Juneteenth, also known as Emancipation Day or Freedom Day, is a holiday celebrated on June 19th and commemorates the date slaves were officially freed. On June 3rd, 2021, Montclair Mayor Sean Spiller announced that Montclair would be observing the Friday before Juneteenth (Juneteenth fell on a Saturday in 2021) as a public holiday in order to commemorate Juneteenth. Read on to learn more about Juneteenth and what Mayor Spiller had to say.
The History of Juneteenth
Juneteenth, or June 19th, is the date that officially recognizes the day on which slaves were freed. Although President Abraham Lincoln had issued the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1st, 1863, it took about two and a half years for the news to reach the southern states where there were still enslaved people. About 250,000 people were still being used as slaves until Union General Gordon Granger informed the people of Texas that all slaves were free.
While many members of the Black community have been recognizing and celebrating Juneteenth for decades, it’s only in the last couple of years that we began to see legislation to publicly recognize Juneteenth as a holiday.
Read More: Famous Black Singers + Rappers From North Jersey
In September 2020, Governor Murphy signed into legislation that the third Friday in June will be a State and public holiday celebrating Juneteenth. Mayor Spiller announced in 2021 that Montclair would also be observing the third Friday as Juneteenth, a public holiday. Shortly after Mayor Spiller’s announcement, President Biden signed a proclamation making Juneteenth a federal holiday. As a result, all municipal offices were set to be closed, and recycling collection did not take place on this new holiday.
Making it a Public Holiday in Montclair
In an announcement from the township Mayor Spiller said, “Juneteenth is not only a celebration of this momentous period in our history, but also a day that affords us an opportunity to consider how much more needs to be done to ensure true equity and justice for all Americans. The need to recognize the challenges we still face as a nation, to confront the systemic racism rooted in so many of our institutions, and to truly live up to the ideals prescribed in the founding documents of this great nation is a call to action that each of us, as Americans, need to answer.”
See More: A List of Black-Owned Businesses to Support in Hoboken + Jersey City
Even though the rest of the country followed suit, Montclair was proudly ahead of the curve by declaring Juneteenth a public holiday.
This Juneteenth, there are many ways to celebrate and recognize this important day in history. We’ve rounded up Juneteenth events in Essex County for everyone to be able to participate in this historic day.
