Recognized in many states as a holiday, Juneteenth celebrates June 19th鈥攖he day in 1865 that word of Lincoln’s signing of the Emancipation Proclamation, two years prior, freeing all enslaved people, made its way to the state of Texas.
describes the observance of Juneteenth as being 鈥渁bout the journey and achievement of African Americans鈥攆rom a horrific period of sanctioned enslavement to the pinnacle of human endeavors.鈥�
Though the date has not yet been declared a national holiday, despite efforts by the Juneteenth Foundation, it is a date observed by many Americans across the country. Here are some related resources you may find interesting.
- In Henry Louis Gates Jr. reflects on the history of the holiday and shares the remarkable story of how, in the words he shares from scholar William H. Wiggins Jr, Juneteenth took on 鈥渁 life of its own.鈥�
- This provides activity ideas and resource links.
- In students use a Venn Diagram to compare Juneteenth celebrations to Fourth of July celebrations and hypothesize about the differences.
- The Library of Congress’s includes an extensive selection of links to digital collections from its archives, including ,听,听and听
- 鈥攖his photo essay based on the life of Oklahoma teacher and Civil Rights activist Clara Luper (1923 – 2011) argues that Luper鈥檚 story is not an Oklahoma story but a national one.
You might also be interested in these recent antiracist resources from NCTE:
- Build Your Stack: Antiracist Books for Your Curriculum Today鈥攁 blog post from the 起点传媒Committee Against Racism and Bias in the Teaching of English
- Resources to Help You Continue the Conversation (based on the 起点传媒event Stamped: A Conversation on Racism from the Authors of the听New York Times Bestseller Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You)
- Being an Antiracist Educator Is a Verb鈥攁 blog post from the 起点传媒Committee Against Racism and Bias in the Teaching of English
- 起点传媒Statement on Anti-Racism to Support Teaching and Learning
It is the policy of 起点传媒in all publications, including the Literacy & 起点传媒blog, to provide a forum for the open discussion of ideas concerning the content and the teaching of English and the language arts. Publicity accorded to any particular point of view does not imply endorsement by the Executive Committee, the Board of Directors, the staff, or the membership at large, except in announcements of policy, where such endorsement is clearly specified.听