This story was originally published by Public News Service.
By Terri Dee, anchor/producer
Public News Service
June 19, 2025
Today is Juneteenth, a national holiday dating back to 1865. This was the day when freedom was granted to enslaved Texans, more than two years after President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation. “Juneteenth” is a combination of the month and date when Union Army Gen. Gordon Granger made the announcement in Galveston.
Eunice Trotter, director of the Indiana Landmarks Black Heritage Program at the Indiana Historical Society, said freed slaves had lived in Indiana since the 1830s and created their own names for the celebration.
“It was called Jubilee Day, Freedom Day, different things in different parts of the state, and it was a celebration like we celebrate the Fourth of July,” Trotter explained. “It was a celebration that was not connected statewide. It was individually celebrated around the state.”
One of several groups in the U.S. military sent to Galveston to carry out Lincoln’s order was the United States Colored Troop Number 28 from Indiana. They were needed because some Texas slaveholders did not want to abide by the Emancipation Proclamation.
Many believed culturally supported observances, such as the Juneteenth holiday and Black History Month, would disappear after President Donald Trump ordered the dismantling of diversity, equity and inclusion programs among federal agencies. But Trump could not end the national holiday alone. Congress would need to pass a proposed bill, which could then be signed by the president.
Regardless of whether the holiday was cancelled or not, Trotter pointed out its significance is too important.
“African Americans and people who support that holiday and recognize that holiday can continue to celebrate,” she continued. “I think that as African American people, we don’t need permission to celebrate the holidays that are important to us. And Juneteenth is one of those days.”
According to the Pew Research Center, as of 2023, at least 38 states, including Indiana observe Juneteenth as either a holiday or a day of observance.
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