Inland Empire Council for the Social Studies
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Juneteenth – also known as Freedom Day, Jubilee Day, Liberation Day, and Emancipation Day – is a holiday celebrating the emancipation of those who had been enslaved in the United States. The US congress has now made June19 Juneteenth National Independence Day. Saturday, June 19, 2021 was the first observance of Juneteenth as National Independence Day.
Teaching Resources
What is Juneteenth?
History.com - Juneteenth commemorates the effective end of slavery in the United States.
https://www.history.com/news/what-is-juneteenth
Resources to Commemorate Juneteenth
Gilder Lehrman Institute of Amerian History
https://www.gilderlehrman.org/history-resources/curriculum/4-juneteenth
Black History Month: The Meaning behind Juneteenth
Global News and background.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=He0dxbINs7M
The Historical Legacy of Juneteenth
This is brief historical background provided by the National Museum of African American History.
https://nmaahc.si.edu/blog-post/historical-legacy-juneteenth
So You Want to Learn About Juneteenth
This article examines how Juneteenth is celebrated across the US and the public's interest to make it a national holiday. (If you can’t access this article, contact your public library.)
https://www.nytimes.com/article/juneteenth-day-celebration.html
The African Americans – Many Rivers to Cross
What is Juneteenth? The information provided is clear and interesting. However, the website, though accessible now, is not being maintained.
https://www.pbs.org/wnet/african-americans-many-rivers-to-cross/history/what-is-juneteenth/
The History Behind Juneteenth and Why it Resonates Today
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hJKzdksodNY
Lessons
Teaching Juneteenth
The history of Juneteenth acknowledges hard history while also empowering students to be advocates for change. Written by Learning for Justice.
https://www.learningforjustice.org/magazine/teaching-juneteenth
Juneteenth: Symbolism, Ritual, and Meaning
This Brown University "Teaching with the News" lesson, engages students in learning about the history of the Juneteenth holiday, analyzing text sources and symbolism, and rituals in Juneteenth commemorations, and research local celebrations.
https://www.choices.edu/teaching-news-lesson/juneteenth/
Celebrate Juneteenth
Juneteenth is a celebration of the day in 1865 that word of Lincoln's signing of the Emancipation Proclamation, freeing all slaves, made its way to the state of Texas.
https://www.readwritethink.org/classroom-resources/calendar-activities/celebrate-juneteenth
Emancipation Proclamation (1863) and Resource Materials
See the original documents of the Emancipation Proclamation and why all enslaved people were not freed in 1863.
https://static.pbslearningmedia.org/media/alfresco/u/pr/The%20National%20Archives
Juneteenth: Symbolism, Ritual, and Meaning
This lesson introduces the history of Juneteenth to students, including its symbolism, ritual, and meaning. It is part of the Brown University Choices Program's curriculum unit Racial Slavery in the Americas: Resistance, Freedom, and Legacies. The Juneteenth lesson is free.
https://www.choices.edu/teaching-news-lesson/juneteenth/
Literature
All Different Now: Juneteenth, the First Day of Freedom by Angela Johnson
All Different Now tells the story of the first Juneteenth through the eyes of one little girl.
Elementary
Juneteenth for Mazie by Floyd Cooper
Mazie is ready to celebrate a great day in American history. The day her ancestors were no longer slaves.
Elementary
Juneteenth by Drew Nelson and Vaunda Micheaux Nelson
June 19th, 1865, began as another day in Texas. Enslaved African Americans worked in fields, barns, and homes of the white people who owned them. Then in June 1865, a message arrived with word that slavery had ended almost 2 years earlier! Elementary
Juneteenth Book for Kids | Liberty & Justice for All
This is a History and Activities Book for Children from age 7. It is self-published and available from Amazon.
The Story of Juneteenth: An Interactive History Adventure by Steven Otfinoski (You Choose History)
The Emancipation Proclamation and the Civil War have brought an official end to slavery, yet some Southern slave owners are refusing to comply. The road to freedom is still long and hard for many African Americans, but you’re not giving up. Elem-MS
LA County Library - Celebrate Juneteenth
Check out these books to learn more about the history of this important holiday!
https://lacountylibrary.org/booklist-details/505/