Juneteeth Freedom Day: Township Proclamation

JUNETEENTH FREEDOM DAY

WHEREAS, Our Country is made up of people from every nation on earth, who are declared equal not only in freedom but also in justice, both of which are essential for a healthy human civilization; and

           

WHEREAS, Our nation was conceived on July 4th, 1776 with the Declaration of Independence, the classic statement being: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness”; and

 

WHEREAS, At 2:00 p.m. on New Year’s Day, January 1, 1863, using his war powers as President, Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation, providing that all persons held as slaves within any State or designated part of a State “shall be then, thenceforward, and forever free;” and

 

WHEREAS, The Emancipation Proclamation made the permanent abolition of slavery a Union war aim and provided the legal framework for the emancipation of nearly all four million slaves as the Union armies advanced; and

 

WHEREAS, Hearing of the Proclamation, many slaves escaped to Union lines as the army units moved south; and

 

WHEREAS, When Union Army General Gordon Granger landed at the Texas port city of Galveston in 1865 as the Civil War drew to a close, one of his first actions was to read General Order #3, which stated that all slaves are free and that former masters and slaves have absolute equality of personal and property rights; and

 

WHEREAS, Following his statement, June 19 (Juneteenth) became the emancipation date of those long suffering for freedom; and

 

WHEREAS, Since then, as the oldest known celebration commemorating the end of slavery in America, the tradition of celebrating Juneteenth has remained strong well into the 21st century to recognize the triumph of the human spirit over the cruelty of slavery and to honor the strength, endurance, and faith of African American ancestors.

 

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED That the Montgomery Township Committee hereby proclaims June 19, 2020 Juneteenth Freedom Day in Montgomery Township and encourages residents, schools, businesses and community groups to celebrate Juneteenth as a day of remembrance and celebration.

 

June 18, 2020

                                                             

Sadaf Jaffer, Mayor

 

Marvin Schuldiner, Deputy Mayor

           

Catherine Gural, Committeewoman

           

Devra Keenan, Committeewoman

           

Kent Huang, Committeeman