June 19 .......1775
On June 19, 1866, Juneteenth celebrations began in Texas marking the end of slavery the previous year. Union troops, carrying out Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation, liberated the last slaves in the Confederacy when they arrived in Texas (https://www.britannica.com/topic/Juneteenth). In 1980, Texas made it an official holiday. However, now the racist race hustlers and marketers have taken over and made it a US Federal holiday, ignoring the fact many slaves still existed and were not legally made free until the passage of the 13th Amendment of the Constitution in December 18, 1865, if not later.
But I suppose a holiday in December would be too cold to have festivities. So go out and enjoy the weather, food offerings, parades, and music. However, the day really does not unite the country and basically is a kiss up to Lincoln and all his failings. Hoping for a slave revolt, he issued the Emancipation Proclamation. No slave revolt followed.
So, instead, I am going to celebrate the accomplishments of just one man, and what happened to him on June 19, 1775, 248 years ago. The Continental Congress made George Washington the Commander of the Continental Army (https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Washington/03-01-02-0004).
Oh, but I suppose someone somewhere is going to object because Washington owned slaves. All the colonies had slaves, and so did Washington. We even know their names and even what they did (https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Washington/06-04-02-0405). Yet, before you judge him too harshly, his views on slavery were complex (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Washington_and_slavery).
Reality is, without George Washington, we would all live under the whims of a monarchy. But let me be clear, African-Americans did serve in the cause of the American Revolution! There are plenty of articles to read about this. I provide a few links further below. However, I want to pay tribute to James Armistead Lafayette, an African-American who served as a spy for the Continental Army (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Armistead_Lafayette). His persistence shows you can obtain your freedom.
https://revolutionarywarjournal.com/blacks-in-the-continental-army/
https://www.battlefields.org/learn/articles/10-facts-black-patriots-american-revolution
https://www.history.com/news/first-black-regiment-american-revolution-first-rhode-island
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/African_Americans_in_the_Revolutionary_War
https://www.history.com/topics/american-revolution/dunmores-proclamation