It’s Juneteenth, now a federal holiday…

Juneteenth has a rich history in the foundation of the United States. On June 19, 1865, Union General Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston, Texas, announcing the end of slavery. This came 2.5 years after Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation, finally freeing 250,000 enslaved people in Texas. 

The first Juneteenth celebrations began in 1866, led by Black communities with parades and church gatherings. Juneteenth marks America’s “second Independence Day,” symbolizing true freedom for all. It honors Black resilience and the ongoing fight for equality. In 2021, activism by figures like Opal Lee helped make it a federal holiday. – Shrey Banerjee, June 11, 2025

I support the sentiment of Juneteenth, equality for all, and I wish “all” meant “all.” Just a couple of weeks ago, someone who lived near me in the Pikes Peak region (El Paso County) went up to Boulder and set fire to people just because they were Jews. Here’s the initial FBI report. We have a long way to go.

The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man, nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything. And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place… (Acts 17.24 – 26, ESV)

After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” (Revelation 7.9, 10, ESV)