Today is Juneteenth, an annual observation of the events of June 19, 1865 – it was the day that the enslaved people in Galveston, Texas were brought news of their freedom due to the Emancipation Proclamation. They were not made aware of their freedom until two years after the Proclamation went out in 1863. As of this June, it has been made a federal holiday – Juneteenth National Independence Day.