That banner with a bursting star in the middle is the Juneteenth Flag, a symbolic representation of the end of slavery in the United States. The flag is the brainchild of activist Ben Haith, founder of the National Juneteenth Celebration Foundation (NJCF).
What is the official Juneteenth flag?
Deliberately consisting of a red, white, and blue color scheme just like the American flag, the Juneteenth flag has a white star in the center, meant to represent both Texas (the Lone Star State), as well as the freedom of enslaved people in all 50 states.
Are there official Juneteenth colors?
The official Juneteenth flag was red, white, and blue displaying that all American slaves and their descendants were Americans. However, many in the Black community have adopted the Pan-African flag, red black and green. The colors represent the blood, soil and prosperity of Africa and its people.
Who created the official Juneteenth flag?
The flag was created by activist and organizer Ben Haith, also known as Boston Ben, who founded the National Juneteenth Celebration Foundation (NJCF).
Why does Juneteenth have a flag?
The celebration started with the freed slaves of Galveston, Texas. They got the news the war was over and they were free in 1865 on June 19, a date that was melded into the word “Juneteenth.” The Juneteenth flag commemorates the day that slavery ended in the US.
Which states do not recognize Juneteenth?
According to the Congressional Research Service, a government body that provides research to inform lawmakers, South Dakota is the only US state that does not have a law to mark the celebration of Juneteenth. The most recent states to add a law recognizing the holiday are Hawaii and North Dakota.
Which state did not recognize Juneteenth?
Only one state — South Dakota — does not recognize Juneteenth as either a state holiday or day of observance. And even there, legislators are pushing to add the holiday to the state’s list of formally recognized celebrations. “We should all be able to celebrate the end of slavery,” said state Sen.
Why is strawberry soda associated with Juneteenth?
Strawberry soda is a common feature of the Juneteenth holiday as a nod to the celebrations of slaves in Galveston, Texas, who on June 19, 1865, learned they were free. Those celebrations, according to the Journal Sentinel story, included red food and beverages “to symbolize the blood that was shed by the slaves.”
Why is red food eaten in Juneteenth?
Another essential addition to the Juneteenth culinary tradition is red drinks, a staple across the diaspora. “Red is a color that evokes cultural memory of the bloodshed by our enslaved ancestors through the transatlantic slave trade,” says Miller.
What is the black liberation flag?
The Pan-African flag—also known as the Afro-American flag, Black Liberation flag, UNIA flag and various other names—is a tri-color flag consisting of three equal horizontal bands of (from top down) red, black and green.
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Is Juneteenth recognized as a holiday?
Juneteenth is a federal holiday in the United States. For decades, activists and congress members (led by many African Americans) proposed legislation, advocated for, and built support for state and national observances. During his campaign for president in June 2020, Joe Biden publicly celebrated the holiday.
What does the blue mean on the Juneteenth flag?
The colors
The red, white and blue represents the American flag, a reminder that slaves and their descendants were and are Americans. June 19, 1865, represents the day that enslaved black people in Galveston, Texas, became Americans under the law.
What is another name for Juneteenth?
The term Juneteenth is a blend of the words June and nineteenth. The holiday has also been called Juneteenth Independence Day or Freedom Day. Often celebrated at first with church picnics and speeches, the holiday spread across the nation and internationally as Black Texans moved elsewhere.
What does Juneteenth symbolize?
What is Juneteenth? It’s a symbolic date representing African American freedom from slavery. … On June 19, 1865, two and half years after the Emancipation Proclamation was signed, Major General Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston, Texas, and announced the end of the Civil War and the end of slavery.
When did Juneteenth become a holiday?
Juneteenth is the first federal holiday to be created by Congress since 1983, when lawmakers designated the third Monday in January as Martin Luther King Jr. Day, in honor of the slain civil-rights leader. Texas was the first state, in 1980, to declare Juneteenth a holiday.
What year were slaves freed in the United States?
President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863, as the nation approached its third year of bloody civil war. The proclamation declared “that all persons held as slaves” within the rebellious states “are, and henceforward shall be free.”