As America celebrates one of Texas’ favorite holidays, Juneteenth, we can reflect on what history has shown us—that freedom is a journey just as much as it is a destination.
“Freedom came to enslaved Texans on June 19, 1865 when Union Gen. Gordon Granger brought news of President Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation to the citizens of Galveston,” says Greg Sindelar, CEO of the Texas Public Policy Foundation. “Throughout the next century and into the Civil Rights era, the work of thousands of dedicated men and women furthered freedom on behalf of Black Americans—with true equality as the ultimate goal. Even today, that work continues, as organizations including ours labor to expand educational options for all Texas students, to ensure that the practice of educational ‘redlining’ is ended forever. A child’s chances for a successful future should never be limited by race—or by ZIP code.”