With the unanimous support of the Senate and an overwhelming supermajority of the House, President Joe Biden signed Juneteenth into federal law 155 years after its inaugural celebration in Galveston, Texas. Yet, despite the bipartisan support for the holiday in the Beltway, some conservative critics have balked at it.
Candace Owens deemed the holiday “soooo lame” and accused Democrats of trying to “repackage segregation.” Michael Knowles claims that, unlike other existing federal holidays, Juneteenth lacks an “expression of gratitude” and that Democrats have tried to weaponize the celebration as evidence that, as Barack Obama put it, “there is still so much work to do.”
Knowles isn’t wrong that Democrats will use Juneteenth as an excuse to accuse Republicans of racism if they don’t go along with their agenda. Biden already did that in his speech for the holiday’s signing, using the opportunity to push for his election federalization proposal. But Democrats will weaponize everything from your children’s basic education in history and human biology to a global pandemic. That alone isn’t a good enough excuse.
The Right should fundamentally embrace Juneteenth because it celebrates a crucial step in the fulfillment of America’s founding principles and our founding dream. It does not displace Independence Day but strengthens what it represents. Without Independence Day, Juneteenth (self-governed people finally fighting for and achieving liberty for those wronged by our country’s governance) could have never happened, and without what Juneteenth represents, Independence Day would mean far less than its current celebration: the beginning of a republic self-governed by men created equal by God.
The celebration of Juneteenth is a celebration of America. In a political climate that has the Left increasingly loathing America and what it stands for, a holiday that proves our nation’s original sin was not insurmountable is precisely what we need. Furthermore, contrary to Knowles’s assertion that Juneteenth lacks an expression of gratitude, it is gratitude. Although the rest of the nation may be unfamiliar with Juneteenth, the city of Galveston has celebrated the final liberation of its slaves every year since their emancipation. Texans aren’t hosting cookouts and publicly reading the Emancipation Proclamation out of the sort of bitterness that fuels spoiled college activists who hate on America. They celebrated because emancipation is fundamentally American.
Those on the Left may want to hijack every success in our fight against racism, but we must not let them. Embracing Juneteenth seems like a wise way to start.
