Americans Come Together On Juneteenth

Reflections on the past, resolutions for the future.

President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris and Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff attend a concert in celebration of Juneteenth, Monday, June 10, 2024, on the South Lawn of the White House. (Official White House Photo by Adam Schultz)

“Juneteenth Is Our Second Independence Day,” wrote former Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice for the Free Press yesterday. “On June 19, 1865, Union soldiers arrived in Galveston Bay, Texas, and freed the last enslaved people in the Confederacy. When we celebrate their freedom, we celebrate America itself.”