06/19/2026
Happy Juneteenth!
Today we honor the day of a free nation when our African American slaves were freed from bo***ge.
A mention in a cherished autobiography of John Roy Lynch (an American slave, freed, and the first African American congressman in Mississippi) quotes him in February 1875, less than a month before the Civil Rights bill became law. John Roy Lynch made an impassioned plea for the passage of the bill. In part, he said:
“I appeal to all members of the House republicans and democrats, conservatives and liberals to join with us in the passage of this bill, which has for its object the protection of human rights. And when every man, woman, and child can feel and know that his, her, and their rights are fully protected by the strong arm of a generous and grateful Republic, then can all truthfully say that this beautiful land of ours, over which the Star Spangled Banner so triumphantly waves, is, in truth and in fact, the "land of the free and the home of the brave."”
