Why Juneteenth Matters – The End of Slavery?!

© picture alliance / NurPhoto | Bastiaan Slabbers

About the Event

The „Amerikazentrum Hamburg“ and the Friedrich-Naumann-Foundation are organizing a special online-seminar in English due to the current developments in the US and the continuously changing cultural climate of the country. We are using Juneteenth, the oldest remembrance day celebrating the liberation from slavery, to invite Dr. Christine LeVeaux Haley (University of Houston) and John Eligon (The New York Times) to discuss historical roots and current changes. The day of liberation took place on June 19th 1865 in Texas, and is celebrated as a public holiday in the state. It is used as an occasion to emphasize the importance of the equality and freedom of all human beings. Black communities across the country use this day to celebrate and commemorate the liberation.