Recognizing "Juneteenth National Freedom Day" on June 19, 2026

WHEREAS, Juneteenth originated in Galveston, Texas, on June 19, 1865, in celebration of the emancipation of those who had been enslaved in America. The tradition of marking the end of slavery with Emancipation Day celebrations had an earlier beginning in South Carolina on January 1, 1863, in recognition of the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation. Even earlier celebrations of emancipation date back to when slavery was abolished throughout the British Empire on August 1, 1834; and

WHEREAS, Each year after 1834, on August 1, major emancipation celebrations were organized across the West Indies and American cities with free African heritage populations. The Rhode Island cities of Providence, Newport and East Providence were early sites for major Emancipation Day celebrations and festivals dating back to the 1850s. During the th century, tens of thousands of people attended Emancipation Day events at Roger Williams Park, Rocky Point, and Crescent Park; and

WHEREAS, Juneteenth is part of a number of emancipation celebrations that date back to the early th century, and on June th, 2023, the Rhode Island General Assembly passed legislation, which was signed into law on June th, declaring "Juneteenth National Freedom Day" to officially be a State Holiday; and

WHEREAS, Also known as Emancipation Day, Emancipation Celebration, Freedom Day, Jun-Jun, and Juneteenth, Juneteenth National Freedom Day commemorates the strong survival instinct of African Americans who were first brought to this country stacked in the bottom of slave ships in a month-long journey across the Atlantic Ocean known as the Middle Passage; and

WHEREAS, Approximately eleven and a half million Africans survived the voyage to the New World, with the number that died likely greater, and those who did survive were subjected to whipping, castration, branding, and rape, and were forced to submit to slavery for more than two hundred years after their arrival in the United States; and

WHEREAS, Events in the history of the United States that led to the Civil War of 1861 centered around sectional differences between the North and South that were based on the economic and social divergence caused by the existence of slavery; and

WHEREAS, Abraham Lincoln was inaugurated as President of the United States in 1861, and as President, he believed and stated that the paramount object of the Civil War was to save the Union rather than to save or destroy slavery; and

WHEREAS, Lincoln also stated that it was his belief that all men everywhere should be free, thus adding to the growing anticipation for slaves that their ultimate liberation was at hand; and

WHEREAS, In 1862, the first clear sign that the end of slavery was imminent came when laws abolishing slavery in the territories of Oklahoma, Nebraska, Colorado, and New Mexico were passed; and

WHEREAS, In September of that same year, President Lincoln warned that if the eleven rebellious Confederate States did not return to the Union by January 1, 1863, he would declare their slaves forever free via the celebrated Emancipated Proclamation; and

WHEREAS, Enforcement of the Emancipation Proclamation, however, only occurred in Confederate States once they were under Union Army control and Congress subsequently passed the Thirteenth Amendment to the Constitution on January 31, 1865, abolishing slavery throughout the United States and its territories; and

WHEREAS, News of this action reached the states at different times, and it was not until June 19 of 1865, that the message of freedom reached the slaves in Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Arkansas, and California; and

WHEREAS, Spontaneous celebrations erupted throughout the country when African- Americans learned of their freedom; and

WHEREAS, Juneteenth National Freedom Day celebrates the abolishment of slavery with excitement and great joy and is a reminder to all Americans of the status and importance that Americans of African descent hold as American citizens; now, therefore be it

RESOLVED, That this House of Representatives of the State of Rhode Island hereby urges the citizens of the State of Rhode Island to join in recognizing the historical significance of Juneteenth Independence Day and the observance of Juneteenth National Freedom Day on June th; and be it further

RESOLVED, That this House hereby supports the annual celebration of Juneteenth National Freedom Day in order to provide an opportunity for the people of the State to learn more about our country’s past and to better understand the experiences that have shaped our nation; and be it further

RESOLVED, That the Secretary of State be and hereby is authorized and directed to transmit a duly certified copy of this resolution to the Honorable Daniel J. McKee, Governor of the State of Rhode Island.