MADISON, Wis — The Juneteenth flag was raised above the Wisconsin state Capitol in Madison Tuesday, ahead of the holiday Wednesday.
Juneteenth commemorates the day the last enslaved African Americans were freed, two years after the Emancipation Proclamation declared the end of slavery in the United States.
On June 19, 1865, troops in Galveston Bay, Texas told the last enslaved Black people that they were free, through the Emancipation Proclamation and 13th Amendment. The Emancipation Proclamation was issued on Jan. 1, 1863; the 13th Amendment was passed on Jan. 31, 1865 and ratified Dec. 6, 1865.
“We raised the flag today at the state Capitol, not only to honor and commemorate the history, but also to serve us a reminder that Black American history is American history,” said State Rep. Dora Drake, D-Milwaukee.
Juneteenth has a long history in Wisconsin. Milwaukee is host to one of the oldest Juneteenth celebrations in the northern United States, beginning in 1972.
Juneteenth was officially recognized by the state in 2009.
“It’s a lot of pride in celebrating Juneteenth,” said Ruben Anthony, president and CEO of the Urban League of Greater Madison. “I came to Milwaukee in 1980 and so we've been celebrating, I've been celebrating it ever since then and certainly when we moved to Madison it was a joy to know that they were going to celebrate Juneteenth Day here.”
This is the fifth year the flag has been raised above the Capitol.
Tuesday’s ceremony was full of cultural displays aimed at making sure future generations understand the history of the day.
“I think it should encourage all of us, not only to love the history and the people that we come from, but to encourage others to learn more about how beautiful and how rich our culture is here,” said Drake.
Leaders also sought to send a clear message that the work is not over in the U.S. They cited challenges to diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs and inequalities surrounding health care and education.
“We stand on the shoulders of giants and yet, you know, we still have challenges today,” said Anthony. “I think that as much as we celebrate Juneteenth Day, we have to recognize the challenges and we really need to kind of get people to recognize that our democracy is at stake.”
Leaders said they hope the flag over the Capitol serves as a symbol of how far the country has come, and how far it has left to go.
“It should serve as a reminder of what it means, not just to fight for justice and for freedom, but what we need to do to maintain it,” said Drake.
The flag will remain above the Capitol until Wednesday at sunset. It temporarily replaces the Progress Pride Flag.