| R 393 |
| 2024 -- H 8367 Enacted 06/13/2024 |
| H O U S E R E S O L U T I O N |
| RECOGNIZING "JUNETEENTH NATIONAL FREEDOM DAY" ON JUNE 19, 2024 |
Introduced By: Representatives Henries, Stewart, Morales, Felix, Hull, Alzate, Giraldo, Chippendale, Shekarchi, and Blazejewski |
| Date Introduced: June 13, 2024 |
| WHEREAS, Juneteenth originated in Galveston, Texas, on June 19, 1865, in celebration |
| of the emancipation of those who had been enslaved in America. The tradition of marking the end |
| of slavery with Emancipation Day celebrations had an earlier beginning in South Carolina on |
| January 1, 1863, in recognition of the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation. Even earlier |
| celebrations of emancipation date back to when slavery was abolished throughout the British |
| Empire on August 1, 1834; and |
| WHEREAS, Each year after 1834, on August 1, major emancipation celebrations were |
| organized across the West Indies and American cities with free African heritage populations. The |
| Rhode Island cities of Providence, Newport and East Providence were early sites for major |
| Emancipation Day celebrations and festivals dating back to the 1850s. During the 20th century, |
| tens of thousands of people attended Emancipation Day events at Roger Williams Park, Rocky |
| Point, and Crescent Park; and |
| WHEREAS, Juneteenth is part of a number of emancipation celebrations that date back |
| to the early 19th century, and on June 13th, 2023, the Rhode Island General Assembly passed |
| legislation, which was signed into law on June 19th, declaring "Juneteenth National Freedom |
| Day" to officially be a State Holiday; and |
| WHEREAS, Also known as Emancipation Day, Emancipation Celebration, Freedom |
| Day, Jun-Jun, and Juneteenth, Juneteenth National Freedom Day commemorates the strong |
| survival instinct of African Americans who were first brought to this country stacked in the |
| bottom of slave ships in a month-long journey across the Atlantic Ocean known as the Middle |
| Passage; and |
| WHEREAS, Approximately eleven and a half million Africans survived the voyage to |
| the New World, with the number that died likely greater, and those who did survive were |
| subjected to whipping, castration, branding, and rape, and were forced to submit to slavery for |
| more than two hundred years after their arrival in the United States; and |
| WHEREAS, Events in the history of the United States that led to the Civil War of 1861 |
| centered around sectional differences between the North and South that were based on the |
| economic and social divergence caused by the existence of slavery; and |
| WHEREAS, Abraham Lincoln was inaugurated as President of the United States in 1861, |
| and as President, he believed and stated that the paramount object of the Civil War was to save |
| the Union rather than to save or destroy slavery; and |
| WHEREAS, Lincoln also stated that it was his belief that all men everywhere should be |
| free, thus adding to the growing anticipation for slaves that their ultimate liberation was at hand; |
| and |
| WHEREAS, In 1862, the first clear sign that the end of slavery was imminent came when |
| laws abolishing slavery in the territories of Oklahoma, Nebraska, Colorado, and New Mexico |
| were passed; and |
| WHEREAS, In September of that same year, President Lincoln warned that if the eleven |
| rebellious Confederate States did not return to the Union by January 1, 1863, he would declare |
| their slaves forever free via the celebrated Emancipated Proclamation; and |
| WHEREAS, Enforcement of the Emancipation Proclamation, however, only occurred in |
| Confederate States once they were under Union Army control and Congress subsequently passed |
| the Thirteenth Amendment to the Constitution on January 31, 1865, abolishing slavery |
| throughout the United States and its territories; and |
| WHEREAS, News of this action reached the states at different times, and it was not until |
| June 19 of 1865, that the message of freedom reached the slaves in Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, |
| Arkansas, and California; and |
| WHEREAS, Spontaneous celebrations erupted throughout the country when African- |
| Americans learned of their freedom; and |
| WHEREAS, Juneteenth National Freedom Day celebrates the abolishment of slavery |
| with excitement and great joy and is a reminder to all Americans of the status and importance that |
| Americans of African descent hold as American citizens; now, therefore be it |
| RESOLVED, That this House of Representatives of the State of Rhode Island hereby |
| urges the citizens of the State of Rhode Island to join in recognizing the historical significance of |
| Juneteenth Independence Day and the observance of Juneteenth National Freedom Day on June |
| 19th; and be it further |
| RESOLVED, That this House hereby supports the annual celebration of Juneteenth |
| National Freedom Day in order to provide an opportunity for the people of the State to learn more |
| about our country’s past and to better understand the experiences that have shaped our nation; and |
| be it further |
| RESOLVED, That the Secretary of State be and hereby is authorized and directed to |
| transmit a duly certified copy of this resolution to the Honorable Daniel J. McKee, Governor of |
| the State of Rhode Island. |
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| LC005440 |
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