US Senator Martin Heinrich wrote that June 19th should be a hollow and celebrated day, a day North America should never forget for it was on this day in 1865 that Union Soldiers entering Galveston, Texas and declared All Slaves to be Free from Slavery.
Two years after the Emancipation Proclamation was declared “that all People are to be free”. That freedom came at a huge cost to the United States and those enslaved.
23 million Slaves of African, Latino and Caribbean Heritage let loose and often driven away from their lodgings. Many knew little of the world outside and stayed on the plantations. Slavery was all they knew.
Others entered the world of unforgiving competition, trying to find employment, actually be paid for their hard work. Those fortunate enough to have an education strived to better themselves by joining the US Army, Law Enforcement and or attempting to find their fortune in Western USA.
June 19th 1865 is a date we all should not forget, but we do. The stage was being set for the Black Race by empathetic Whites and Black Leadership. None of them could know that Blacks would earn the franchise to vote, seek true representation in the various State and Federal Government Assemblies.
Along the way certain Black Communities prospered while others did not face everlasting prejudice from their fellow human beings. Many Blacks suffering from the scars of slavery suffered addictions and mental health issues that continued to form and mold them.
The Black Church became even more essential in the lives of these people, as their faith helped them endure the oppression of freedom. They now had to fend for themselves carving out of the New America, a piece of the American Dream, once never to be considered by non-whites.
Education and Fair equitable employment were the answer to future generations as things such as equality, employment opportunities, better treatment – once never heard became battle cries to a future movement.
Martin Luther Jr, Malcom X and so many others dedicated their lives to create a fair and equal playing field for their generation and those to come.
Steven Kaszab
Bradford, Ontario