gallery and Museum. A prolific artist and abolitionist, there are three surviving portraits of black men by Stuart Smith in our collection.

At the first glance The Pipe of Freedom shines with the warmth of the colours and the relaxed stance of the man in the foreground. His red paisley shawl wraps him in a contentment reflected in the half smile on his lips as he lights the long-stemmed clay pipe. But even the choice of the subject was unusual – at this time black people were more often painted as servants. A closer look at the background also hints that this picture is more than just a simple portrait - it is a political statement too.

The brick wall behind the man is covered with posters, including a yellow one publicising the sale of slaves. This has been covered by a copy of Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation, which declared in 1863 "that all persons held as slaves" within the rebellious states "are, and henceforward shall be free."

Thomas Stuart Smith submitted The Pipe of Freedom to the Royal Academy Exhibition in London in 1869. It was rejected. Suspecting that politics were involved, Smith went on to exhibit it elsewhere alongside other works deemed unsuitable or too risqué by the Academy.’

The forgotten story of abolition in revolutionary France – the first emancipation. #Abolition #Abolitionofslavery #abolitionism #BastilleDay #CivilRights #Civilwar #Colonialism #DeclarationofIndependence #Democracy #Emancipation #Frenchempire #FrenchRevolution #Haiti #Napoleon #Revolution #Robespierre #Slavery #ToussaintLouverture #USCivilWar
https://iwpost.com/the-forgotten-story-of-abolition-in-revolutionary-france-the-first-emancipation/?fsp_sid=11768

The forgotten story of abolition in revolutionary France – the first emancipation. #Abolition #Abolitionofslavery #abolitionism #BastilleDay #CivilRights #Civilwar #Colonialism #DeclarationofIndependence #Democracy #Emancipation #Frenchempire #FrenchRevolution #Haiti #Napoleon #Revolution #Robespierre #Slavery #ToussaintLouverture #USCivilWar
https://iwpost.com/the-forgotten-story-of-abolition-in-revolutionary-france-the-first-emancipation/?fsp_sid=11768

The forgotten story of abolition in revolutionary France – the first emancipation. #Abolition #Abolitionofslavery #abolitionism #BastilleDay #CivilRights #Civilwar #Colonialism #DeclarationofIndependence #Democracy #Emancipation #Frenchempire #FrenchRevolution #Haiti #Napoleon #Revolution #Robespierre #Slavery #ToussaintLouverture #USCivilWar
https://iwpost.com/the-forgotten-story-of-abolition-in-revolutionary-france-the-first-emancipation/?fsp_sid=11768

The forgotten story of abolition in revolutionary France – the first emancipation. #Abolition #Abolitionofslavery #abolitionism #BastilleDay #CivilRights #Civilwar #Colonialism #DeclarationofIndependence #Democracy #Emancipation #Frenchempire #FrenchRevolution #Haiti #Napoleon #Revolution #Robespierre #Slavery #ToussaintLouverture #USCivilWar
https://iwpost.com/the-forgotten-story-of-abolition-in-revolutionary-france-the-first-emancipation/?fsp_sid=11768

The forgotten story of abolition in revolutionary France – the first emancipation. #Abolition #Abolitionofslavery #abolitionism #BastilleDay #CivilRights #Civilwar #Colonialism #DeclarationofIndependence #Democracy #Emancipation #Frenchempire #FrenchRevolution #Haiti #Napoleon #Revolution #Robespierre #Slavery #ToussaintLouverture #USCivilWar
https://iwpost.com/the-forgotten-story-of-abolition-in-revolutionary-france-the-first-emancipation/?fsp_sid=11768

"The town capitalists and plantation patriarchs are in the saddle – while our revolutionary inheritance, Paine’s “universal struggle for liberty”, awaits its next reinvention."

""Emancipation and expansion are twin pillars of the American revolutionary narrative."

"Rather than finding new sources for expansion – moral or material – our American age is one of attrition and low expectations, small yards, high fences, new trade barriers, rising mid-life mortality, border walls and prison bars."

The American myth always came at someone’s expense. Now, it’s all but collapsed >>
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-interactive/2026/jun/28/america-250-origin-myth-narrative-power
#expansion #empire #EuropeanColonisation #FoundationalNarratives #IndigenousPeoples #dispossession #SettlerSociety #AmericanDream #systemic #inequality #EthicalInfrastructure #emancipation

"The town capitalists and plantation patriarchs are in the saddle – while our revolutionary inheritance, Paine’s “universal struggle for liberty”, awaits its next reinvention."

""Emancipation and expansion are twin pillars of the American revolutionary narrative."

"Rather than finding new sources for expansion – moral or material – our American age is one of attrition and low expectations, small yards, high fences, new trade barriers, rising mid-life mortality, border walls and prison bars."

The American myth always came at someone’s expense. Now, it’s all but collapsed >>
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-interactive/2026/jun/28/america-250-origin-myth-narrative-power
#expansion #empire #EuropeanColonisation #FoundationalNarratives #IndigenousPeoples #dispossession #SettlerSociety #AmericanDream #systemic #inequality #EthicalInfrastructure #emancipation

"The town capitalists and plantation patriarchs are in the saddle – while our revolutionary inheritance, Paine’s “universal struggle for liberty”, awaits its next reinvention."

""Emancipation and expansion are twin pillars of the American revolutionary narrative."

"Rather than finding new sources for expansion – moral or material – our American age is one of attrition and low expectations, small yards, high fences, new trade barriers, rising mid-life mortality, border walls and prison bars."

The American myth always came at someone’s expense. Now, it’s all but collapsed >>
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-interactive/2026/jun/28/america-250-origin-myth-narrative-power
#expansion #empire #EuropeanColonisation #FoundationalNarratives #IndigenousPeoples #dispossession #SettlerSociety #AmericanDream #systemic #inequality #EthicalInfrastructure #emancipation

"The town capitalists and plantation patriarchs are in the saddle – while our revolutionary inheritance, Paine’s “universal struggle for liberty”, awaits its next reinvention."

""Emancipation and expansion are twin pillars of the American revolutionary narrative."

"Rather than finding new sources for expansion – moral or material – our American age is one of attrition and low expectations, small yards, high fences, new trade barriers, rising mid-life mortality, border walls and prison bars."

The American myth always came at someone’s expense. Now, it’s all but collapsed >>
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-interactive/2026/jun/28/america-250-origin-myth-narrative-power
#expansion #empire #EuropeanColonisation #FoundationalNarratives #IndigenousPeoples #dispossession #SettlerSociety #AmericanDream #systemic #inequality #EthicalInfrastructure #emancipation

"The town capitalists and plantation patriarchs are in the saddle – while our revolutionary inheritance, Paine’s “universal struggle for liberty”, awaits its next reinvention."

""Emancipation and expansion are twin pillars of the American revolutionary narrative."

"Rather than finding new sources for expansion – moral or material – our American age is one of attrition and low expectations, small yards, high fences, new trade barriers, rising mid-life mortality, border walls and prison bars."

The American myth always came at someone’s expense. Now, it’s all but collapsed >>
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-interactive/2026/jun/28/america-250-origin-myth-narrative-power
#expansion #empire #EuropeanColonisation #FoundationalNarratives #IndigenousPeoples #dispossession #SettlerSociety #AmericanDream #systemic #inequality #EthicalInfrastructure #emancipation

Group of women and men in a decorated carriage, during Juneteenth celebrations in Corpus Christi, Texas (1913) by George McCuistion.

Source: SMU Central University Libraries

https://pdimagearchive.org/images/5c33c4e3-9d87-48f3-a721-b3d63c4cc0a3

#parades #texas #houston #emancipation #juneteenth #austin #slavery #horses #houses #art #publicdomain

Group of women and men in a decorated carriage, during Juneteenth celebrations in Corpus Christi, Texas (1913) by George McCuistion.

Source: SMU Central University Libraries

https://pdimagearchive.org/images/5c33c4e3-9d87-48f3-a721-b3d63c4cc0a3

#parades #texas #houston #emancipation #juneteenth #austin #slavery #horses #houses #art #publicdomain

Group of women and men in a decorated carriage, during Juneteenth celebrations in Corpus Christi, Texas (1913) by George McCuistion.

Source: SMU Central University Libraries

https://pdimagearchive.org/images/5c33c4e3-9d87-48f3-a721-b3d63c4cc0a3

#parades #texas #houston #emancipation #juneteenth #austin #slavery #horses #houses #art #publicdomain

Group of women and men in a decorated carriage, during Juneteenth celebrations in Corpus Christi, Texas (1913) by George McCuistion.

Source: SMU Central University Libraries

https://pdimagearchive.org/images/5c33c4e3-9d87-48f3-a721-b3d63c4cc0a3

#parades #texas #houston #emancipation #juneteenth #austin #slavery #horses #houses #art #publicdomain

Group of women and men in a decorated carriage, during Juneteenth celebrations in Corpus Christi, Texas (1913) by George McCuistion.

Source: SMU Central University Libraries

https://pdimagearchive.org/images/5c33c4e3-9d87-48f3-a721-b3d63c4cc0a3

#parades #texas #houston #emancipation #juneteenth #austin #slavery #horses #houses #art #publicdomain

We kept the Juneteenth flag flying all weekend. One day is not long enough to celebrate a holiday. #juneteenth #celebrate #history #holiday #celebration #liberation #freedom #freedomforall #murica #patriotic #patriotism #patriots #flags #celebratory #blackhistory #freedom #freedomday #jubilee #jubileeday #emancipation #emancipationday #civilrights #equality #yucca #yuccas #june #summer #summerholiday #summerholidays

We kept the Juneteenth flag flying all weekend. One day is not long enough to celebrate a holiday. #juneteenth #celebrate #history #holiday #celebration #liberation #freedom #freedomforall #murica #patriotic #patriotism #patriots #flags #celebratory #blackhistory #freedom #freedomday #jubilee #jubileeday #emancipation #emancipationday #civilrights #equality #yucca #yuccas #june #summer #summerholiday #summerholidays

We kept the Juneteenth flag flying all weekend. One day is not long enough to celebrate a holiday. #juneteenth #celebrate #history #holiday #celebration #liberation #freedom #freedomforall #murica #patriotic #patriotism #patriots #flags #celebratory #blackhistory #freedom #freedomday #jubilee #jubileeday #emancipation #emancipationday #civilrights #equality #yucca #yuccas #june #summer #summerholiday #summerholidays

We kept the Juneteenth flag flying all weekend. One day is not long enough to celebrate a holiday. #juneteenth #celebrate #history #holiday #celebration #liberation #freedom #freedomforall #murica #patriotic #patriotism #patriots #flags #celebratory #blackhistory #freedom #freedomday #jubilee #jubileeday #emancipation #emancipationday #civilrights #equality #yucca #yuccas #june #summer #summerholiday #summerholidays

We kept the Juneteenth flag flying all weekend. One day is not long enough to celebrate a holiday. #juneteenth #celebrate #history #holiday #celebration #liberation #freedom #freedomforall #murica #patriotic #patriotism #patriots #flags #celebratory #blackhistory #freedom #freedomday #jubilee #jubileeday #emancipation #emancipationday #civilrights #equality #yucca #yuccas #june #summer #summerholiday #summerholidays

…women’s issue 💪_

#emancipation #girlpower #postercolor #womensissues #juveniledelinquent #photography

…women’s issue 💪_

#emancipation #girlpower #postercolor #womensissues #juveniledelinquent #photography

…women’s issue 💪_

#emancipation #girlpower #postercolor #womensissues #juveniledelinquent #photography

…women’s issue 💪_

#emancipation #girlpower #postercolor #womensissues #juveniledelinquent #photography

…women’s issue 💪_

#emancipation #girlpower #postercolor #womensissues #juveniledelinquent #photography

Juneteenth Belongs at the Center of the American Story

https://thedemocracyadvocate.com/news-to-know/civil-rights/juneteenth-belongs-at-the-center/

#emancipation #freedfoall What Freedom Means open.substack.com/pub/ourmoral...

What Freedom Means

Today is #Juneteenth. Many people outside of #Texas haven’t heard of it, even though it is a federal holiday signed by Pres Biden.

Most people will say Juneteenth marks June 19, 1865, the day Union Army General Gordon #Granger arrived in Galveston, Texas, and announced General Order No. 3, which freed the last enslaved African Americans.

Technically true, but Granger didn’t free the slaves, they were already free, this was two years *after* the #Emancipation Proclamation. Granger showed up to tell white folks they had to follow the law. Black folks already knew the South had lost, they’d seen the newspapers.

It’s been 161 years since that day. We haven’t made nearly enough progress in equality, have we?

https://nmaahc.si.edu/explore/stories/what-juneteenth (NMAAHC)

https://www.journal-isms.com/media-version-of-juneteenths-origin-is-a-myth/ (lots of links in this listicle)

https://www.texasmonthly.com/being-texan/real-history-of-juneteenth-messier/(may have paywall for non subscribers)

Today is #Juneteenth. Many people outside of #Texas haven’t heard of it, even though it is a federal holiday signed by Pres Biden.

Most people will say Juneteenth marks June 19, 1865, the day Union Army General Gordon #Granger arrived in Galveston, Texas, and announced General Order No. 3, which freed the last enslaved African Americans.

Technically true, but Granger didn’t free the slaves, they were already free, this was two years *after* the #Emancipation Proclamation. Granger showed up to tell white folks they had to follow the law. Black folks already knew the South had lost, they’d seen the newspapers.

It’s been 161 years since that day. We haven’t made nearly enough progress in equality, have we?

https://nmaahc.si.edu/explore/stories/what-juneteenth (NMAAHC)

https://www.journal-isms.com/media-version-of-juneteenths-origin-is-a-myth/ (lots of links in this listicle)

https://www.texasmonthly.com/being-texan/real-history-of-juneteenth-messier/(may have paywall for non subscribers)

Today is #Juneteenth. Many people outside of #Texas haven’t heard of it, even though it is a federal holiday signed by Pres Biden.

Most people will say Juneteenth marks June 19, 1865, the day Union Army General Gordon #Granger arrived in Galveston, Texas, and announced General Order No. 3, which freed the last enslaved African Americans.

Technically true, but Granger didn’t free the slaves, they were already free, this was two years *after* the #Emancipation Proclamation. Granger showed up to tell white folks they had to follow the law. Black folks already knew the South had lost, they’d seen the newspapers.

It’s been 161 years since that day. We haven’t made nearly enough progress in equality, have we?

https://nmaahc.si.edu/explore/stories/what-juneteenth (NMAAHC)

https://www.journal-isms.com/media-version-of-juneteenths-origin-is-a-myth/ (lots of links in this listicle)

https://www.texasmonthly.com/being-texan/real-history-of-juneteenth-messier/(may have paywall for non subscribers)

Today is #Juneteenth. Many people outside of #Texas haven’t heard of it, even though it is a federal holiday signed by Pres Biden.

Most people will say Juneteenth marks June 19, 1865, the day Union Army General Gordon #Granger arrived in Galveston, Texas, and announced General Order No. 3, which freed the last enslaved African Americans.

Technically true, but Granger didn’t free the slaves, they were already free, this was two years *after* the #Emancipation Proclamation. Granger showed up to tell white folks they had to follow the law. Black folks already knew the South had lost, they’d seen the newspapers.

It’s been 161 years since that day. We haven’t made nearly enough progress in equality, have we?

https://nmaahc.si.edu/explore/stories/what-juneteenth (NMAAHC)

https://www.journal-isms.com/media-version-of-juneteenths-origin-is-a-myth/ (lots of links in this listicle)

https://www.texasmonthly.com/being-texan/real-history-of-juneteenth-messier/(may have paywall for non subscribers)

Today is #Juneteenth. Many people outside of #Texas haven’t heard of it, even though it is a federal holiday signed by Pres Biden.

Most people will say Juneteenth marks June 19, 1865, the day Union Army General Gordon #Granger arrived in Galveston, Texas, and announced General Order No. 3, which freed the last enslaved African Americans.

Technically true, but Granger didn’t free the slaves, they were already free, this was two years *after* the #Emancipation Proclamation. Granger showed up to tell white folks they had to follow the law. Black folks already knew the South had lost, they’d seen the newspapers.

It’s been 161 years since that day. We haven’t made nearly enough progress in equality, have we?

https://nmaahc.si.edu/explore/stories/what-juneteenth (NMAAHC)

https://www.journal-isms.com/media-version-of-juneteenths-origin-is-a-myth/ (lots of links in this listicle)

https://www.texasmonthly.com/being-texan/real-history-of-juneteenth-messier/(may have paywall for non subscribers)

Today is the 161st Anniversary of "Juneteenth" - the date when institution of slavery (at least for those not incarcerated after due process) in all of North America was finally nominally abolished - when the very last State to have held onto it - the one I live in now, Texas - finally had the last remnants of its Confederate insurrection defeated.
For those that hold onto the so called "Lost Cause" utter bs that the Civil War was "not about slavery" - there are no better counter proofs than the founding documents that the power holders in Texas wrote themselves - Section 9 of the General Provisions of the 1836 Constitution of the Republic of Texas, Article VIII of both the 1845 and 1861 Constitutions of the State of Texas, and The Declaration of Causes for Secession from February 2, 1861. In these documents those Texan power holders write clearly and succinctly that a major priority for them, and the "law of the land" within Texas was the continued enforcement of bondage and slavery of African descendants into the eternal future. As such - on this day is the moment when Texas turned from being a place where the undoubted oppression and authoritarianism of the worst kind was the "legal" policies of the government - to a place where it had at least the potential in word to be actually a place of real liberty. 161 years later and we still sadly have far to go to make that promise of equal enforcement of the law for all to be an actual truth - but here is to working towards that goal - not just here in Texas, but everywhere in the USA.

"There are records of people being whipped for celebrating and being threatened for celebrating. And even outside the context of celebrations, there was retaliation against the Freedmen [..] There was a lot of hope in the middle of a lot of hostility."

Historian #AnnetteGordonReed, author of #OnJuneteenth

https://kpfa.org/episode/letters-and-politics-june-19-2024/
#Juneteenth #OTD #EmancipationDay #Emancipation #BlackHistory #UShistory #AmericanHistory #TexasHistory #BlackTexas #books @bookstodon

"There are records of people being whipped for celebrating and being threatened for celebrating. And even outside the context of celebrations, there was retaliation against the Freedmen [..] There was a lot of hope in the middle of a lot of hostility."

Historian #AnnetteGordonReed, author of #OnJuneteenth

https://kpfa.org/episode/letters-and-politics-june-19-2024/
#Juneteenth #OTD #EmancipationDay #Emancipation #BlackHistory #UShistory #AmericanHistory #TexasHistory #BlackTexas #books @bookstodon

"There are records of people being whipped for celebrating and being threatened for celebrating. And even outside the context of celebrations, there was retaliation against the Freedmen [..] There was a lot of hope in the middle of a lot of hostility."

Historian #AnnetteGordonReed, author of #OnJuneteenth

https://kpfa.org/episode/letters-and-politics-june-19-2024/
#Juneteenth #OTD #EmancipationDay #Emancipation #BlackHistory #UShistory #AmericanHistory #TexasHistory #BlackTexas #books @bookstodon

"There are records of people being whipped for celebrating and being threatened for celebrating. And even outside the context of celebrations, there was retaliation against the Freedmen [..] There was a lot of hope in the middle of a lot of hostility."

Historian #AnnetteGordonReed, author of #OnJuneteenth

https://kpfa.org/episode/letters-and-politics-june-19-2024/
#Juneteenth #OTD #EmancipationDay #Emancipation #BlackHistory #UShistory #AmericanHistory #TexasHistory #BlackTexas #books @bookstodon

"There are records of people being whipped for celebrating and being threatened for celebrating. And even outside the context of celebrations, there was retaliation against the Freedmen [..] There was a lot of hope in the middle of a lot of hostility."

Historian #AnnetteGordonReed, author of #OnJuneteenth

https://kpfa.org/episode/letters-and-politics-june-19-2024/
#Juneteenth #OTD #EmancipationDay #Emancipation #BlackHistory #UShistory #AmericanHistory #TexasHistory #BlackTexas #books @bookstodon

Happy Juneteenth from Fifth Street, in Lewistown! #juneteenth #slavery #freeingtheslaves #slaveryiswrong #hope #future #emancipation #emancipationday #freedom #history #liberation #justice #heritage #abolition #nineteenth #galveston #heritage #blm #blacklivesmatter #resilience #africa #africanamerican

Happy Juneteenth from Fifth Street, in Lewistown! #juneteenth #slavery #freeingtheslaves #slaveryiswrong #hope #future #emancipation #emancipationday #freedom #history #liberation #justice #heritage #abolition #nineteenth #galveston #heritage #blm #blacklivesmatter #resilience #africa #africanamerican