Long Branch Juneteenth Walk Celebrates Freedom, Focuses On Future

LONG BRANCH, NJ — The community came out to celebrate Juneteenth, which also included reflection on black history and recognition of how they can create change.

The walk will begin at Jerry Morgan Park and end at the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. monument on Atlantic Avenue.

The Juneteenth Coalition is hosted the walk. See the Facebook event here.

More coverage of the event is upcoming.

Juneteenth, which is short for June 19th, is a 155-year-old holiday that celebrates the emancipation of African Americans from slavery in the United States.

The Emancipation Proclamation had formally freed enslaved people in 1862 in Confederate states. But Texas was the most remote of the slave states and had a low presence of Union troops, so enforcement of the proclamation was slow and inconsistent.

On June 19, 1865, Union Gen. Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston, Texas, to inform enslaved African Americans that the Civil War was over and slavery had been abolished.

The Thirteenth Amendment — adopted Dec. 6, 1865 — abolished slavery and involuntary servitude except as punishment for a crime.

Click here to get Patch email notifications on this or other local news articles or get Patch breaking news alerts sent right to your phone with our app. Download here. Follow Long Branch-Eatontown Patch on Facebook. Have a news tip? Email josh.bakan@patch.com.