Article originally appeared on amgreatness.com.
Republicans should embrace and celebrate Juneteenth. It’s a holiday that celebrates the first great achievements of the Republican Party: preserving the Union and liberating the slaves. It is time to recognize the emancipation of former slaves as a day of universal rejoicing and soberness as we contemplate the terrible price our nation has paid for the original sin of slavery. Juneteenth, celebrated on the 19th of June, is a perfect opportunity for that recognition.
Embrace Juneteenth As a National Holiday
Juneteenth has been an unofficial holiday in the African-American community for over 150 years. It commemorates the June 1865 official notification in Texas that the slaves had been freed two years earlier. Although celebrated initially only in Texas in 1866, the holiday spread to the rest of Black America over the following years. It was not widely recognized by the rest of America, however, until 2020, when Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) …
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