Today is Juneteenth, the annual celebration of African Americans marking the end of slavery after the Civil War. On June 19, 1865, two years after the Emancipation Proclamation, the news that slaves were free finally reached Galveston, Texas, the last part of the United States to hear this.
The first official Juneteenth celebration was in 1866. In the early 1900s Black church-centered events became more widely celebrated, and following the Great Migration from the South to northern cities, celebrations expanded. Texas formally recognized Juneteenth in 1938; other states very slowly followed suit. In 2021 Juneteenth became a federal holiday when Congress voted 415-14 with 220 Democrats and 195 Republicans voting to pass the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act. ItÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s doubtful that Congress would vote that way today. However, in 2021, the West Virginia Legislature declared ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œFebruary 3rd as Freedom Day to memorialize the February 3, 1865, Act by the Legislature that abolished slavery in West Virginia.ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥ Who celebrates Feb. 3?
With all President TrumpÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s antipathy towards diversity, equity and inclusion, it looks like much of America is fine with including and interacting with diverse people. Some of that is happening right in Appalachia, where residents are familiar with being excluded from much of the American dream. Although the culture of Blacks and whites in Appalachia is historically different, white Appalachians understand rejection from the American mainstream.
Huntington will have its fifth annual Juneteenth celebration from June 19-21 at various venues, including Ritter Park. Charleston will also hold a three-day celebration, and Greenbrier County will have an inaugural festival this year. In 2024, then-Gov. Jim Justice, now one of the stateÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s senators in Washington, recognized Juneteenth as a legal holiday and gave West Virginians a day off from work.
Gov. Patrick MorriseyÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s office says he will recognize JuneteenthÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s significance but claims the stateÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s financial problems preclude any observance as a holiday. Those financial problems were denied by Justice. So, is the state really in the red or is it a convenient way to avoid anything related to diversity or inclusion? In Ironton, Ohio University Southern had its third annual Culture & Heritage Festival on June 14 and invited the community to celebrate the regionsÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™ history and cultural diversity. ThereÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s that ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œbadÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥ word, ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œdiversity.ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥ Could Ohio Southern lose any federal funding for celebrating diversity? According to Newsweek, a few cities, including Indianapolis, Bend, Oregon, and Plano, Illinois, canceled their Juneteenth plans, citing security and the countryÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s political climate.
Recently, the New York Times had a long, fascinating article on Pope Leo XIVÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s genetic background. One doesnÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™t have to be Catholic to appreciate that the new pope is a learned man with fine understanding of people from many places and walks of life. The article about the PopeÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s background was written by Henry Louis Gates Jr., a Black man, Yale graduate, Harvard professor and author of many scholarly books and a West Virginian by birth and raising. Gates hosts PBSÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™ ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œFinding Your RootsÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥ and spoke at Marshall University last year. About 25 years ago, I met Gates when he visited with a small group at MarshallÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s Student Union after his 1994 book, ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œColored People,ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥ his memoir of growing up in Piedmont, West Virginia, was published.
Gates noted, ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œThe PopeÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s roots make for one of the most diverse family trees we have ever created.ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥ The genetic history of the man who seemed to be just a product of an Italian Catholic family from the Chicago area has the expected Italian lineage, but also Spanish, Cuban, French and Black, including slaves and slave owners.
As Juneteenth is celebrated today and West Virginia Day tomorrow, commemorating the stateÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s founding in 1863, it would be interesting to view the genetic histories of Appalachians and other Americans. We would likely find, as in this popeÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s family background, that we are more diverse and inclusive than we ever imagined. Juneteenth, history, Appalachia and Pope Leo XIV remind us that we Americans have many connections.
Diane W. Mufson is a retired psychologist and a regular contributor to The Herald-Dispatch Opinion page.
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