State Representative Jamie Long

161 years ago today, the promise of freedom upon which this nation was founded finally reached the last enslaved people in Galveston, Texas. The news of their emancipation from slavery came over two years after the Emancipation Proclamation.

This day is a reminder of the cost of freedom delayed, deferred, and denied. But Juneteenth is also a day of celebration, commemorating the resilience, power, and hope of African Americans who had to fight to earn for the freedom they always deserved.

There is still much work to do to ensure true freedom for all. The freedom to afford your life. The freedom to start a family — and the freedom to choose not to. The freedom to thrive. We still have a great deal of work to do. And we will do it together.

In Minnesota and beyond, Happy Juneteenth!