The Vancouver branch of the NAACP, the nation’s oldest civil rights organization, will hold its second Juneteenth potluck 1 to 3 p.m. June 14 at Marine Park, 4500 S.E. Columbia Way.
The word “Juneteenth” is a 19th-century mash-up of “June 19,” the day in 1865 when Union Gen. Gordon Granger read aloud a declaration in Galveston, Texas: “The people of Texas are informed that, in accordance with a proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free.”
That was three years after President Abraham Lincoln freed slaves in the Confederacy through the Emancipation Proclamation; it was also months after the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution banned slavery throughout the nation — and months after the Civil War ended. But Texas refused to comply with the ban until Granger showed up, backed by 2,000 federal troops, and made his announcement. That makes it the real end of slavery in America, the Rev. Marva Edwards of the Vancouver NAACP has said.
“It was their freedom day, so it’s our freedom day, too,” she said.
There is no federal Juneteenth holiday, but 42 states have adopted Juneteenth as a state holiday. Washington made it an observance in 2007.
The Marine Park event will feature vendors, a talent show and other entertainment. Participants are asked to bring a favorite dish. Vendors and sponsors can email Carol Page Collier, carolcollier@cbseal.com or naacpvancouver@gmail.com.
