Dance performance to celebrate Juneteenth, tonight, Sunday afternoon in Pittsburg
According to Wikipedia, “Juneteenth commemorates the announcement of the abolition of slavery in the U.S. state of Texas in June 1865, and more generally the emancipation of African-American slaves throughout the Confederate South. Celebrated on June 19, the term is a portmanteau of June and nineteenth, and is recognized as a state holiday or special day of observance in most states.
By 1865, there were an estimated 250,000 slaves in Texas. As news of end of the war moved slowly, reach Texas until May 1865, and the Army of the Trans-Mississippi did not surrender until June 2. On June 18, 1865, Union General Gordon Granger arrived at Galveston Island with 2,000 federal troops to occupy Texas on behalf of the federal government. On June 19, standing on the balcony of Galveston’s Ashton Villa, Granger read aloud the contents of ‘General Order No. 3’, announcing the total emancipation of slaves:
‘The people of Texas are informed that, in accordance with a proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free. This involves an absolute equality of personal rights and rights of property between former masters and slaves, and the connection heretofore existing between them becomes that between employer and hired labor. The freedmen are advised to remain quietly at their present homes and work for wages. They are informed that they will not be allowed to collect at military posts and that they will not be supported in idleness either there or elsewhere.‘”
It has now become a worldwide celebration. For more information, visit www.juneteenth.com. To purchase tickets to the event, call the the California Theatre at (925) 427-1611 or go online to www.pittsburgcaliforniatheatre.com. For more information about the visit www.grownwomendance.org.
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