Juneteenth and the Constitution

We the People

National Constitution Center

News, News Commentary, History

4.6 • 1.1K Ratings

🗓️ 17 June 2021

⏱️ 57 minutes

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Summary

On June 19, 1865, Union soldiers, led by Major General Gordon Granger, arrived in Galveston, Texas, with news that the Civil War had ended and that the enslaved were now free. President Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation had been issued over two years earlier, and the South had surrendered in April 1865, ending the Civil War. So why did it take so long for Texans to hear the news of their freedom? Why do we celebrate Juneteenth as Emancipation Day? And how did emancipation finally become a reality under the Constitution and throughout the nation? We answer those questions and more on this week’s episode featuring Martha Jones, author of 'Vanguard: How Black Women Broke Barriers, Won the Vote, and Insisted on Equality for All,' and Lucas Morel, author of 'Lincoln and the American Founding.' Jones and Morel trace the story of the fight for freedom and equality in America from the Declaration of Independence through the founding of the country and the Constitution; the Civil War and the Emancipation Proclamation; the ratification of the 13th Amendment; and beyond. They also highlight some of the fascinating figures and movements that shaped Black American politics and history. Jeffrey Rosen hosts. Questions or comments about the show? Email us at podcast@constitutioncenter.org. Additional resources and transcript available at constitutioncenter.org/interactive-constitution/media-library.

Transcript

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0:00.0	By the President of the United States of America, a proclamation, that on the first day of
0:07.8	January in the year of our Lord 1,863, all persons held as slaves within any state or designated part of a state, the people
0:17.6	whereof shall then be in rebellion against the United States, shall be then, thenceforward, and forever free, and that the executive
0:26.8	government of the United States, including the military and naval authorities thereof,
0:32.0	will recognize and maintain the freedom of said person. and
0:33.3	maintain the freedom of said persons.
0:36.0	And upon this act sincerely believed to be an act of justice
0:40.3	warranted by the Constitution upon military necessity, I invoked the
0:44.9	considerate judgment of mankind and the gracious favor of Almighty God.
0:49.5	Done at the City of Washington, this first day of January in the year of our Lord 1,863 by the President Abraham Lincoln.
1:09.0	I'm Lucas Morel. You just heard excerpts from the Emancipation Proclamation issued by President Abraham Lincoln on January 1st,
1:15.8	1863, banning slavery in the rebel states almost two years into the Civil War.
1:23.0	The war continued until 1865.
1:25.6	When the South surrendered, Union troops rode across the country to spread the news.
1:30.7	On June 19, 1865, the U.S. Army arrived in Galveston, Texas to inform some of the last remaining
1:38.9	enslaved Americans that they were free. We continued to celebrate that day as Juneteenth. Here's my
1:46.6	conversation about Juneteenth with Professor Martha Jones and your host Jeffrey
1:51.3	Rosen on this week's We The People. Martha, President Abraham Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation was issued on January 1st,
2:08.8	1863.
2:10.6	Why do we commemorate Juneteenth which took place two years later?
2:16.0	It's important to remember the limits, the very substantial limits of President Lincoln's emancipation proclamation in 1863.
2:29.7	It was a military order, a part of Lincoln's strategy that looked to, in a sense, pronounce enslaved people in
	...

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