Mayor Wendell Lynch and Christian County Judge-Executive Steve Tribble signed a Juneteenth Proclamation in downtown Hopkinsville Friday morning.
According to the proclamation, on June 19, 1865, General Gordan Granger led thousands of federal troops to Galveston, Texas to announced that the civil war had ended and that slaves had been freed in that state.
Mayor Lynch tells the News Edge we are all in this together and adds America really has two Independence Days — July 4th when we declared our independence from English crown and Juneteenth for people of color.
Juneteenth is the oldest known celebration honoring the end of slavery in the United States.
In 1996 the first legislation to recognize “Juneteenth Independence Day” was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives.
Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear signed a proclamation honoring Juneteenth Thursday afternoon. The governor said he will ask the general assembly to make it a permanent state holiday.
Mayor Lynch and Judge Tribble encouraged all citizens to pause, reflect, and embrace our shared journey of Freedom.
