Juneteenth National Independence Day Act

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the subject of this Special Order.

Madam Speaker, I rise this evening for the Congressional Black Caucus Special Order hour that deals with, of course, Juneteenth, a very special time that I am delighted--with the leadership of our chair, Congresswoman Joyce Beatty; and, of course, my coanchor, Congressman Torres of New York--that we stand here to provide this kind of leadership for this Congress and for this Nation.

Let me extend my heartfelt appreciation for all of the leadership that have given us this time, including Speaker Pelosi and, of course, Leader Hoyer, and to acknowledge the significance to African Americans as it relates to Juneteenth.

Coming from Texas, let me tell you that Juneteenth, a couple days from today, will be an amazing commemoration. We will be unveiling a mural in Galveston, where General Granger first came. I believe thousands will come. And if there will not be thousands, let you hear my voice: Thousands should come because what a historic moment.

What does Juneteenth mean?

It means an acknowledgment of those who were in bondage for over 200 years. The Emancipation Proclamation--which, by the way, for the 150th commemoration, because we had not finished our congressional work, I was actually here at midnight--which is when President Abraham Lincoln signed it at the National Archives. Looking at the original Emancipation Proclamation, what a sense of emotion.

But then to let you know that that did not free all of the slaves. Two years in bondage continued for those west of the Mississippi and many States until General Granger reached the shores of Galveston, still marked today in Texas, that said that you were free.

Can you imagine? Two extra years of bondage. Couldn't get out. Couldn't read a newspaper or hold up a message that had come from your relative that lived in Georgia. Couldn't do anything.

General Granger read these words of General Order Number 3, set off a joyous celebration of the freed men and women of Texas. I have no shame that it was called Jubilee. And there were a lot of picnics and what we called in the later years ``red punch.''

Don't diminish our celebration. Don't diminish that joy in the midst of sorrow.

How many died who could not see freedom?

Here are the words: ``The people of Texas are informed that, in accordance with the Proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free. This involves an absolute equality of rights and rights of property between former masters and slaves, and the connection heretofore existing between them becomes that between employer and hired laborer.''

Now, the word was said that they were offered, the slaves: Don't worry about it, just stay on the plantations, and we will pay you.

I am grateful, but those courageous, but impoverished, without insight, without resources, without compensation, without recognition, they said in their own power: We are leaving the plantations.

And they migrated up this road called Emancipation Trail.

I am gratified that I was able to introduce such legislation where my Senate colleague, Senator Cornyn, joined me and now an Emancipation Trail has been established as law. It is now under study. It will be only the second commemoration of African-American history in this Nation. The Selma to Montgomery is the first, and now the Emancipation Trail that says: No, I was not going stay on the plantation; however, I was going to survive; whatever I had to place together, I was going to do it.

Then, of course, lo and behold, they found themselves--eight of them, freed slaves, put their money together and purchased the first park bought in the State of Texas by freed slaves or anyone. They called it Emancipation Park.

So that is why we are here to celebrate and to educate this idea of what it means to celebrate Juneteenth. I am delighted that we have introduced a resolution that is bipartisan. But the most exciting part about this is that I have introduced a bill that establishes Juneteenth as a national Federal holiday. Not removing any other holiday, but adding it to the list. Cosponsored by Senator Markey and Senator Cornyn, and bipartisan. Over 160 cosponsors in the House.

I think it is worthy to have a holiday--a Federal holiday established, and I am very proud to have been the Congressperson for Representative Al Edwards, who is called the father of Juneteenth, establishing the first paid State holiday in the State of Texas highlighting, honoring, revering Juneteenth.

You will hear many of us continue our discussions about Juneteenth, its significance in terms of freedom. And I am delighted, as I said, to be coanchoring with my colleague. It is important to express our appreciation to our chair, the Honorable Barbara Lee, a Californian but born in Texas with a grandfather born in Galveston. She knows what Juneteenth, the significance, the power of it is, and her legislative legacy speaks to freedom.

Madam Speaker, I yield to the Honorable Barbara Lee.

She would have been part of it at a later time, but that trail, since we know for sure there were no other ways of moving, she had to walk along that semi-developed trail of little cities from Galveston--walk along, drive along, in whatever capacity, and when I say ``drive along,'' horse and buggy and otherwise.

That was a trail that the freed slaves, the ex-slaves, went from Galveston all the way. There was the Reedy A.M.E., if I am correct, one of the historic A.M.E. churches where they stopped for refuge. Then they came on up, and they sought their way to freedom. They were not going to stay on the plantation.

Madam Speaker, I yield back to the gentlewoman.

Madam Speaker, it is a privilege to be able to have a Californian with deep roots in Texas on the floor because what this says to our body is that this issue of slavery permeated all aspects of this Nation. We can see that from the work, the commitment, and the compassion of the Honorable Barbara Lee, followed by, of course, a native daughter of Wisconsin who saw it in a different form and is compelled to be on the floor today and who has championed for the impoverished as well and particularly championed for those who are experiencing modern-day impacts of slavery through inequities, through poverty, through welfare, and that has been treated unfairly. That is the Honorable Gwen Moore from Wisconsin.

Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from Wisconsin (Ms. Moore).

Madam Speaker, what a rich and enriching discussion. Thank you to the gentlewoman from Wisconsin. That is why we gathered here, to say to America, we come from the Midwest, the South, the East, and we still find a common bond around the question of Juneteenth, reparations, and of course, voting rights that are so important.

But as I yield, let me be very clear, these are American values. These are values that my friends on the other side of the aisle could adopt, just like I could adopt.

Why? Because I don't know anyone that would extinguish freedom and deny that where there is bondage and where freedom comes, we should celebrate it, but we should tell the story about it, and we should respond to it.

Madam Speaker, it is my pleasure to yield to the distinguished gentlewoman from Florida (Mrs. Demings), who has a number of historical monuments in Florida that indicates her knowledge and understanding of freedom.

Madam Speaker, I can't imagine with the recounting of the story by Val Demings that we are not securing, how should I say it, multiple numbers of Members to join in the holiday pronouncement and resolution, and bill, rather, of Juneteenth, to support H.R. 40, and to recognize the value of commemorating and teaching about the history of African Americans.

Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Johnson), a person who has great knowledge and is a great storyteller, a fighter for justice, and a fellow member of the Judiciary Committee.

Madam Speaker, as I get ready to yield to the distinguished gentleman from Las Vegas, Nevada, I want to make sure he lets me know my pronunciation is correct, it is a very sensitive question.

But as the gentleman from Georgia leaves, let me at least acknowledge that critical race theory. Here is the question I ask: Should I not know about Italians and how they came and were treated? Should I not know about the Irish who left in the midst of the potato famine and faced discrimination? Should I not know about Native Americans?

So we are the American experiment. Does everybody realize that? No one thought that we would ever survive, and we have come together with a multitude of groups. Our strength is in the recognition of our differences, and in our unity.

This came out of Texas. This Representative is all over. He misinterprets the teaching by teachers. He has never sat in the class to know that teachers are not condemning, they are just educating. Isn't it wonderful in little babies' minds to not put condemnation but to put understanding so that we can appreciate each other's condition?

Madam Speaker, I am delighted to yield to the gentleman from Nevada (Mr. Horsford), who is the first vice chair of the Congressional Black Caucus but sits on the Ways and Means Committee. And if he will allow me, I just want to make this point.

You are seeing Members of the Congressional Black Caucus, and I can tell you our agenda is as wide and varied as America, from taxation to agriculture to tech to criminal justice to the issues that American is facing, job creation.

But we also understand that we would be remiss if we did not stand on the floor to be able to give our own life experiences and to share with America what the value of our diversity is all about.

Madam Speaker, I now yield to the gentleman from Nevada (Mr. Horsford).

May I ask the Speaker the time remaining, please.

Madam Speaker, it is my privilege to yield to a gentleman with a storied and layered history entrenched in one of the States that suffered the extension of slavery and faces its challenges today, of which this gentleman has been in the mix and in the gap of fighting for justice. We are excited about his presence here. I am so honored and privileged that he has chosen, with all of the work he has to do because he was elected in a special election, this moment in history to present his first speech on the floor of the House.

Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from the State of Louisiana (Mr. Carter).

Madam Speaker, let me congratulate the gentleman for the new law in Louisiana and for his leadership and his powerful message on this floor on the freedom, really, of all people. My freedom is your freedom, your freedom is my freedom, and our freedom is America's freedom.

Let me express my appreciation to my co-anchor, the gentleman from New York (Mr. Torres). I thank him for his leadership. Let me be very clear that both his history and his State as well have a vested history in liberty and freedom, but, yes, no place did escape the vestiges of slavery.

Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Torres).

Madam Speaker, I say to the gentleman from New York, it is an esteemed pleasure to be able to draw upon both his knowledge and scholarship--might I stand on his shoulders--an activist Federal Government.

For some reason, as we face these trials and tribulations of 2021, there is a hesitancy to realize that the Federal Government is, in simplistic terms, an umbrella on a rainy day. It is, in fact, the concrete barrier in the time of a storm. And that is why we are on the floor today.

Let me acknowledge that an activist Federal Government, in the positive way, would be the government that would say that Italian history and Irish history, Latinx, Hispanic history, and Caribbean history, and African history, and the Pilgrim Pride history, and European history, and Asian-Pacific history, and Southeast Asian- Pacific, and any others that I have left out, is valuable to be heard by our children's ears. It is valuable to be taught.

Then they would be able to understand the gentleman's entreat, his request, which is H.R. 1320, which is bipartisan, that declares Juneteenth a national Federal holiday.

And to the wrong representation of right-wing radio, it doesn't substitute any holiday. It adds it to the list of Federal holidays. It does not subtract any holiday; does not take any holiday away. Yet it acknowledges the importance of that day and, as well, it is led by Senators Markey and Cornyn, a Republican and Democrat in the United States Senate, and it is a bipartisan bill in the House.

Is there any reason not to move this bill along as quickly as possible?

And if there is a basis for not understanding what freedom meant, look at this slave that was symbolic of the life that slave led; but that is the light of being beat.

What about those who were beaten to death or burned to death?

It is no shame for our children to be taught this history. I know no teacher who would stand in the classroom and condemn children. I know teachers who are loving, and will give understanding, and let a child come out and say, I want a better America.

Isn't that the kind of soldier and doctor and lawyer and teacher we want to build up? Isn't that the kind of citizen we want to grow?

And then, if we want to make it realistic and home for our moment, as my colleagues have said, we spent 4 days in Tulsa, Greenwood, that was burned to the ground; 300 in an unmarked grave. This is what 1921 looked like; not 1865, not 1810, not 1799, not 1724, when slavery was raging, if you will, 250 years. This is what it looked like in 1921; a black body burned on the streets of Greenwood.

So when we talk about jubilee and freedom, we do it in a way that we can, as Americans, be free. And then I want to say that matches the Emancipation Trail that is now law in the State of Texas, that march from victory, when General Granger said you are free. It matches H.R. 40, which is a non-offensive repair and reconciliation that speaks to the language that Justice Hughes said about Black Americans, the discrete and insular minority excluded from those political processes ordinarily to be relied upon to protect them. All throughout tenure here there were denials of our freedom.

And then, of course, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., talked about an insufficient check; not of money, but he talked about that we have never been given justice and equality.

So when we speak of the Emancipation Trail, only the second commemoration of the history of African Americans 250 years in bondage, when we speak of Juneteenth, it is for all to celebrate, when General Granger landed on the shores of Galveston.

We will be in Galveston celebrating. We will see Naomi Carrier. We will see Eileen Lawal and Jackie Bostic, Ramon Manning and, of course, the Emancipation Conservatory. We will get to see Opal Lee, almost 100 years old, fighting for this holiday, or Al Edwards. We will get to see Senator Cornyn, a Republican who joins us in this commemoration, and all others. We will get to see the Nation be able to understand in its finality that it must be clear, it must be our birthright.

It is a reminder, this day, on Juneteenth, that liberty and freedom are precious birthrights of all Americans, which must be jealously guarded and preserved for future generations.

That is why we are on the floor today. We are not in anger. We are not in anguish. We are here, in fact, for liberation, freedom, and the empowerment of all Americans.

Let stories be told, no matter who you are. And let the story be told of those uniquely held in bondage, through H.R. 40, the Commission to Study and Develop Reparation Proposals, which we seek to put on the floor in this great month. And, of course, the national holiday of Juneteenth, along with the historic gift that we give to America, the Emancipation Trail, that all the world will be able to come.

Madam Speaker, I am delighted to thank my chair, the Honorable Joyce Beatty, for her leadership in the Congressional Black Caucus. And because

of freedom, it is a wonderment to stand here, free, with my colleague from New York, my co-chair, the Honorable Congressman Torres, and all others.

Isn't it precious?

In God we trust that we stand here in freedom. Let us not ever lose it, and let us fight for it and let us keep it.

Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I rise to anchor the Congressional Black Caucus's Special Order tonight on Juneteenth Independence Day.

I am pleased to be joined by Congresswoman Beatty, the Chair of the CBC; Congressman Torres of New York, the co-anchor for this Special Order, and so many of our CBC colleagues to commemorate a historically significant day for all Americans, but especially African Americans.

Let me extend on behalf of the CBC its heartfelt thanks to the House leadership, particularly Majority Leader Hoyer, for their support which paved the way for the House last year to pass by unanimous consent H. Res. 1001, the resolution I introduced recognizing Juneteenth Independence Day.

Madam Speaker, Juneteenth is as significant to African Americans as July 4 is to all Americans because on that day, June 19, 155 years ago, General Gordon Granger, the Commanding Officer of the District of Texas, rode into Galveston, Texas and announced the freedom of the last American slaves; belatedly freeing 250,000 slaves in Texas nearly two and a half years after Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation.

When General Granger read these words of General Order No. 3 set off joyous celebrations of the freedmen and woman of Texas:

``The people of Texas are informed that in accordance with a Proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free. This involves an absolute equality of rights and rights of property between former masters and slaves, and the connection therefore existing between them becomes that between employer and hired laborer.''

Juneteenth was first celebrated in the Texas state capital in 1867 under the direction of the Freedmen's Bureau.

Juneteenth remains the oldest known celebration of slavery's demise, commemorating freedom while acknowledging the sacrifices and contributions made by courageous African Americans towards making our great nation the more conscious and accepting country that it has become.

As the nation prepares to celebrate July 4th, our national day of independence, it is a time to reflect on the accomplishments of our nation and its people.

I want to thank the Members of the House for their bipartisan support of this annual Juneteenth Resolution, which has 214 cosponsors, of which 202 are original sponsors.

General Granger's reading of General Order No. 3 ended chattel slavery, a form of perpetual servitude that held generations of Africans in bondage in the United States for two-hundred and fortyeight years and opened a new chapter in American history.

Recognizing the importance of this date, former slaves coined the word ``Juneteenth'' to mark the occasion with a celebration the first of which occurred in the Texas state capital in 1867 under the direction of the Freedmen's Bureau.

Juneteenth was and is a living symbol of freedom for people who did not have it.

Juneteenth remains the oldest known celebration of slavery's demise.

It commemorates freedom while acknowledging the sacrifices and contributions made by courageous African Americans towards making our great nation the more conscious and accepting country that it has become.

The celebration of Juneteenth followed the most devastating conflict in our country's history, in the aftermath of a civil war that pitted brother against brother, neighbor against neighbor and threatened to tear the fabric of our union apart forever that America truly became the land of the free and the home of the brave.

The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. once said, ``Freedom is never free,'' and African American labor leader A. Phillip Randolph often said ``Freedom is never given. It is won.''

Truer words were never spoken.

We should all recognize the power and the ironic truth of those statements, and we should pause to remember the enormous price paid by all Americans in our country's quest to realize its promise.

Juneteenth honors the end of the 400 years of suffering African Americans endured under slavery and celebrates the legacy of perseverance that has become the hallmark of the African American experience in the struggle for equality.

But Madam Speaker, as the poet Langston Hughes reminds us in his famous poem, ''Mother to Son,'' life in America for African Americans ``ain't been no crystal stair.''

The post-bellum period in America was marked by violence and terrorism against African Americans as they sought to make real the promises of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.

Nowhere was the reign of terror to which they were subjected to more horrific than the 1921 Tulsa-Greenwood Race Massacre, which occurred a century ago this past May 31-June 1.

Tulsa's Greenwood District, was known as ``Black Wall Street,'' and was the most prosperous African American community in the United States.

The Greenwood community with a population of over 10,000 Black people had stores that sold luxury items, 21 restaurants, 30 grocery stores, a hospital, a savings and loan bank, a post office, three hotels, jewelry and clothing stores, two movie theaters, a library, pool halls, a bus and cab service, a nationally recognized school system, six private airplanes, and two black newspapers.

But on May 31st of that year, the 35 city blocks of Greenwood went up in flames, at least 300 Black persons were murdered and more than 800 were injured; it is estimated that not less than 9,000 were left homeless and destitute.

The message of the Tulsa Race Massacre was clear to Black America: ``Stay in your place. Do not attempt to accumulate and bequeath wealth or own property. Remember your history in America is as chattel property.''

Madam Speaker, were they still alive, the domestic terrorists of the mob in Greenwood would see their evil reenacted--and then followed by a similar attempt to cover-up it and foster collective amnesia--a century later in the siege and desecration of the hallowed halls of the U.S. Capitol, the 'Citadel of Democracy'.

It should not be overlooked that the source of the January 6 white mob's irrational anger, hatred, and violent reaction was that Black Americans voted in overwhelming numbers in Atlanta, Detroit, Milwaukee, Philadelphia, and other enclaves to oust the most proWhite supremacy President since the Civil War.

Some might ask ``Why dwell on the past? Let us forget unpleasant things and move on into the future.''

My answer is to quote the great southern writer William Faulkner: ``The past is never dead. It is not even the past.''

The hatreds, prejudices, resentments, and white supremacy that Black Americans witnessed and suffered in Greenwood a century ago are not dead; they are not even past.

So my message to the descendants of the survivors and victims of slavery, America's Original Sin, is to keep fighting for justice, to never be silent, to affirm the truth, and seek accountability.

In his famous Second Inaugural Address, President Lincoln spoke of the profound moral debt owed for ``all the wealth piled by the bondsman's two hundred and fifty years of unrequited toil,'' and that the Civil War was the judgment of the Lord, which was ``true and righteous altogether.''

That debt remains to be paid, which is why African Americans have always peacefully petitioned the government for the redress of its grievances.

As the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King said at the 1963 March on Washington:

``In a sense, we have come to our nation's capital to cash a check. When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir.

``This note was a promise that all men, yes, black men as well as white men, would be guaranteed the inalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

``It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note insofar as her citizens of color are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked `insufficient funds.' But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt. We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation. So we have come to cash this check--a check that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom and the security of justice.''

Madam Speaker, H.R. 40, legislation I have introduced, continues this proud legacy of demanding reparative justice and accountability for injuries inflicted.

H.R. 40, which establishes a national commission to examine slavery and discrimination in the colonies and the United States from 1619 to the present and recommend appropriate remedies.

Among other requirements, the commission shall identify (1) the role of federal and state governments in supporting the institution of slavery; (2) forms of discrimination in the public and private sectors against freed slaves and their descendants; and (3) lingering negative effects of slavery on living African-Americans and society.

The goal of the historical investigations H.R. 40 mandates is to bring American society to a new reckoning with how our past affects the

current conditions of African Americans and to make America a better place by helping the truly disadvantaged.

Consequently, the reparations movement does not focus on payments to individuals, but to remedies that can be created in as many forms necessary to equitably address the many kinds of injuries sustained from chattel slavery and its continuing vestiges.

To merely focus on finance is an empty gesture and betrays a lack of understanding of the depth of the unaddressed moral issues that continue to haunt this nation.

While it might be convenient to assume that we can address the current divisive racial and political climate in our nation through race neutral means, experience shows that we have not escaped our history.

Though the Civil Rights Movement challenged many of the most racist practices and structures that subjugated the African American community, it was not followed by a commitment to truth and reconciliation.

For that reason, the legacy of racial inequality has persisted, and left the nation vulnerable to a range of problems that continue to yield division, racial disparities, and injustice.

By passing H.R. 40, Congress can start a movement toward the national reckoning we need to bridge racial divides.

Reparations are ultimately about respect and reconciliation--and the hope that one day, all Americans can walk together toward a more just future.

Official slavery ended with the Civil War and ratification of the Thirteenth Amendment.

But unofficial slavery was continued with the new institution of share-crop farming, a criminal justice system that would press convicts into work once done by slaves, and labor policies that dictated income for work done based upon skin color.

And, of course, all of this was reinforced by the systematic disenfranchisement of black Americans, the ``discrete and insular minority'' excluded from ``those political processes ordinarily to be relied upon to protect'' them, to quote Chief Justice Hughes' famous Footnote 4 in United States v. Carolene Products Company, 304 U.S. 144 (1938).

These are just some of the many reasons that the history of the United States is intertwined with the history of enslaved Africans in the Americas.

``There is blood and there are tears, but there is also redemption and reconciliation.

But to get there, we must have the complete truth and lay our history bare. It is the light that sheds the way to the more perfect union all Americans want.

``The Commission created and empowered by H.R. 40 is a necessary first step in that effort to get to truth and reconciliation about the 'Original Sin of American Slavery' that is necessary to light the way to the beloved community we all seek.''

So, Madam Speaker, this is where we are.

In recent years, a number of National Juneteenth Organizations have arisen to take their place alongside older organizations--all with the mission to promote and cultivate knowledge and appreciation of African American history and culture.

Juneteenth celebrates African American freedom while encouraging self-development and respect for all cultures .

But it must always remain a reminder to us all that liberty and freedom are precious birthrights of all Americans, which must be jealously guarded and preserved for future generations.

Press Statement

Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee Introduces H.R. 1320 the Bipartisan Juneteenth National Independence Day Act--Currently Has 159 Sponsors in

the House

As the Chair of the House Judiciary Committee Subcommittee

on Crime, Terrorism and Homeland Security, I am committed to

affording members of this committee to uncover the facts and

shine light into darkness to reveal the threats posed by `The

Rise of Domestic Terrorism in America.' On January 6, 2021,

the nation and the world witnessed the damage caused by

divisions acerbated by lies and hate.''

Washington, DC--``Today I re-introduced in the House of

Representatives the bipartisan Juneteenth National

Independence Day Act, H.R. 1320, with 102 co-sponsors. The

House re-introduction coincides with the reintroduction of a

Senate companion bill by Senators Markey, Smith, and Booker.

Juneteenth National Independence Day Act, legislation when

enacted would make Juneteenth a federal holiday.

``Juneteenth,'' is observed on June 19, and commemorates the

end of slavery in the United States and is also known as

``Emancipation Day,'' ``Jubilee Day,'' and ``Juneteenth

Independence Day.''

``On June 19, 1865, in Galveston, Texas, Major General

Gordon Granger issued General Order No. 3, which announced

that, in accordance with the Emancipation Proclamation, ``all

slaves are free. Juneteenth is currently recognized by 47

states and the District of Columbia as an official state

holiday or observance. In 1980, Texas was the first state to

recognize Juneteenth as a paid state holiday.''

``Juneteenth honors the end of the years of suffering that

African Americans endured under slavery and celebrates the

legacy of perseverance that has become the hallmark of the

African American experience in the struggle for equality.

These values are shared by millions of Americans who over

generations have held fast to the promise of this nation

while struggling fore basic human rights.''

``Juneteenth celebrates African American freedom while

encouraging selfdevelopment and respect for all cultures. But

it must always remain a reminder to us all that liberty and

freedom are the precious birthright of all Americans which

must be jealously guarded and preserved for future

generations. As it takes on a more national and even global

perspective, the events of 1865 in Texas are not forgotten,

for all our roots tie back to this fertile soil from which a

national day of pride is growing. This is why we must

establish the Juneteenth Independence Day, as a national

holiday. And today we also pay special tribute to Opal Lee,

the Grandmother of Juneteenth!''

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman from New York for her courtesies.

Mr. Speaker, it has been a long journey. It has not been yesterday, the day before, or last month, or a few years before. One could argue that it has been 12 years on this floor of the House.

So many people have been involved: Danny Davis; my colleagues in the United States Senate, Senator Cornyn and Senator Markey; Barbara- Rose Collins, some 25 years ago with a resolution; others unnamed; and organizations across the Nation and some international.

It has been a long journey. It has not been an easy journey. When we stand here today, we should be reminded of the fact that there were people who continued to experience the whips of a whip for 2 more years, even as Abraham Lincoln stood in the shining sun in the aftermath of Gettysburg to unite the Union and proclaim the slaves free in 1863.

Just a few years ago, I had the teary privilege of being, at midnight, in the National Archives, looking at that document. Then, of course, it took 2 years for General Granger to get to Texas. But in that 2 years, we realize that tragedy continued and brutality continued, even into the 20th century.

I salute the miraculous coming together today of the House leadership, the Speaker, Leader Hoyer, Whip Clyburn, Chairman Jeffries, and others who brought this to the floor through a rule, Chairman McGovern, and then a debate. Then, of course, here we are today. It is a long journey, but here we are.

I am grateful, as I said earlier, that racial divide has fallen out of the sky, and we are crushing it to the Earth for this day, for the Juneteenth holiday.

H.R. 1320 was a bipartisan bill with over 166 sponsors, as well as now S. 475. We are delighted to note that the President will sign this bill.

When the words of General Granger were said--the people of Texas and other places are informed that in accordance with the proclamation from the executive, all slaves are free--then, in the same year, the 13th Amendment was passed.

This bill and this day are about freedom. At Gettysburg, that is what President Lincoln said in 1863, that this Nation under God shall have a new birth of freedom.

Why can't we continue on this pathway as we push the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, as we come together on the Voting Rights Act, as we realize that there is another path for America to take, that my freedom is your freedom and your freedom is my freedom?

Yes, slaves suffered continuously. Even in the 20th century, they were hung. Yet, we have a time today, miraculously, to be able to debate and vote on the floor of the House. Diverse persons can stand and join this.

So, I offer to my colleagues: Be reminded that this has been a long journey. There have been mountains and valleys, but we stand here today, free to vote for the Juneteenth National Independence Day, a Federal holiday for America. Freedom is now.

Mr. Speaker, as a senior member of the House Judiciary Committee, the Chair of the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security, and the principal sponsor in the House of the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act, I rise in strong and enthusiastic support of S. 475, the Senate companion to the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act I introduced on February 25, 2021, which establishes June 19 as a federal holiday.

I applaud the U.S. Senate for passing S. 475, Juneteenth National Independence Day Act, companion legislation to H.R. 1320, which I introduced to make Juneteenth a federal holiday to commemorate the end of chattel slavery, America's Original Sin, and to celebrate the perseverance that has been the hallmark of the African American struggle for equality.

I thank Senator Markey of Massachusetts for contacting my office with his request to introduce the Senate companion to H.R. 1320 for this Congress, and to my senior senator, Senator John Cornyn of Texas for his steadfast support of the Juneteenth holiday over the years, and others who spearheaded this effort in the Senate, and Senate Majority Leader Schumer for his support and for using his legislative skills to ensure the bill was voted on and passed.

Mr. Speaker, the process that has brought us to this day has been bipartisan, bicameral, cooperative, and constructive beginning with my collaboration in the 116th Congress with former Senator Doug Jones of Alabama and Senator Cornyn of Texas to coordinate the introduction and cultivate the necessary support for the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act.

That partnership has continued through the 117th Congress with the addition of Senator Markey of Massachusetts as the lead Democratic sponsor in the Senate.

The bipartisan H.R. 1320, the House version of S. 475, is sponsored by 166 Members from all regions of the country, including two of my Republican colleagues from Texas, Congressman Van Taylor and Congressman Randy Weber.

Mr. Speaker, now it is time for the House of Representatives to act swiftly and bring to the floor, vote on, pass the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act, and send it to the desk of President Biden for signature.

With the President's signature, the federal government will join 47 states in recognizing as a holiday Juneteenth, the day that has been celebrated by African Americans for 156 years and has been called rightly as 'America's second Independence Day.'

Let me extend on behalf of all of us who have labored to pass this important legislation our deep appreciation to the House leadership, particularly Majority Leader Hoyer, for their support which paved the way for the House last year to pass by unanimous consent H. Res. 1001, the resolution I introduced recognizing Juneteenth Independence Day.

As I have said many times, Juneteenth is as significant to African Americans as July 4 is to all Americans because on that day, June 19, 155 years ago, General Gordon Granger, the Commanding Officer of the District of Texas, rode into Galveston, Texas, and announced the freedom of the last American slaves; belatedly freeing 250,000 slaves in Texas nearly two and a half years after Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation.

When General Granger read these words of General Order No. 3 it set off joyous celebrations of the freedmen and women of Texas:

The people of Texas are informed that in accordance with a

Proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all

slaves are free. This involves an absolute equality of rights

and rights of property between former masters and slaves, and

the connection therefore existing between them becomes that

between employer and hired laborer.

Juneteenth thus made real to the last persons living under the system of chattel slavery, of human bondage, the prophetic words of President Abraham Lincoln delivered November 19, 1863, at Gettysburg `that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom--and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.'

Juneteenth was first celebrated in the Texas state capital in 1867 under the direction of the Freedmen's Bureau and remains the oldest known celebration of slavery's demise, commemorating freedom while acknowledging the sacrifices and contributions made by courageous African Americans towards making our great Nation the more conscious and accepting country that it has become.

As the Nation prepares to celebrate July 4th, our Nation's independence day, it is a time to reflect on the accomplishments of our Nation and its people.

The celebration of Juneteenth followed the most devastating conflict in our country's history, in the aftermath of a civil war that pitted brother against brother, neighbor against neighbor and threatened to tear the fabric of our union apart forever that America truly became the land of the free and the home of the brave.

Juneteenth honors the end of the 400 years of suffering African Americans endured under slavery and celebrates the perseverance that has been the hallmark of the African American experience in the struggle for equality.

But as the poet Langston Hughes reminds us in his famous poem, ``Mother to Son,'' life in America for African Americans ``ain't been no crystal stair.''

The post-bellum period in America was marked by violence and terrorism against African Americans as they sought to make real the promises of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.

General Granger's reading of General Order No. 3 ended the remaining vestiges of the system of chattel slavery, a form of perpetual human bondage that held generations of Africans in captivity in the United States for 248 years and opened a new chapter in American history.

Recognizing the importance of this date, former slaves coined the word ``Juneteenth'' to celebrate the occasion, the first of which occurred in the Texas state capital in 1867 under the direction of the Freedmen's Bureau.

Juneteenth was and is a living symbol of freedom for people who did not have it.

Juneteenth remains the oldest known celebration of America's freedom from slavery.

It commemorates freedom while acknowledging the sacrifices and contributions made by courageous African Americans in the quest to make our lives more perfect.

The celebration of Juneteenth followed the most devastating conflict in our country's history, in the aftermath of a civil war that pitted brother against brother, neighbor against neighbor and threatened to tear the fabric of our union apart forever that America truly became the land of the free and the home of the brave.

The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. once said, ``Freedom is never free,'' and African American labor leader A. Phillip Randolph often said ``Freedom is never given. It is won.''

Truer words were never spoken.

We should all recognize the power and the ironic truth of those statements, and we should pause to remember the enormous price paid by all Americans in our country's quest to realize its promise.

In recent years, a number of National Juneteenth Organizations have arisen to take their place alongside older organizations--all with the mission to promote and cultivate knowledge and appreciation of African American history and culture.

I am reminded that the first legislation introduced in Congress recognizing Juneteenth occurred a quarter century ago, in 1996, when H.J. Res. 195 was introduced by Congresswoman Barbara Rose Collins of Michigan, and I have introduced similar legislation annually since the 109th Congress.

So it has been a long road we have travelled to get to this day, even longer that the

15-year journey taken to pass the bill making the Birthday of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. a national holiday.

Juneteenth celebrates African American freedom, and in so doing celebrates America's history and promise, while encouraging self- development and respect for all cultures.

But it must always remain a reminder to us all that liberty and freedom are precious birthrights of all Americans, which must be jealously guarded and preserved for future generations.

In conclusion, I wish to take a moment to salute two of the unsung heroes who helped bring us to this day: the late Texas State Representative Al Edwards and nonagenarian Opal Lee, known affectionately as the ``Grandmother of Juneteenth.''

In 1852, Frederick Douglass famously asked: ``What to the slave is the 4th of July?''

In 2021, we can reply that it is the beginning of the American Promise that would be fulfilled and made real for all Americans, including the descendants of slaves, on June 19, 1865, `Juneteenth Day.'

That is why we celebrate Juneteenth and that is why I urge all Members to join me in voting to pass S. 475, the ``Juneteenth National Independence Day Act.''

How humbled I am to be on the floor of the House with fellow Americans who can speak eloquently about the history that is so deeply seated in my history and the history of so many Americans.

How honored I am, Congresswoman Scanlon, that you come from the great State of Pennsylvania that has a storied history. For some of us, we remember Gettysburg, but there are many other aspects, which I have had the privilege of visiting.

I always say to America: Learn America. It is a beautiful place, but it is a historic place.

To my friend from Pennsylvania, the manager and Rules Committee member, how honored I am to have you, a fellow Pennsylvanian, in terms of the minority's manager, on the floor today. You know full well the fight of the Union soldiers, and I am sure that you have in your constituency or in the State descendants of those fights.

Mr. Speaker, I can stand here today to say, with Senator Markey, Senator Cornyn, Senator Smith, and my colleague of long-suffering, Danny Davis, who began this journey with me, the act or the thought of racial divide crushes to the floor on this bright and sunny day as we bring from the Senate the legislation that I offered, H.R. 1320, in the form of S. 475, the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act, companion legislation to H.R. 1320 in the House.

The House was the leader, although I am always glad to embrace the dynamic leadership of the Senate. We have over 160 more sponsors coming, bipartisan sponsors.

My good friend and colleague from Texas, Randy Weber, actually represents Galveston, and I want to share his name on the floor.

But I introduce this to make Juneteenth a Federal holiday to commemorate the end of chattel slavery, America's original sin, and to bring about celebration, crushing racial divide down to a point of unity to this Earth, and it is because of the perseverance, the strength of our mutual communities, African Americans that struggle for equality.

Now, I would be remiss if I did not at least appoint that slavery was real. These are the brutal backs upon which the whip went over and over and over again, not only men, women, children, possibly, as history recounts.

The history is limited because it is slave narrative, that I might very humbly and respectfully say, those stories are in broken English. But I remember one where a woman slave said to a husband that had been either taken away or had been a freed slave to another plantation; she said, Husband, come back, come back, they are about to sell me and your children to different places. That is what this moment in time in history represents for us.

But look where we are today. Look where we are. In the midst of what people have described as racial divide, we have now come to a place where we acknowledge the 47 States that have done a celebratory, unified, and multicultural celebration of Juneteenth. Let me tell you why, just for a moment.

Juneteenth is as significant to African Americans as it will be to Americans because we, too, are Americans, and it means freedom.

Juneteenth. On June 19, 1865, General Granger found himself on the shores of Galveston--Senator Cornyn and myself will be in Galveston this very Juneteenth. How coincidental. Can you imagine, how short I am, I will be standing maybe taller than Senator Cornyn, forgive me for that, because it will be such an elevation of joy, but we will be there for a historic celebration.

But Juneteenth came in June of 1865, and shortly thereafter, in the next few months, the 13th Amendment declared slavery unconstitutional in the United States. I think it is important to read these words. These are the words of General Granger, coming all the way from Washington, D.C., of General Order No. 3.

You know, we like legislation, but I will tell you, can you imagine all of the slaves who were not free 2 extra years? They gathered around, they knew something was happening. There was no telegram and there was no cyber, there was no email or tweets.

Mr. Speaker, the people of Texas are informed that, in accordance with a proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free. This involves an absolute equality of rights and rights of property between former masters and slaves, and the connection therefore existing between them becomes that of employer and hired labor. It is a day of freedom.

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the Rules Committee, Chairman McGovern, and Ranking Member Cole. I want to thank them for their commitment in bringing this to us. I want to thank Majority Leader Hoyer, Speaker Pelosi, the whip, Mr. Clyburn, the chairman, Mr. Jeffries, and all of the leadership on both sides of the aisle that have brought us to this point.

Mr. Speaker, as a senior member of the House Judiciary Committee, the Chair of the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security, and the principal sponsor in the House of the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act, I rise in strong and enthusiastic support of the Rule and the underlying legislation, S. 475, the Senate companion to the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act, which establishes June 19 as a federal holiday.

I applaud the U.S. Senate for passing S. 475, Juneteenth National Independence Day Act, companion legislation to H.R. 1320, which I introduced to make Juneteenth a federal holiday to commemorate the end of chattel slavery, America's Original Sin, and to celebrate the perseverance that has been the hallmark of the African American struggle for equality.

I thank Senator Markey of Massachusetts, my senior senator, Senator John Cornyn of Texas, and others who spearheaded this effort in the Senate, and Senate Majority Leader Schumer for his support and for using his legislative skills to ensure the bill was voted on and passed.

Mr. Speaker, now it is time for the House of Representatives to act swiftly and bring to the floor, vote on, pass the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act, and send it to the desk of President Biden for signature.

With the President's signature, the federal government will join 47 states in recognizing as a holiday Juneteenth, the day that has been celebrated by African Americans for 156 years and has been called rightly as 'America's second Independence Day.'

Let me extend on behalf of all of us who have labored to pass this important legislation our deep appreciation to the House leadership, particularly Majority Leader Hoyer, for their support which paved the way for the House last year to pass by unanimous consent H. Res. 1001, the resolution I introduced recognizing Juneteenth Independence Day.

As I have said many times, Juneteenth is as significant to African Americans as July 4 is to all Americans because on that day, June 19, 155 years ago, General Gordon Granger, the Commanding Officer of the District of Texas, rode into Galveston, Texas and announced the freedom of the last American slaves; belatedly freeing 250,000 slaves in Texas nearly two and a half years after Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation.

When General Granger read these words of General Order No. 3 set off joyous celebrations of the freedmen and women of Texas:

``The people of Texas are informed that in accordance with a Proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free. This involves an absolute equality of rights and rights of property between former masters and slaves, and the connection therefore existing between them becomes that between employer and hired laborer.''

Juneteenth thus made real to the last persons living under the system of chattel slavery, of human bondage, the prophetic words of President Abraham Lincoln delivered November 19, 1863, at Gettysburg ``that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom--and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.''

Juneteenth was first celebrated in the Texas state capital in 1867 under the direction of the Freedmen's Bureau and remains the oldest known celebration of slavery's demise, commemorating freedom while acknowledging the sacrifices and contributions made by courageous African Americans towards making our great nation the more conscious and accepting country that it has become.

Juneteenth is as significant to African Americans as July 4 is to all Americans because on that day, June 19, 155 years ago, General Gordon Granger rode into Galveston, Texas and announced the freedom of the last American slaves; belatedly freeing 250,000 slaves in Texas nearly two and a half years after Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation.

Juneteenth was first celebrated in the Texas state capital in 1867 under the direction of the Freedmen's Bureau.

Today, Juneteenth remains the oldest known celebration of slavery's demise. It commemorates freedom while acknowledging the sacrifices and contributions made by courageous African Americans towards making our great nation the more conscious and accepting country that it has become.

As the nation prepares to celebrate July 4th, our nation's independence day, it is a time to reflect on the accomplishments of our nation and its people.

General Granger's reading of this order ended chattel slavery, a form of perpetual servitude that held generations of Africans in bondage in the United States for two-hundred and forty-eight years and opened a new chapter in American history.

Recognizing the importance of this date, former slaves coined the word ``Juneteenth'' to mark the occasion with a celebrations the first of which occurred in the Texas state capital in 1867 under the direction of the Freedmen's Bureau.

Juneteenth was and is a living symbol of freedom for people who did not have it.

Juneteenth remains the oldest known celebration of slavery's demise.

It commemorates freedom while acknowledging the sacrifices and contributions made by courageous African Americans towards making our great nation the more conscious and accepting country that it has become.

The celebration of Juneteenth followed the most devastating conflict in our country's history, in the aftermath of a civil war that pitted brother against brother, neighbor against neighbor and threatened to tear the fabric of our union apart forever that America truly became the land of the free and the home of the brave.

The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. once said, ``Freedom is never free,'' and African American labor leader A. Phillip Randolph often said ``Freedom is never given. It is won.''

Truer words were never spoken.

We should all recognize the power and the ironic truth of those statements, and we should pause to remember the enormous price paid by all Americans in our country's quest to realize its promise.

Juneteenth honors the end of the 400 years of suffering African Americans endured under slavery and celebrates the legacy of perseverance that has become the hallmark of the African American experience in the struggle for equality.

In recent years, a number of National Juneteenth Organizations have arisen to take their place alongside older organizations--all with the mission to promote and cultivate knowledge and appreciation of African American history and culture.

Juneteenth celebrates African American freedom while encouraging self-development and respect for all cultures.

But it must always remain a reminder to us all that liberty and freedom are precious birthrights of all Americans, which must be jealously guarded and preserved for future generations.

I urge all members to support the rule and the underlying legislation.

Madam Speaker, as a senior member of the House Judiciary Committee, the Chair of the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security, and the principal sponsor in the House of the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act, I rise in strong and enthusiastic support of S. 475, the Senate companion to the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act for my bill H.R. 1320 introduced on February 25, 2021, which establishes June 19 as a federal holiday.

Research by the Library of Congress looking back to the beginning of the Congress's existence as a legislative body could find no bill that sought to make Juneteenth a federal holiday, prior to the bill I introduced on June 18, 2020.

I have introduced the Juneteenth resolution annually since 2013.

In 2020, the resolution received 214 sponsors in the House of Representatives.

This surge in support let me know that the nation was ready for a new holiday and therefore I introduced H.R. 7232, the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act which received 158 sponsors in the 116th Congress.

Senator Doug Jones and Senator Edward Markey contacted my office seeking to introduce a Senate companion.

Later Ed Markey's staff reached out to collaborate on a Senate version of my Juneteenth Holiday bill and ultimately introduced the Senate version of the bill, which followed the text of H.R. 1320.

I applaud the U.S. Senate for passing S. 475/1320, Juneteenth National Independence Day Act, companion legislation to H.R. 1320, which I introduced to make Juneteenth a federal holiday to commemorate the end of chattel slavery, America's Original Sin, and to celebrate the perseverance that has been the hallmark of the African American struggle for equality.

I thank Senator Markey of Massachusetts for contacting my office with his request to introduce the Senate companion to H.R. 1320 for this Congress, and to my senior senator, Senator John Cornyn of Texas for his steadfast support of the Juneteenth holiday over the years, and others who spearheaded this effort in the Senate, and Senate Majority Leader Schumer for his support and for using his legislative skills to ensure the bill was voted on and passed.

Madam Speaker, the process that has brought us to this day has been bipartisan, bicameral, cooperative, and constructive beginning with my collaboration in the 116th Congress with former Senator Doug Jones of Alabama and Senator Cornyn of Texas to coordinate the introduction and cultivate the necessary support for the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act.

That partnership has continued through the 117th Congress with the addition of Senator Markey of Massachusetts as the lead Democratic sponsor in the Senate.

The bipartisan H.R. 1320, the House version of S. 475/H.R. 1320, is sponsored by 166 Members from all regions of the country, including two of my Republican colleagues from Texas, Congressman Van Taylor and Congressman Randy Weber.

Madam Speaker, now it is time for the House of Representatives to act swiftly and bring to the floor, vote on, pass the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act, and send it to the desk of President Biden for signature.

With the President's signature, the federal government will join 47 states in recognizing as a holiday Juneteenth, the day that has been celebrated by African Americans for 156 years and has been called rightly as `America's second Independence Day.'

Let me extend on behalf of all of us who have labored to pass this important legislation our deep appreciation to the House leadership, particularly Majority Leader Hoyer, for their support which paved the way for the House last year to pass by unanimous consent H. Res. 1001, the resolution I introduced recognizing Juneteenth Independence Day.

As I have said many times, Juneteenth is as significant to African Americans as July 4 is to all Americans because on that day, June 19, 155 years ago, General Gordon Granger, the Commanding Officer of the District of Texas, rode into Galveston, Texas and announced the freedom of the last American slaves; belatedly freeing 250,000 slaves in Texas nearly two and a half years after Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation.

When General Granger read these words of General Order No. 3 set off joyous celebrations of the freedmen and women of Texas:

``The people of Texas are informed that in accordance with

a Proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all

slaves are free. This involves an absolute equality of rights

and rights of property between former masters and slaves, and

the connection therefore existing between them becomes that

between employer and hired laborer.''

Juneteenth thus made real to the last persons living under the system of chattel slavery, of human bondage, the prophetic words of President Abraham Lincoln delivered November 19, 1863, at Gettysburg `that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom--and that government of the people,

by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.'

Juneteenth was first celebrated in the Texas state capital in 1867 under the direction of the Freedmen's Bureau and remains the oldest known celebration of slavery's demise, commemorating freedom while acknowledging the sacrifices and contributions made by courageous African Americans towards making our great nation the more conscious and accepting country that it has become.

As the nation prepares to celebrate July 4th, our Nation's independence day, it is a time to reflect on the accomplishments of our nation and its people.

The celebration of Juneteenth followed the most devastating conflict in our country's history, in the aftermath of a civil war that pitted brother against brother, neighbor against neighbor and threatened to tear the fabric of our union apart forever that America truly became the land of the free and the home of the brave.

Juneteenth honors the end of the 400 years of suffering African Americans endured under slavery and celebrates the perseverance that has been the hallmark of the African American experience in the struggle for equality.

But as the poet Langston Hughes reminds us in his famous poem, `Mother to Son,'' life in America for African Americans ``ain't been no crystal stair.'

The post-bellum period in America was marked by violence and terrorism against African Americans as they sought to make real the promises of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.

General Granger's reading of General Order No. 3 ended the remaining vestiges of the system of chattel slavery, a form of perpetual human bondage that held generations of Africans in captivity in the United States for two-hundred and forty-eight years and opened a new chapter in American history.

Recognizing the importance of this date, former slaves coined the word ``Juneteenth'' to celebrate the occasion, the first of which occurred in the Texas state capital in 1867 under the direction of the Freedmen's Bureau.

Juneteenth was and is a living symbol of freedom for people who did not have it.

Juneteenth remains the oldest known celebration of America's freedom from slavery.

I commemorates freedom while acknowledging the sacrifices and contributions made by courageous African Americans in the quest to make our more perfect.

The celebration of Juneteenth followed the most devastating conflict in our country's history, in the aftermath of a civil war that pitted brother against brother, neighbor against neighbor and threatened to tear the fabric of our union apart forever that America truly became the land of the free and the home of the brave.

The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. once said, ``Freedom is never free,'' and African American labor leader A. Phillip Randolph often said ``Freedom is never given. It is won.''

Truer words were never spoken.

We should all recognize the power and the ironic truth of those statements, and we should pause to remember the enormous price paid by all Americans in our country's quest to realize its promise.

In recent years, a number of National Juneteenth Organizations have arisen to take their place alongside older organizations--all with the mission to promote and cultivate knowledge and appreciation of African American history and culture.

I am reminded that the first legislation introduced in Congress recognizing Juneteenth occurred a quarter century ago, in 1996, when H.J. Res. 195 was introduced by Congresswoman Barbara Rose Collins of Michigan and I have introduced similar legislation annually since the 109th Congress.

So it has been a long road we have travelled to get to this day, even longer that the 15-year journey taken to pass the bill making the Birthday of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. a national holiday.

Juneteenth celebrates African American freedom, and in so doing celebrates America's history and promise, while encouraging selfdevelopment and respect for all cultures.

But it must always remain a reminder to us all that liberty and freedom are precious birthrights of all Americans, which must be jealously guarded and preserved for future generations.

In conclusion, I wish to take a moment to salute two of the unsung heroes who helped bring us to this day: the late Texas State Representative Al Edwards and nonagenarian Opal Lee, known affectionately as the ``Grandmother of Juneteenth.''

In 1852, Frederick Douglass famously asked: ``What to the slave is the 4th of July?''

In 2021, we can reply that it is the beginning of the American Promise that would be fulfilled and made real for all Americans, including the descendants of slaves, on June 19, 1865, `Juneteenth Day.'

That is why we celebrate Juneteenth and that is why I urge all Members to join me in voting to pass H.R 1320/S. 475, the ``Juneteenth National Independence Day Act.''

Mr. Speaker, by direction of the Committee on Rules, I call up House Resolution 479 and ask for its immediate consideration.

Mr. Speaker, for the purpose of debate only, I yield the customary 30 minutes to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Reschenthaler), pending which I yield myself such time as I may consume. During consideration of this resolution, all time is yielded for the purpose of debate only.

General Leave

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members be given 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks.

Mr. Speaker, today, the Committee on Rules met and reported a rule, House Resolution 479, providing for consideration of S. 475, the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act, under a closed rule.

The rule provides 1 hour of debate equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the Committee on Oversight and Reform and one motion to recommit.

Mr. Speaker, we are here today to consider an important and timely bill, S. 475, which parallels H.R. 1320 introduced by our colleague, Sheila Jackson Lee from Texas. This bill would make Juneteenth a Federal holiday.

We are happy and not a little surprised to see that the Senate was able to quickly pass this bill with unanimous consent. It is not every day that one sees the Senate move more quickly than the House, and it is my hope that today the House of Representatives would be able to act with similar swiftness.

Juneteenth, a portmanteau of June 19th, celebrates a seminal moment in Black American history, and it is well past time that our country recognizes the importance of this day by making it a Federal holiday.

While the Emancipation Proclamation outlawed slavery in the South, and the Civil War effectively ended with the surrender of the Confederacy in April of 1865 at Appomattox, slavery did not immediately end throughout the United States.

During the Civil War, many slaveholders migrated to Texas to avoid conflict and continued to hold Black Americans in bondage after the formal end of the Civil War.

On June 19, 1865, Union troops finally arrived in Galveston Bay, Texas, to ensure that slaves were freed, a full 2\1/2\

years after the Emancipation Proclamation was signed by President Lincoln.

On that date, Major General Gordon Granger issued General Order No. 3, which announced that, in accordance with the Emancipation Proclamation, all slaves are free.

In the years following, Black Texans began to celebrate Juneteenth, also known as Emancipation Day, Jubilee Day, and Juneteenth Independence Day. Over time, they developed time-honored traditions for celebration, including parades, cookouts, family reunions, prayer gatherings, historic and cultural readings, and musical performances. As Texans emigrated to other parts of the United States, those traditions came with them and became enshrined in Black communities across our country.

Today, Juneteenth is celebrated by communities throughout the United States. Forty-eight States and the District of Columbia recognize Juneteenth. It is time for the Federal Government to do the same.

My own district in southeastern Pennsylvania takes great pride in its Juneteenth celebrations. From parades and flag raisings and picnics to musical performances and community gatherings, our community will celebrate at dozens of events throughout the district this weekend.

On a planning call this week for one of our local celebrations, a resident from the Eastwick neighborhood in southwest Philadelphia proclaimed that ``Juneteenth is the holy grail'' of celebrations for the community because it represents America's true day of freedom.

Upon hearing the news that this bill would come up for passage today, one of my staffers said: ``As an African-American woman raising five beautiful children, it would mean so much to make Juneteenth a Federal holiday. . . . It allows people to reflect on what my ancestors had to deal with. It gives the history of how they fought and continued to fight as they passed the torch on to the next generation.''

Another community member just shared: ``I hope this provides an accessible, teachable moment so people across the country can talk with their neighbors about why we need this holiday and how it helps to address the erasure of Black contributions to humanity and history.''

I know that this move to make Juneteenth a Federal holiday will mean so much to members of the Black community in my district, and I am so excited to have the great honor of returning home to celebrate this weekend after we pass this bill.

Juneteenth, like many of our other Federal celebrations, serves as a day of remembrance and reflection and a celebration of emancipation and freedom.

So, as we consider the rule today, and as we approach this year's Juneteenth celebrations, I ask my colleagues in this Chamber to think and reflect on our Nation's complicated history, the events that led us to where we are, and what we need to do to reckon with our past and continue to work toward creating a more equitable and inclusive society.

America has historically failed to fully address the horrors of the abuse wrought upon enslaved people during the early years of our country, and to this day, we live with the long-term effects and consequences of slavery in America.

Racism, both interpersonal and institutional, continues to plague our country. And despite monumental efforts, from the Civil War to the civil rights movement and beyond, to get our Nation to live up to the ideals proclaimed in the Declaration of Independence, Black Americans still face disparate treatment and disparate outcomes across our society, from housing and healthcare to education and the workplace.

To move forward with the work of dismantling institutional racism that continues to disenfranchise Black Americans, it is essential that we start by looking critically at how we get here.

If we all truly commit ourselves to striving toward a more perfect Union, where all people are not only legally equal but actually have a fair shot at achieving the American Dream, we must recognize our current failings and take the necessary steps to end racial discrimination, the racial wealth gap, and racial injustices in our social, economic, environmental, and judicial institutions.

While some may feel that making Juneteenth a Federal holiday is a purely symbolic act, symbols hold power. Holidays hold power.

While millions of Americans already celebrate Juneteenth and use the day to reflect on our collective past and future, this is an important step to formally commemorate a crucial part of our culture and history that for too long has been canceled.

I look forward to working with my colleagues on other meaningful steps we can take to honor the legacy of enslaved people who contributed so much to our history and to address the lasting impacts of this cruel chapter in our history that still persist today.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I now recognize my distinguished colleague, the chairwoman of the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security in the House Committee on the Judiciary. Representative Sheila Jackson Lee is a tremendous advocate and leader in the fight for racial equity and an inspiration to many of our colleagues, including myself. Coming from the great State of Texas, she is all too familiar with the history and importance of Juneteenth for African Americans and for all Americans to recognize and reconcile our history.

In Congress' past, Representative Jackson Lee led the charge to recognize Juneteenth as a national holiday by introducing legislation to federally recognize this historic day. In the 117th Congress, she, again, introduced H.R. 1320, which I understand formed the basis for the Senate bill.

Through the tireless work of her and her Senate colleagues, we now have the privilege of voting on this historic legislation. I applaud the tremendous work of the distinguished gentlewoman from Texas.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson Lee).

Mr. Speaker, I yield an additional 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson Lee).

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time. I want to echo the remarks of my distinguished colleague, Representative Sheila Jackson Lee, in mentioning Pennsylvania's history in this moment. I want to highlight Philadelphia's role in our Nation's abolitionist movement, the Quakers, Lucretia Mott, who embraced that movement and pushed this country forward, the role of our residents in fighting and winning the Civil War, and being the birthplace of American ideals at Independence Hall.

Mr. Speaker, I hope that in passing this rule and the underlying bill we will take a collective step forward in achieving those goals that all Americans are equal under the law, treated fairly in our schools, our workplaces, our courts, and our public institutions.

Symbols hold power. Holidays hold power. While millions of Americans already celebrate Juneteenth and use the day to reflect on our collective past and future, this is an important step to formally commemorate a crucial part of our culture and history. I urge, again, that all my colleagues vote for the rule and the underlying bill.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time, and I move the previous question on the resolution.

The previous question was ordered.