USM commemorates Juneteenth

Freedom Day, Jubilee Day, Emancipation Day, or whatever you want to call it, is recognized by many black families as when their ancestors were physically released from the shackles of their owners. 

Juneteenth, or June 19, a day that honors the freedom of slaves 2 years after President Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation, will be observed as a holiday for students and staff on University of Maryland facilities.  

 

UMD President Darryll J. Pines, sent an email to announce the change taking place to celebrate “black history and culture.”

Since the holiday falls on a Saturday, the observance will be Friday, June 18.

 

“Employees will be granted administrative leave on this day, and all summer session classes will be canceled,” President Pines said. 

 

June 19 became a trending topic during the racial injustice protests that took place across the country last summer following the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis. 

 

“The granting of leave came in the emotionally raw weeks following the killing of George Floyd, and was meant to help us confront the pain and indignity that slavery has left behind,” Jay A. Perman, chancellor of the state university system, said in a statement to The Washington Post. 

 

Juneteenth for the universities and higher-education centers is a day of reflection,how black culture is an important factor of American history and to aid the abolishment of anti-Black ideologies.