The San Diego County Board of Education unanimously passed a resolution designating June 19, 2024, as Juneteenth Independence Day. Resolution No. 2024-23 reads:
WHEREAS news of the end of slavery did not reach the frontier areas of the United States, in particular the State of Texas and the other southwestern states, until months after the conclusion of the Civil War, more than 2.5 years after President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation on Jan. 1, 1863; and
WHEREAS on June 19, 1865, Union soldiers, led by Major General Gordon Granger, arrived in Galveston, Texas, with news that the Civil War had ended and the enslaved were free; and
WHEREAS African Americans who had been enslaved in the Southwest celebrated June 19, commonly known as Juneteenth Independence Day, as inspiration and encouragement for future generations; and
WHEREAS African Americans from the Southwest have continued the tradition of observing Juneteenth for more than 150 years; and
WHEREAS the United States Congress has designated June 19 as “Juneteenth Independence Day” and Juneteenth is now celebrated in nearly every state in the nation as a special day of observance in recognition of the emancipation of all slaves in the United States; and
WHEREAS Black history is a part of American history and as educational leaders we have a responsibility to educate students throughout the entire year about the contribution of African Americans; and
WHEREAS Juneteenth is an opportunity for the people of the United States — regardless of race, ethnicity, or background — to learn more about the past, to better understand and reckon with the experiences that have shaped the United States, and to recognize that the observance of the end of slavery is part of the history and heritage of the United States; and
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the San Diego County Board of Education designates June 19, 2024, as Juneteenth Independence Day.
