Juneteenth marks which of the following?

• A. A day commemorating Texas independence.
• B. June 19, 1865, when enslaved people in Texas learned of emancipation.
• C. End of World War II.
• D. The founding of the first Black college.

Answer: (B)

Juneteenth marks the day enslaved people in Texas learned they were free, on June 19, 1865, when Union General Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston and announced emancipation. This moment came long after the Emancipation Proclamation of 1863, because Texas had been distant from Union lines and enforcement there was slow. Juneteenth has come to symbolize the enduring meaning of emancipation and freedom for African Americans. It isn’t about Texas declaring independence in 1836, it doesn’t signify the end of World War II, and it isn’t tied to the founding of a Black college.