on june 19th, 1865, two and a half years after the emancipation proclamation, general gordon grangerthis involves an absolute equality of personal rights "and the rights of property "between former masters and slaves." to understand this new freedom, i first need to understand what they were freed from. michael waters: it's very important that when we talk about slavery, that we humanize it, right? you can miss the humanity when you emphasize ten million slaves, right? we wanna talk about someone's son, someone's daughter who made the arduous forced passage from their homeland to this country. rasool: the voices of the past echo into the present here. pastor michael waters, a native texan who has immersed himself in this history will translate them for me. michael: so we can begin with this. this is a manila bracelet. this bracelet was the form of currency from western european countries when they went to west africa in order to purchase our ancestors as slaves. six to eight of these would allow you to buy a human being. after you had been purchased, of course, you were put in chains

but before general gordon granger arrived, a wonderful thing occurred. it is said about a week before he arrived, they sent in the 25th corps, the 25th corps consisted of about 1,000 more persons and there was a 25th corps that came in and ran the rebels out of galveston, chased them to the boarder of the country, the boundaries, chased them all the way to mexico. it was the 25th corps that paveed the way for scwhren gordon granger to come into texas and to issue his general order number 3. but here's what history doesn't say enough about. the 25th corps consisted of black men. somehow, we don't choose to celebrate and -- these black men who actually were the liberators, who came in before general gordon granger. came in to texas, fought fiercely to liberate the black people in texas. general gordon granger appeared with his general order number three, accompanied by a lot of firepower, about 2,000 military personnel with him, and as a result, slaves in texas were free to work for their masters. imagine. that person that has held you in slavery, now beco

we have remember major general gordon granger takes over a villa in galveston. he is surrounded by a very vengeful and fearful and anxious white society. they were very fearful of what this idea of absolute equality meant. certainly by 1866 black people are formally celebrating juneteenth as emancipation day, as freedom day, as the true meaning of american democracy. those celebrations will continue to take place across the state of texas. we will see black folks who are buying land in houston, jack gates and reverend elias dibble, richard allen, richard bloch. they buy 10 acres of land which is now emancipation park. juneteenth becomes a way to celebrate and commemorate, but also there is something entrepreneurial about juneteenth , about organizing black folks, organizing black businesses, organizing the black vote. this is all connected to the idea of black citizenship and dignity. juneteenth becomes the nation's real independence day because before juneteenth, as frederick douglass has said in a very famous 1862 address in rochester, new york, which has come

and so when gordon granger comes to texas, he is making clear and letting people know that the emancipation proclamation had been enacted in ways that because of the topography of texas and because of how spread out and rural and far apart from different ecosystems of information many people were, a lot of enslaved people didn't know that the emancipation proclamation had happened. and some didn't even know that general lee had surrendered at appomattox two months prior. and so part of what this is doing is making clear to the 250,000 enslaved people in texas that they had actually been granted freedom two-and-a-half years prior and that the war that this was all fought over had ended two months before. amy: during the ceremony making juneteenth a federal holiday, president biden got down on his knee to greet opal lee, the 94-year-old activist known as the grandmother of juneteenth. this is biden speaking about lee. pres. biden: as a child growing up in texas, she and her family would celebrate juneteenth. on juneteenth 1939, when she was 12 years old, a white mob torched her family home. b

on june 19th 1865, union general gordon granger led some 2000 union troops, many of whom were black,here they announced that the more than 250,000 enslaved black people in the state were free by executive decree. the day came to be known as juneteenth, a combination of june and 19th. now 96 years old, lee says the message of juneteenth is a simple one. >> it's not a texas thing and it's not a black thing. it's freedom for all of us. and we are not free yet. we have got too many disparities. i mean, the joblessness, the homelessness, the health care that some of us can get, others can't. climate change that we are responsible for. we're not free yet. geoff: as part of her walking campaign, lee trekked two-and-a-half miles each day a representing the two-and-a-half years black texans remained enslaved after the signing of the emancipation proclamation. it didn't take long for word to spread and countless others to join her march. the campaign picked up momentum in the wake of demonstrations for racial equality after the killing of george floyd. >> we are blessed to mark the day in the

. ♪ geoff: 158 years ago today, union army general gordon granger arrived in galveston, texas to informat ey had been freed under the emancipation proclamation. the day we now know as juneteenth was formally recognized as a national holiday two years ago, due in large part to the activism of a 96-year-old retired texas school teacher. opal lee first gained national attention in 2016, when the then-89-year-old walked more than 1400 miles from fort worth , texas to washington, d.c. in a campaign to convince lawmakers to recognize juneteenth as a federal holiday. >> i just wanted it to be a holiday. and i didn't know what else needed to be done. i don't know if i would have tried to stand on my head and make somebody aware. geoff: juneteenth commemorates the end of slavery in the u.s., even though president abraham lincoln signed the emancipation proclamation in 1863, texas enslavers deliberately withheld the news. on june 19 1865, union general gordon granger led some 2000 union troops, many of whom were black, into galveston bay, where they announced that the more than 250,000 enslaved b

it was not until more than two years later, june 19, 1865 that major general gordon granger ar

we have remember major general gordon granger takes over a villa in galveston.rrounded by a very vengeful and fearful and anxious white society. they were very fearful of what this idea of absolute equality meant. certainly by 1866 black people are formally celebrating juneteenth as emancipation day, as freedom day, as the true meaning of american democracy. those celebrations will continue to take place across the state of texas. we will see black folks who are buying land in houston, jack gates and reverend elias dibble, richard allen, richard bloch. they buy 10 acres of land which is now emancipation park. juneteenth becomes a way to celebrate and commemorate, but also there is something entrepreneurial about juneteenth , about organizing black folks, organizing black businesses, organizing the black vote. this is all connected to the idea of black citizenship and dignity. juneteenth becomes the nation's real independence day because before juneteenth, as frederick douglass has said in a very famous 1862 address in rochester, new york, which has come to be kn

it took a while because the news came from union army general gordon granger on june 19th 18 65 in galveston, texas, which was about 3 years after president lincoln. its side. the emancipation proclamation, freeing slaves throughout the country. president biden recently made juneteenth a federal holiday. he did that in 2021, many parades and other celebrations are planned around the nation as well as the closures of certain agencies and businesses. wall street, for instance, closed today. so no trading all public schools that are on a year longer try semester schedule. they're off today as well. >> it's 9.18, for your money. 66% of americans have a negative view of tipping. jane king takes a closer look. >> there's no definitive guide book on tipping in the u.s. and it's unlikely to people tip exactly the same way. the only thing most americans may agree on, though, is that many just like some aspect of tipping, according to new bankrate survey, roughly 2, 3.66% of u.s. adults have a negative view about tipping americans said they believe businesses should pay employees better rather than re

and that news came from union army general gordon granger on june 19th back in 18. 65 in galveston, texas. about 3 years after president lincoln signed the emancipation proclamation, freeing slaves throughout the country. president biden made juneteenth a federal holiday in 2021. it will be a lot of parades and other celebrations planned around the nation as well as the closures of certain a local agencies and businesses. wall street is closed today. all public schools closed as well. >> time now is 10, 17 and for your money. 66% of americans have a negative view of tipping. jane king has a new survey and it shows who tips more or less. >> there's no definitive guide book on tipping in the u.s. and it's unlikely to people tip exactly the same way. the only thing most americans may agree on, though, is that many just like some aspect of tipping, according to new bankrate survey, roughly 2, 3.66% of u.s. adults have a negative view about tipping americans said they believe businesses should pay employees better rather than relying so much on tips and their noise about pre entered tip screen

that news came from union army general gordon granger on june 19th 18 65 in galveston, texas.was about 3 years after president lincoln signed the emancipation proclamation, freeing slaves throughout the country. president biden made juneteenth a federal holiday in 2021, many parades and other celebrations are planned around the nation as well as the closures of certain agencies and businesses to keep that in mind. wall street, for instance, is closed today, along with all public schools. >> it's 7.19, in for your money. 66 1% of americans have a negative view of tipping jane king why americans seem to be tipping less. >> there's no definitive guide book on tipping in the u.s. and it's unlikely to people tip exactly the same way. the only thing most americans may agree on, though, is that many just like some aspect of tipping, according to new bankrate survey, roughly 2, 3.66% of u.s. adults have a negative view about tipping americans said they believe businesses should pay employees better rather than relying so much on tips and their noise about pre entered tip screens. they

i'm celebrating juneteenth it was on this das in the year 1865 when union army major general gordon grangers that they were truly free. of course, that news arrived two years five months, and 18 days after president lincoln's emancipation proclamation. the holiday has been celebrated by black americans for decades now but was only officially made a federal holiday two years ago. first, since martin luther king day. it is a celebration of freedom, but also this year a stark reminder about the hostility black americans still face more than a century and a half later. especially as the country sees a rise in white supremacist hate groups as well as new laws in florida and other states that restrict the teaching of black history and racism or ban books that are written by black authors. joining me now to discuss is one of the leading voices who fought for years to make juneteenth a federal holiday. congresswoman sheila jackson lee of texas congresswoman, great to speak to you this evening i always ask this question up front. >> good to be with you >> what did you do today thank you so much. wha

it was not until more than two years later, june 19, 1865 that major general gordon granger arrived in galveston, texas with 2000 union troops to proclaim that more than 250,000 enslaved black people in the state were afraid. some local slaveowners initially ignored the directive, but granger demanded they comply with the proclamation. why is it called juneteenth? it derives its name from combining june and 19th. that day that he issued his proclamation. juneteenth has >> we are leaving this for live conversation on ending hunger and part of the in the u.s. william barber is joining other activists and advocates for a three-day summit in washington, d.c.. >> could this monstrous act be a necessary link in the chain of events toward the downfall of the entire system of slavery? he said what i do know is that every attempt to stop us and allow our progress only serves to intensify and embolden our agitation. this is why we this morning will take a hard look at the ugly reality of poverty -- death by poverty. the fourth leading cause of death, ahead of homicide. maybe the fact that we are