Miscellaneous
On the CBS News Weekend Roundup with host Allison Keyes, June 19, 1865, enslaved Blacks in Texas learned they were free...two years after President Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation. More than 150-years later, President Biden declared what is now called Juneteenth, a federal holiday. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX) who has long supported the legislation, held the gavel that officially declared the passage, joins Allison to tell us how she's feeling. As we commemorate Juneteenth, we wondered what it was like for Black people immediately after the end of slavery. Allison asked University of Maryland history professor Christopher Bonner. Allison also speaks with Queen Quet, the head of the Gullah-Geechee Nation, which includes people from numerous African ethnic groups linked with indigenous Americans. She explains why Juneteenth holds a special meaning for her people. Rev. John L-C Mosley Sr., who convened a meeting of activists to work for greater national recognition of Juneteenth in 1997, shares his thoughts with Allison about Congress' passage of the bill. In 2016, 94-year-old Texas native, Opal Lee started "Opal's Walk to DC Campaign," to fight to make Juneteenth a national holiday. On the Kaleidoscope, Allison speaks with the "Grandmother of Juneteenth" about her new project, and how she got started with her activism. Despite the historic bill, not everyone supports making Juneteenth a federal holiday. Allison speaks with Marie Fischer, a member of the conservative Black group, Project 21. Finally, ten Black museums joined forces for a BlackFreedom.org virtual event, to commemorate the holiday with themed programs ranging from tenacity to liberty to joy. At the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis, Noelle Trent joins Allison to discuss its special Juneteenth programming for young people.