TOPLINE
Juneteenth, a holiday marking the freedom from enslavement for Black people in Texas (June 19, 1865) and used to celebrate the end of slavery across the country, has been thrust into the national spotlight this year as thousands continue to protest racism and police brutality in the wake of George Floyd’s death in Minneapolis a month ago.
Protestors hold pictures of George Floyd as they march during a Juneteenth rally in New York City.
KEY FACTS
Juneteenth, a portmanteau of “June” and “19th,” refers to the day in 1865 enslaved Black people in Texas finally learned, at the end of the Civil War, they had been freed when President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863.
This year, Juneteenth has taken on a new significance after a month of near-constant protests triggered by the death of George Floyd, a black man in Minneapolis who was allegedly killed by a white police officer.
Thousands have taken to the streets to mark the 155th anniversary of the first Juneteenth and to continue to demand reform and protest against racism and police brutality.
President Donald Trump rescheduled a rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma slated to occur Friday after facing backlash for holding a rally on Juneteenth in a city where the Tulsa race massacre, one of the worst acts of racial violence in U.S. history, took place.
An American flag stylized with Pan-African colors flies from temporarily-named Black Lives Matter ... [+]
Members of the Washington Wizards and Washington Mystics basketball teams rally at the MLK Memorial ... [+]
Stern Ferguson wore an American flag face mask during a Juneteenth celebration in Dallas, Texas. The ... [+]
Texans attend a ceremony to mark the 155th anniversary of Juneteenth at historic Ashton Villa, where ... [+]
People carry an empty casket draped with an American flag to symbolize the destruction of Tulsa's ... [+]
People pray together during a Juneteenth event in Atlanta, Georgia. Since the early days of the ... [+]
Haley Avery embraces her cousin, Selah Moore as they pray together during a Juneteenth event in ... [+]
People participate in a march in Brooklyn for both Black Lives Matter and to commemorate the 155th ... [+]
Dancer Manuela Sanchez of Brooklyn, N.Y., performs in front of protest signs in Washington D.C. ... [+]
Hasaan Watts stands with his father, Harry, as they listen to speakers gathered for Pittsburgh's ... [+]
A young boy walks past a mural depicting Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. during a Juneteenth celebration ... [+]
Protesters march over the Brooklyn Bridge towards Manhattan following a Juneteenth rally in Cadman ... [+]
Aetry Jones and Caerry Rigbon tape up sign advertising voter registration at Dallas City Hall before ... [+]
Marchers in New York City carried posters with images of George Floyd, whose death in Minneapolis ... [+]
